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As one of the most in-demand, non-pathologizing approaches available today, IFS therapy transforms your practice so you can stop chasing symptoms and start addressing the core issues that underlie your clients' biggest challenges.
With the IFS framework you can work with your clients' multiple parts, each with their own thoughts, emotions, and behaviors in a way that is both compassionate and deeply transformative.
The results? Treatment that feels more empowering, effective, and sustainable than you ever imagined possible – for both the client and yourself.
Now in this live 3-day training, you can learn the fundamentals of IFS therapy and get the step-by-step instruction, tools and techniques you need to get started.
You'll join Stacy Ruse, LPC, who specializes in using IFS therapy for gentle and effective trauma work with clients and provides consultation to help other clinicians reach their full potential using the IFS model.
She'll provide you with a robust learning experience complete with lectures, demonstrations, and practical real-world applications that will deepen your understanding of the IFS framework and enhance your therapeutic skills.
Full of specific techniques, tips and insight-building case studies, Stacy will empower you to:
- Quickly build clients' sense of trust, inner stability and cooperation within themselves
- Release emotional and physical trauma stored in the body with IFS techniques
- Work with anxious parts in the IFS framework to reduce their intensity
- Integrate IFS therapy with EMDR, CBT and other treatment modalities you already use
- And much more!
This is your chance to join the thousands of therapists who've already discovered the transformative power of IFS therapy. Register now!
Choose Your Experience
April 14–16, 2027 · 8am–4pm PT
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel San Jose
- Up to 19 CE hours
- 90-day recording access
- Live demonstrations & hands-on practice
- Network with peers from across the country
On-Demand Replay
- Up to 19 CE hours
- 90-day recording access
- Live Q&A with Stacy
- Virtual networking with colleagues
Why I Can't Wait to Share This Work With You
Here's what I know:
You got into this work to help people heal at the deepest level.
But somewhere along the way, maybe you've felt like something was missing. A framework that could handle the complexity of what your clients bring — the trauma, the anxiety, the parts of themselves they can't quite make sense of.
That's exactly where IFS changed everything for me.
Parts work became the missing piece I didn't even know I was looking for. Not just for my clients' healing, but for how I showed up as a therapist. And here's what makes it even more powerful: IFS integrates beautifully with whatever you're already doing — EMDR, CBT, somatic work, all of it.
Over these three days, I'm going to teach you the language, the techniques, and the step-by-step tools. But more than that, I'm going to show you how to make it yours — how to adapt it for your specific clients, your practice style, your therapeutic approach.
We'll build this progressively. Foundation first — understanding the self-led therapist, the neurobiology, how to map the internal system. Then the core techniques: unblending, working with protectors, the unburdening process. By day three, you'll see how it all comes together in ways you can use immediately.
The clients you're seeing — the ones carrying trauma, PTSD, complex wounds, the weight of parts they don't understand — they're why this work matters. And you're why I keep teaching it.
I can't wait to work alongside you.
Why Therapists Travel to Train with Stacy Ruse
Probably the best, most interesting and knowledgeable speaker I've seen in my 30+ years of practice.
Cynthia G. · Social Worker
Easily the best continuing education training I have completed.
Joshua H. · Counselor
The first IFS training that has really clicked in terms of what to actually do with clients in session. So glad I signed up!
Breann G. · Social Worker
3-Day Workshop on Using Internal Family Systems Therapy
Applying the IFS Model in the Treatment of PTSD, Complex Trauma and MoreApril 14–16, 2027 · San Jose, California & Live Online
What You'll Learn
A progressive, three-day deep dive built to take you from foundational understanding to confident clinical application.
