IFS Skill Development
Skills, experiential practice, IFS theory.
“Patrick, you have a gift for the flow of the model. You have been an invaluable IFS resource for me.”
What I do.
I have found that even after getting trained, most therapists new to the IFS model are looking for a little extra support. I offer 1 on 1 skill development sessions where you can further develop your technique, practice accessing self energy during sessions, and get your practical questions answered.
Details.
In a 1 on 1 skills session you get to decide if you would like to focus our time on discussing your IFS work and answering questions about the model, or getting to know your therapist parts. I find that both of these are beneficial. It can really help to give your cognitive parts some training so that they can help with mastery of the model. It can also be hugely helpful to get to know parts in your system that may be preventing you from being in self energy during your sessions with clients. It’s your time so you get to choose what you need.
My rate for skill development session is on a sliding scale from $60-$80 per session. This is a much lower rate than I have seen other folks charge. My price is low for three reasons: I am new at offering consultation and I want to continue to improve before I charge more, I want this to be affordable for fellow therapists, I am not a “certified IFS consultant” with the IFS institute. See info about my qualifications below.
Please reach out via email if you are interested in trying a session. I will get back to you with some possible days and times.
My qualifications.
I am level 1 trained with the IFS institute. I have completed a number of other IFS trainings which you can check out on my info page. Most importantly, I have spent the last year and a half doing powerful work with my own parts as a client working with an incredibly skilled IFS therapist. This is where I learned the most about the model.
I want to be clear that I am not a “certified IFS therapist” yet. I may end up doing all that extra training at some point. But I have found that I am able to really help other clinicians grow their IFS skills right now. I love working with other clinicians and as long as people find benefit in training with me I am happy to offer it. Please note again, since I am not an “IFS approved clinical consultant”, your consultation hours with me will not count towards the 15 consultation hours that the institute requires for you to get certified. It is important to me to be very up front about this.
My IFS journey.
I discovered IFS when I completed the MAPS MDMA-Assisted Therapy training program. It was all anyone was talking about. I started working with an incredibly talented IFS therapist and I immediately experienced powerful breakthroughs and psychedelic type experiences just doing IFS. Since I couldn’t get into a level 1 training with the institute I had to train myself. Here is what I did:
weekly IFS therapy for myself
monthlyish consultation to work on the model and my therapist parts
every local and online training I could get my hands on
read, literally, every book the institute has put out
completed IFS circle (the institute’s online training)
listened to all the podcasts
spent a year using the model with my clients and seeing the enormous breakthroughs they were having
After this year of self-training I finally got into a level 1 training. My hack was that I speak spanish so I got into an online training with IFS Barcelona. What I discovered was that the entire level 1 training was review for me. I spent most of that training helping out other participants and touching up the skills I had already developed. The training was a great experience. And it showed me that it is possible to self-train in IFS.
I’m telling you all this because I want to you be able to understand how I came to be offering consultation services when I am only level 1 trained. I know this is out of the norms that have been established by the institute. I’m ok with that. I also want people to know that it is possible to self-train. It takes a lot of work and you have to have that self-training skill set. But in my opinion, the world doesn’t have time for all of you to wait years and years before you get in to a level 1 training. Your clients and the world need this powerful healing now.