Clients rave about Internal Family Systems (IFS), my coaching method, and so do I. I live what I coach! I’ve dedicated the past 23 years of my life to learning IFS. With over 2,350 hours of IFS training and around 8,000 hours of personal practice, I’m an expert at the Internal Family Systems model. I am also an IFS Certified Practitioner. I have over 1,000 hours of training/ workshop experience with the founder of IFS, Richard Schwartz.
Richard Schwartz (Right) & I, IFS Level 3 Training, Seattle, 2011
Melissa’s 2,350+ hours of IFS training
Core IFS & IFS Couples Training — 1002 hours
2 108-hour 18-day IFS Level 1 Trainings
- Chicago, IL: Richard Schwartz and Susan McConnell, August 2004
- New Buffalo, MI: Kay Gardner, Paul Ginter, and Richard Schwartz, December 2005
3 12-day IFS Level 2 Trainings
- 54 hours. New Buffalo, MI: Gardner, McConnell, Sykes, Schwartz, Oct. 2006 – Apr. 2007
- 54 hours. New Buffalo, MI: Gardner, McConnell, Elkin, Sykes, March 2008
- 72 hours. Chicago, IL: Gardner, Sykes, Herbine-Blank, McConnell, June – Dec. 2009
2 12-day IFS “Intimacy from the Inside Out” Level 2 Basic Couples Trainings
- 64 hours. Watertown, MA: Toni Herbine-Blank, 2009
- 72 hours. Chicago, IL: Toni Herbine-Blank, 2011
28-hour “Intimacy from the Inside Out” 5-day Advanced Couples Training
- Watertown, MA: Toni Herbine-Blank, January 23-27, 2013
24-hr 5-day IFS Couples Therapy Workshop
- Kripalu, MA: Herbine-Blank, Nov 29-Dec 4, 2015
28-hour "Intimacy from the Inside Out" 5-day Post-Advanced Couples Training
- Albuquerque, NM: Toni Herbine-Blank, December 3-8, 2017
13 30-hour 5-day IFS Level 3 Trainings with IFS Founder, Richard Schwartz
- Oak Park, Illinois: Richard Schwartz, June 11-25, 2007
- Oak Park, Illinois: Richard Schwartz, October 29-November 2, 2007
- Oak Park, Illinois: Richard Schwartz, Gardner, Galperin, October 13-17, 2008
- Burlingame, California: Richard Schwartz, December 9-13, 2009
- Seattle, Washington: Richard Schwartz, August 12-16, 2011
- White Plains, New York: Richard Schwartz, November 12-16, 2012
- Cape Cod, Massachusetts: Richard Schwartz, July 22-26, 2013
- Techny, Illinois: Richard Schwartz, March 4-8, 2014
- Berkeley, California: Richard Schwartz, December 5-9, 2014
- Delray Beach, Florida: Richard Schwartz, February 16-20, 2015
- Washington, D.C: Richard Schwartz, November 15-19, 2015
- Boulder, Colorado: Richard Schwartz, April 12-16, 2016
- Delray Beach, Florida: Richard Schwartz, December 14-18, 2016
8 33-hour IFS “Wisdom of the Body,” 7-day workshops at Maya Tulum in Tulum, Mexico
- Richard Schwartz and Barbara Cargill
2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
11 26-hour IFS “The ‘I’ in the Storm” 5-day workshops at Esalen in Big Sur, CA
- Richard Schwartz
2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017
4 26-hour IFS “Self-Compassion” 5-day workshop at Esalen in Big Sur, CA
- Richard Schwartz and Toni Herbine-Blank, 2014
- Richard Schwartz, 2015, 2106, 2017
9 26-hour IFS “Embodying Healing Wisdom” 5-day workshops at Kripalu in MA
- Richard Schwartz and Toni Herbine-Blank: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
- Richard Schwartz and Sarah Stewart: 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016
- 3 day, 12 hr Embodying Self in Daily Life in Chicago: Schwartz, Libman, Neve, July 2003
- 3 day, 10 hr Couples Workshop at the Cenacle in Chicago: Richard Schwartz, 2004
- 5 half-days, 15 hr IFS Cape Cod Institute: Richard Schwartz, 2005
- 6 hr Two Masters, Two Methods, One Couple in Chicago: Schwartz and Real, June 29, 2012Write your text here...
Further Training with IFS Founder Richard Schwartz — 920 Hours
- 5 day, 25 hr IFS Women’s Retreat at Rex Ranch: Herbine-Blank, McConnell, 2006
- 7 day, 30 hr Somatic IFS in Costa Rica: Susan McConnell, February 6-13, 2010
- 2 day, 12 hr IFS and Addictions in Indiana: Cece Sykes, February 26-27, 2010
- 2 day, 12 hr Advanced Techniques in IFS in Portland, OR: Michi Rose, March 2015
- 6 hr Legacy Burdens in Evanston, IL: Kay Gardner, April 17, 2015
- 2 day, 10 hr New Psychotherapy Techniques in Chicago: Michi Rose, April 9-10, 2016
- 2 day, 12 hr Sacred Theatre for Couples in Chicago: Kay Gardner, May 20-21, 2017
- 15 hr IFS Treatment for Sexual Abuse online: May 19-September, 2019
- 15 hr Using IFS To Heal Relationships with Food and the Body online: September-December 2019
- 12 hr Befriending Difficult Protectors online: Mike Elkin, February 7, 2022
- 15 hr Harvesting Resources from the Unburdened System online: Muriel Pastor, 2021
Further Training with Senior IFS Trainers — 164 Hours
12 IFS Conferences— 155 hours
2002 - 2016
Assisting IFS Trainings — 114 Hours
76-hour Residential Level 1 Training as Program Assistant
- Durango, Colorado: Toni-Herbine Blank, Nancy Wonder, 2012
36-hour Residential Level 1 Training as Program Assistant
- Cannon Beach, Oregon: Paul Ginter, Nancy Wonder, 2013
IFS Workshops Presented in Chicago
Advanced Savasana Workshop with Michelle Gaza. 2011
Intro to Internal Family Systems with Michelle Gaza. Nov. 20, 2011
Intro to Internal Family Systems. Jan. 5, 2012
Inner Work at Noon. Jan. 18, 2012
Using the Inner Round Table. Feb. 15, 2012
Using Finger Puppets to Learn about Your Inner Self! with Dr. Gail Clinton. Feb. 22, 2012
Intro to Internal Family Systems. June 6 & 9, 2012
You 101: An Owner’s Guide to Human Personality. Learnapalooza Wicker Park. June 16, 2012
Got Parts? A Quick, Dynamic Introduction to IFS for Coaches.
International Coach Federation Midwest Regional Conference. June 23, 2012
In Illinois with Susan Cahill, 2004-ongoing
IFS-based Authentic Movement Workshops — 1000+ HOURS
350+ hours of IFS therapy with Susan Mason, Jim Schulman, and Susan Cahill, 2002-ongoing.
7,700+ hours of self-directed individual IFS sessions, 2003-ongoing.
Does that really add up to over 5,000 hours? Heres the old spreadsheet
Personal IFS Work — Over 3,000 hours (now around 8,000 as of 2025)
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