- Brief history of IFS
- Basic assumptions and holistic approach
- Inclusivity, cultural humility, and competency
- Therapeutic and clinical applications
- The 8 C's: self qualities
- Holding Self-energy: 5 P's for self-lead therapists
- The benefits of self-energy and therapist presence
- Compassion, connection, and understanding
- Setting appropriate boundaries
- Biases and transference in the therapeutic relationship
- IFS therapy as a bottom-up treatment method
- Neuroscience 101 for therapists — what you need to know
- Sensing vs. making sense of things
- Stress reactions and the autonomic nervous system: Polyvagal 101
- Fear circuitry and the development of PTSD, trauma, dissociation, and complex trauma
- Defining parts: who and what are parts?
- Defining self: who and what is self?
- The burdened system
- Protective Parts
- Managers: the proactive parts
- Firefighters: the reactive parts
- Exiles: the wounded & shadowed parts
- Understanding the situation: Mapping internal and external factors
- Engaging the client: Intro, relationship, target, and tracking
- Permission to work with the protective system
- Healing exiles and internal wounds
- Integration of the work: Adapting to changes
- Completion & closure: appreciation and closing sessions
- Unblending the system for emotional regulation
- The 6 F's of IFS: Getting to know parts
- Shifting to inner story & connection
- In-sight work
- Direct access work
- Creating safety and getting permission
- Targets and use of trailheads
- Resistance as a protection
- Distinguish between parts and self
- Significance of appreciation
- Assess ability for in-sight or direct work
- Getting to know managers
- Getting to know firefighters
- Common protector concerns and fears
- Getting to know exiles
- Trauma, attachment wounds, and exiles
- Common exile concerns and fears
- Safely working with exiles
- Unburdening process step by step
- Self to part relationship and preventing overwhelm
- Witnessing, invitation, do-overs, and retrieval
- Integration of work and additional considerations
- Internal polarizations and alignment
- Therapist parts interfering
- When burdens and parts come back?
- Predicting ‘backlash’
- Complex systems - hard to track; lack of client self-energy
- Blended parts not unblending
- Lack of awareness in the body
- Attachment-based
- Somatic based
- Complex trauma, and dissociation
- Spirituality, transpersonal psychology, and IFS therapy
- Integration with other models
- Examining the current research
- Challenges to the research and research limitations
- Addressing potential risks
- Contraindications and other considerations
+ Click Here for Learning Objectives
- Integrate the "observer self" concept in psychotherapy.
- Define how neuroscience, neurobiology, and polyvagal theory inform the IFS framework.
- Summarize the fundamental principles of Internal Family Systems (IFS) and how they apply to clinical practice.
- Identify the three core categories of parts in the Internal Family Systems model.
- Evaluate the clinical implications of the relationship between Self-Leadership and relational outcomes.
- Develop an understanding of how therapists' awareness of their internal processes impacts their clinical work, the therapeutic relationship and client interactions.
- Examine neurobiology as related to trauma and complex trauma development.
- Evaluate the preliminary support for IFS as a promising practice for the treatment of PTSD among adults with a history of childhood trauma.
- Utilize the Internal Family Systems model to enhance self-awareness and improve interpersonal skills in clients.
- Differentiate parts from Self, to speak for, as opposed to from, reactive emotional states.
- Utilize mapping techniques from IFS to externalize relational dynamics of the internal system.
- Identify parts of the internal system that become exiled and how trauma affects this phenomenon.
- Utilize IFS strategies to shift clients' nervous systems towards regulation and help them access their own capacity for healing.
- Utilize IFS strategies to obtain protector permission to go to exiled parts to work with trauma wounds and release burdens.
- Identify patterns, aspects, and archetypal influences of the psyche through the IFS-lens.
- Distinguish the IFS approach to working with transference and countertransference in the therapeutic relationship.
- Describe somatic techniques to enhance awareness in working with parts and accessing Self.
- Identify challenges of using the IFS framework for complex trauma.
Walk Away With IFS Skills You'll Use
Join Stacy Ruse, LPC — IFS therapist and trauma specialist — for three days of lectures, live demonstrations, and practical application that takes you from theory to clinical confidence.
