This 3 hour course is designed to introduce EMDR therapists to the Internal Family Systems (IFS) model. IFS is rapidly transforming the practices of many psychotherapists, including EMDR therapists, due to its universality, elegance, effectiveness, and intuitively natural appeal. It is an ego state model that applies to both the client and the therapist, and relies upon the organic development of a healing process through eliciting the healing energy of everyone’s inner Self. It normalizes the formation of a protective system of inner parts which self-organize into Protectors (defenses) and Exiles (trauma parts).

This course, in Powerpoint lectures, will point out some of the major concerns about the use of EMDR with complex clients, the need to supplement EMDR with an Ego State model, discuss the unique advantages of IFS as an Ego State model, thoroughly describe the essential concepts of the model, and introduce its use in all eight phases of the EMDR Standard Protocol.

The workshop will demonstrate the organic process of IFS through ample session video clips, as well as how this approach can be infused into the 8 phases of EMDR. This will prepare learners for further elaboration of the integration of IFS and EMDR in the 6 hour EMDRIFS.com course; IFS-Informed EMDR: The Internal Family Systems Interweave.