In this episode, we explore the nature of grief through the lens of Internal Family Systems (IFS) with senior trainer Einat Bronstein. Drawing on the work of Francis Weller and other key grief theorists, we reflect on grief not as a problem to solve, but as a deeply human experience that calls for presence, witnessing, and integration.

We discuss how cultural expectations and “collective burdens” shape the way grief is experienced, often leading to blocked or frozen processes. From an IFS perspective, grief is understood as a complex, non-linear experience carried by different parts of the internal system, particularly exiles.

The conversation explores topics like:

• How IFS differs from stage-based and task-oriented models of grief - such as those of Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, John Bowlby, J. William Worden, and Robert Neimeyer
• What happens internally when we experience loss, and the roles of different parts in the grieving process
• Why grief may feel stuck, and how Self-led witnessing can allow transformation and healing
• The connection between present grief and earlier, unresolved losses
• The role of psychoeducation, ritual, and embodied expression in supporting grief
• What it means to “integrate” a loss within the IFS framework

We also reflect on common pitfalls therapists may encounter when working with grief, and the deeper wisdom that can emerge from loss, about love, attachment, and the enduring presence of those we have lost.

This episode is an invitation to approach grief with curiosity, compassion, and openness, honoring it as a doorway to connection, meaning, and inner transformation.

We are excited to celebrate the launch of IFS Collected Wisdom: Conversations with Experienced Voices in Internal Family Systems a book that brings together voices, reflections, and lived experience from across the IFS community. This book was created from a desire to honor those voices, and to acknowledge that wisdom in IFS doesn’t live in one place or one person. It lives in relationship, in experience, and in the field as it evolves. Thank you for being a listener, for being part of this community,  and for continuing to explore what becomes possible when Self leads. We hope that IFS Collected Wisdom can become a companion in your IFS journey. Here is a link to the IFS Collected Wisdom book contents. 

Today on IFS Talks, we’re excited to welcome Lisa Spiegel and Claire Stubbs. Lisa is the founder of Soho Parenting in New York City. She’s an author and a certified IFS therapist and consultant who has worked with children and families for over 40 years and teaches therapists around the world.  

Claire Stubbs is a chartered counseling psychologist, author, and IFS therapist in the UK, specializing in neurodiversity, trauma, and emotionally based school avoidance. She is the author of Emotionally Based School Avoidance: A Compassionate and supportive companion for you and your child. Today, we will be speaking with them about using IFS withchildren and families. Welcome, Lisa and Claire! 

We are excited to celebrate the launch of IFS Collected Wisdom: Conversations with Experienced Voices in Internal Family Systems a book that brings together voices, reflections, and lived experience from across the IFS community. This book was created from a desire to honor those voices, and to acknowledge that wisdom in IFS doesn’t live in one place or one person. It lives in relationship, in experience, and in the field as it evolves. Thank you for being a listener, for being part of this community,  and for continuing to explore what becomes possible when Self leads. We hope that IFS Collected Wisdom can become a companion in your IFS journey. Here is a link to the IFS Collected Wisdom book contents. 

In today’s episode,  we speak with Joanne Twombly about a powerful IFS technique commonly known as "The Fire Drill, based on Joanne's chapter called The Fire Drill: Sorting Through Countertransference with IFS."

And we also announce the recent publication of  IFS Collected Wisdom:Conversations with Experienced Voices in Internal Family Systems.

We are deeply grateful to all those who contributed to this project, and endorsed this volume, including Richard Schwartz, Susan  McConnell, Cece  Sykes,  Joanne Twombly,  Einat  Bronstein, Bob  Falconer, and many others. 

We hope the book will be a companion on your IFS journey.

Here is a link to the IFS Collected Wisdom contents.

Our guest is Paul Neustadt,  a clinical social worker and IFS Senior Co-lead Trainer. Paul has worked in community mental health and the counseling program of a working-class state university as well as having been the director of a community-based counseling and prevention program. Paul sees himself as a spiritual being in a human body, on a healing journey, in this life to learn lessons, to connect with his soul, and to live in accordance with his life purpose. Part of his life purpose has been to share the gift of IFS with others. In this episode, we discuss the qualities and virtues of Self-like parts, and how to welcome, honor, and genuinely validate them in a non-shaming way that allows more Self energy to emerge.

