78-minute IFS Down Under Interview with Niclés Bestel is a clinical psychologist and level 2 IFS therapist. She is the practice director of Aspire Wellness and Psychology, a Telehealth private practice dedicated to supporting clients with complex trauma and dissociative disorders using Internal Family Systems.

SHOW NOTES:

Get in touch with Niclés, Suzanne or Oliver:

Niclés - https://www.aspirewellnessandpsycholo...

Suzanne - www.suzanneherrity.com

Oliver - www.oliverbrooke.com.au

Topics covered:

- Niclés IFS story

- What is Dissociation?

- Dissociation as a strategy and dissociation as a systemic framework

- The causes of dissociation and dissociated systems

- Language around dissociation

- Compassion for dissociation (a natural strategy of the psyche)

- Using IFS to be with parts who use dissociation as a strategy

- DID and how to work with DID using IFS

- How Self shows up in Dissociative systems

- What not to do with Dissociative systems

- Grounding and dissociation

People mentioned:

Dick Schwartz - https://ifs-institute.com/about-us/ri...

Frank Anderson - https://frankandersonmd.com/

Cece Sykes - https://www.cecesykeslcsw.com/

Oliver Brooke, Host of IFS Down Under is interviewed by Gabrielle Walker for the Flourishing Healing Practice Podcast.

About Oliver

Olly creates and holds a sacred healing space for people to open to their inner wisdom and healing intelligence. Through Internal Family Systems (IFS) he gently guides them to be with the protective parts of their psyche, understand them, and acknowledge their role in the person’s system. 90% of his waking moments in the week he is a dad to two enchanting, magical beings.

In this episode

Internal Family Systems (IFS), is a process that guides people into seeking permission from their protectors to connect with their hurt, vulnerable, and exiled parts which hold burdens of painful or traumatic experiences. From their center, I then witness an unfolding of compassionate healing where the person can witness, retrieve, unload their burdens, and deeply connect with these parts. Bringing them out of exile and into their body and inner family.

Thank you for listening, may we all keep rising as a collective, Gabrielle.

Connect with Oliver:

Website: www.oliverbrooke.com.au

Youtube: @IFSDownUnder

Linkedin

Connect with Gabrielle:

Insta: @flourishinghealing.practice

FB & insta: @wanderkindenergy

Linkedin: www.linedin.com/in/gabriellewalkerperth

Show Notes

IFS and Addiction: A Compassionate Paradigm - Cece Sykes Interview June 2024

75 Minute Interview with Cece Sykes, Senior Lead Trainer for the IFS Institute

TOPICS

Cece's IFS History Shared humanity and person-centered focus

The positive intentions of extreme parts

Definitions of addiction Trauma underlying addictive processes

Compassions place in psychotherapy

Addictive polarities

The Shame, Blame and Flame Triangle

Therapist managers polarised with clients firefighters

U-Turn for firefighters

The Mini-Unblend - pause "What's it like to talk to me about this?"

Psychotherapy vs addiction recovery facilities - pros and cons

Vision for more collaboration in the addiction field

The new IFS-informed, trauma-informed, compassionate paradigm for addiction

Clarity of teachings and focus on how psychotherapy impacts the therapist across their lifespan

Cece's offerings

PEOPLE

Richard Schwartz

Patrick Kahn

Jeanne Catanzaro

Gabor Mate

Carl Rogers

BOOKS

'An IFS Lens on Addiction: Compassion for Extreme Parts' - Cece Sykes - Chapter 2 in Innovations and Elaborations in Internal Family Systems Therapy

'Internal Family Systems Therapy for Addictions: Trauma-Informed, Compassion-Based Interventions' - Cece Sykes, Richard Schwartz, and Martha Sweezy

'Unburdened Eating: Healing Your Relationships with Food and Your Body Using an Internal Family Systems (IFS) Approach' - Jeanne Catanzaro PhD

'In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction' - Gabor Mate

IFS Spotlight: Emma Diamond's Journey as Australia's First IFS-I Lead Trainer A 90-minute Interview with Australia's first IFS-I Lead Trainer, Emma Diamond, sharing her journey to becoming an IFS-I Lead Trainer and offering her wisdom for the Australian community.

Guest

Emma Diamond Links: https://ifs-institute.com/practitione...https://mindbeyond.com.au/ifsanz-key-...

Hosts

Loranie Leas https://ifs-institute.com/practitione...

Oliver Brooke https://www.oliverbrooke.com.au

Topics

Emma’s Professional Journey To IFS Emma’s Personal IFS Journey HIP Trauma – Historical Intergenerational Persistent Trauma First all Australian Level 1 Training in Aus and NZ – We did it! Einat Bronstein and Simon set the foundations for the Australian training team Acknowledgement of Simon as a key person facilitating IFS in Australia International Level 1 Experiences working in Europe, Asia, Russia, and the Middle East Geopolitical impacts on human systems Navigating Real World External Constraints and Polarisations Einat Bronstein seeing, encouraging, and loving Emma Emma’s system of support and the wider web of support Power as a trainer – consistent reflection of how we are relating in that Role Collective legacy work Relationship with having authority and revealed legacy burdens Practicing Self-Leadership as a trainer/leader How we stay Self Led - Speaking for our parts, working with our parts, keeping up with the U-turn Self-Led Advocacy Quote Dick Schwartz “Self has the clarity to see injustice, and the confidence to act to change it but the Compassion to do so without shaming.” Blended Social Justice Parts to Self-Led Advocacy Orientating survivors to empowerment Weaving together Indigenous practices and IFS “With Self-Leadership, there is no wrong; there is only a process of becoming clearer and clearer” – Emma Diamond. Two most important things you can do as a beginning IFS Therapist Do your own therapy! - “The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure that you seek” – Joseph Campbel The benefits of IFS Level 1 Training Different Application Process for Level 1 in Australia, more information here: News about IFS in Australia 2025 and 2026 What IFS means to Emma, Oliver and Loranie

Professionals mentioned
Peter Levine Dan Siegel Judith Herman Janina Fisher Stephen Porges - Poly Vagal Theory Family Based Attachment Therapy – Dan Hughes – Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy Bonnie Wiess Simon d’Orsongna – Mindbeyond - IFS AUS and NZ Einat Bronstien - IFS Lead Trainer Mariel Pastor - IFS Lead Trainer Pam Kraus - IFS Lead Trainer Paul Neustat - IFS Lead Trainer Ann Sinko - IFS Lead Trainer Dick Schwartz - Founder IFS

References
Updated Information and application process and form for Australian IFS Level 1 Training: https://forms.gle/EPSWq6kohnmsS4ys5 IFS Study with Rheumatoid Arthritis: https://ifs-institute.com/resources/r... Epigenetics, chronic illness, and disease: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles... Life Architect: https://lifearchitect.com/