Full of specific techniques, case studies, and step-by-step tools, you'll leave empowered to:
- Quickly build clients' sense of trust and inner stability
- Release emotional and physical trauma stored in the body with IFS techniques
- Work with anxious parts to reduce their intensity
- Integrate IFS with EMDR, CBT and other modalities you already use
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel San Jose
- Up to 19 CE hours
- 90-day access to replay
- Live demonstrations & hands-on practice
- Network with peers from across the country
On-Demand Replay
- Up to 19 CE hours
- 90-day access to replay
- Live Q&A with Stacy
- Virtual networking with colleagues
This event is not endorsed by, sponsored by, or affiliated with the IFS Institute and does not qualify for IFS Institute credits or certification.
LPC, E-RYT-500
Stacy Ruse, LPC, E-RYT-500
Stacy Ruse, LPC, E-RYT-500, is an IFS therapist, trauma specialist, and founder of Aglow Counseling. She's a trauma expert who specializes in using IFS therapy, EMDR, and somatic therapies to unravel the intricate threads of trauma and guide clients towards empowerment and resilience.
Her approach, while deeply rooted in trauma-informed methodologies, is characterized by a transpersonal twist that transcends the boundaries of traditional therapy. Stacy is certified in EMDR, is a Nationally Certified Counselor (NCC), and is a certified yoga instructor.
"Stacy Ruse was one of the best presenters I've heard. She is informed, respectful and very enjoyable."
Tina K., Counselor"Stacy was excellent. One of the best presenters I have seen!"
Nik L., MFTEvent Location
Located just across from San José Mineta International Airport (SJC) and minutes from downtown, the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel San Jose puts you in the heart of Silicon Valley — with easy access for attendees flying in from across the country.
Extend your learning into a mini getaway — stroll the shops and restaurants of Santana Row, explore the historic Winchester Mystery House, or unwind along the Guadalupe River Trail.
Questions Before You Register
Who is this workshop designed for?
This workshop is built for licensed mental health clinicians — therapists, counselors, social workers, psychologists, and MFTs — who work with clients experiencing trauma, PTSD, anxiety, or complex relational patterns. It builds progressively from foundation to advanced application, so both IFS beginners and experienced clinicians leave with tangible new skills.
I'm brand new to IFS. Will I be able to keep up?
Absolutely. The training starts with the model's foundations — the neurobiology, understanding parts, the self-led therapist — before building into techniques and live application. Stacy breaks every concept down step by step.
I've already had some IFS training. Is this worth my time?
Yes. Many attendees come with prior IFS experience and walk away with new insights and deeper clinical skill — especially around the unburdening process and handling challenging cases.
Will IFS work alongside EMDR, CBT, or somatic approaches I already use?
That's one of IFS's greatest strengths. A dedicated training module covers integration with EMDR, CBT, somatic-based, and attachment-based approaches. You'll leave with a clear map of how IFS enhances — rather than replaces — what you're already doing with clients.
What CE credit is available?
You can earn up to 19.0 CE hours.
Please note: You will have access for 90 days after the program for review. For live CE credit, you must watch the live presentation in its entirety at its scheduled time and complete the CE quiz and evaluation within one week. This requirement may vary by credit type. Please see detailed credit information for specific requirements for each credit type.
What will the schedule look like?
April 14–16, 2027 · 8am–4pm PT
Each day there will be a 70-minute lunch and two 15-minute breaks: one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Lunch and break times will be announced by the speaker and at their discretion. A more detailed schedule is available upon request.
Can I access the recordings after the event?
Yes. All registrants — in-person and online — receive archive recording access for 90 days. Review sessions at your own pace, revisit techniques as your practice develops, or catch anything you may have missed during the live event.
What is the in-person cancellation policy?
From Purchase Date until March 13, 2027: Cancellation results in a full refund less a $100 administrative fee.
From March 13, 2027: Cancellation results in a 50% penalty of the total purchase amount.
3-Day Workshop on Using Internal Family Systems Therapy
Applying the IFS Model in the Treatment of PTSD, Complex Trauma and MoreApril 14–16, 2027 · San Jose, California & Live Online