Today we welcome Catia Vinnik.  Catia Vinnik is a neuroscientist and science communicator who has dedicated over 20 years to understanding the brain—from sensory processing and memory to molecular mechanisms underlying complex behaviors. 

Recently, she has translated this extensive research into practical psychoeducation tools and interactive games for therapists.

Catia graduated from medical school and earned her PhD in cognitive neuroscience in Italy, during which she discovered a novel auditory illusion. 

She founded the "Behaving Brain" project to bridge neuroscience and psychotherapy, creating accessible tools such as Brain Coping Cards that therapists can use with their clients. 

Her belief that learning should be active, shapes workshops on the neuroscience of addiction, anxiety, depression, trauma, and other therapy-related topics by using interactive educational games that clarify complex neural interactions in the client's brain and how therapy taps into these processes.

Dr. Vinnik is trained in Internal Family Systems, a model she values highly for its insightful perspective on the human mind.

This episode is a recording of an open Q&A session with Martha Sweezy. 

Trigger warning:
All questions were submitted by participants and focused primarily on Martha’s area of expertise: shame and guilt. 
Please note that Martha Sweezy makes political comments in this episode.

Today we are welcoming back Cece Sykes. Cece is a senior trainer at the Internal Family Systems Institute with over thirty-five years of clinical experience specializing in recovery from trauma and addiction. Her chapter on addictive processes appears in IFS: Innovations & Elaborations. She is a co-author of the book, Treating Addictive Processes with Internal Family Systems Therapy, published in 2023. Cece also developed the Heart Lessons of the Journey retreat for an on-going study of therapist narratives. She lectures and consults internationally on these and other related subjects. Cece lives and works in the Chicago area.  Today, we will be speaking with her about the Nature and Healing of Exiles in IFS therapy. 

Paul Neustadt is an IFS Senior Co-Lead Trainer. He has taught workshops on The Gifts of our Exiles, The Power of Presence in IFS; Self Led Parenting; and a number of other topics. He teaches a monthly seminar for level 1 graduates focused on integrating the skills learned in level 1 that begins in October. In his private practice he now focuses on providing individual and group consultation to IFS therapists. For 17 years he was director of a community counseling and prevention program for children, adolescents, and their families. Paul has also worked in a college counseling center and community mental health center, and taught couples and family therapy in a family therapy institute and two graduate programs. As an IFS trainer, Paul creates a safe, accepting atmosphere, attends thoughtfully to group process, and ensures that all parts are welcome. He is known for his clear, down to earth, and open-hearted manner. 

Natalie Thomas is a Registered Psychotherapist and IFS therapist in private practice and a Professor of Philosophy, specializing in animal and environmental ethics. She has presented and led workshops on the application of IFS for those experiencing climate distress, and on ways IFS can inform ecotherapy and nature-based therapies. She also holds monthly climate cafes and trains others to facilitate these, using an IFS lens. She is a Regional Coordinator for the Climate Psychology Alliance of North America, and her current research is focused on the creation of an IFS-informed approach to climate-aware therapy. Parts & Self has published two of her pieces on IFS and animals, and IFS and climate distress. Additionally, she has also been featured in an episode of ‘The One Inside’ which focused on IFS, Self and our connection to nature, and has presented at the latest IFS Conference on IFS, climate distress and ecotherapy. Her private practice specializes in the use of IFS for those suffering from trauma, grief and climate distress, and she also offers workshops, retreats and trainings in these areas. 

Here a link to Natalie's website and Climate Cafes 
 

In this episode, we welcome Ana Morante, Ann-Katrin Bockmann, and Mary Petro to discuss the topic of Self-led motherhood. They will be sharing several important projects that integrate IFS principles and techniques to help support mothers around the world, including those at various stages of their motherhood journey and those who are parenting under extremely challenging conditions, such as poverty and life in war-torn regions. Here is a link to the project’s website,  for those interested in joining this project. 

Today we will be speaking with Joanne about the second edition of her book, Trauma and Dissociation Informed Internal Family Systems: How to Successfully Treat Complex PTSD and Dissociative Disorders, and asking Joanne some follow-up questions to the interview we did with her two years ago, in November 2022. We find this conversation very interesting and valuable for those using IFS with clients with severe complex trauma. We hope you enjoy it and find it useful.