Joanne H. Twombly, MSW, LICSW (Pronouns: she/her/hers) is a psychotherapist in private practice in Arlington, MA, USA. She has over thirty years of experience working with C-PTSD and dissociative disorders and provides trainings and consultation. In addition to her book, “Trauma and Dissociation Informed Internal Family Systems, ” she has written on EMDR and Dissociative Disorders, on EMDR and Internal Family Systems, and on working with perpetrator introjects. Her commitment to helping her clients heal and to providing quality training has resulted in her becoming an EMDR Consultant and a Trauma and Recovery Humanitarian Assistance Program Facilitator, Internal Family Systems Certified, and an American Society for Clinical Hypnosis Consultant. She is a past president of the New England Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation. In recognition of her achievements and her service on committees and the Board of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD), she was honored with ISSTD’s Distinguished Achievement Award and is an ISSTD Fellow. 

Description: This 2-Day workshop will teach you to integrate IFS with the wealth of knowledge from the Complex-PTSD and dissociation world. After receiving an overview of Phase Oriented Treatment for complex Trauma and Dissociation, you will learn and practice a protective format for witnessing and unburdening of traumatic material, along with useful EMDR adaptations. This format provides stability for clients who might be hesitant to work on traumatic material, are fragile and/or are at risk of suicide/destabilization. This Phase Oriented Treatment will offer your clients a chance to have more safety, control, and choices to avoid severe backlash and assist clients in maintaining their highest level of functioning. Although not every client will need the strategies in this workshop, you will gain tools to recognize when your clients need them. And, while not essential for all clients, this knowledge base can be extremely beneficial for anyone with whom you work.

The second part of the workshop will include material on the impact of sadistic abuse, nonverbal communication and countertransference. The expanded Firedrill (Twombly) will be taught and practiced. Discussion, questions, demos and case consultation will be woven in throughout the two days.

You will learn to give your clients a chance to have more safety, control, and choices by helping them develop coping skills and learning how to titrate witnessing. They will heal more comprehensively and more efficiently by missing problems like increased anxiety, backlash from overwhelmed parts, excess difficulty managing during the week, and increased risk of self destructive behaviours. 

This retreat style workshop will include case examples, personal experiences, and clinical exercises to enhance your learning as well. Twombly will offer participants an integration of the powerful treatment modality of IFS with the wealth of knowledge from the Dissociative Disorder/Complex-PTSD field.

During this retreat style workshop you will gain the knowledge of how to treat clients with complex trauma safely, respectfully, ethically and successfully. 

Learning to adapt IFS for use with complex trauma survivors extends its usefulness and provides even more hope for the possibility of healing this population. 

• Implement a protective protocol for titrated witnessing and unburdening of traumatic material and know when it’s necessary. 
• Identify the differences between sadistic and non-sadistic abusers. 
• Know how to decode countertransference through the expanded Fire drill (Twombly) 
• Understand the concepts of reenactments and projective identification and their place in trauma treatment. 
• Recognize and manage attachment to perpetrators 

• The ability to identify and diagnose clients with dissociative disorders
• Understand how to integrate IFS with information from the Trauma and Dissociation Field.
• Ability to teach and implement 5 coping skills with clients to assist with their overall stability, witnessing and unburdening.

This course is designated for mental health professionals who wish to learn more about working with complex trauma and dissociation while integrating IFS and EMDR, who have a solid grasp of Phase 1, diagnosis of dissociative disorders, and the basic coping skills Safe Space imagery, and Containers. Please see our FAQ section to find out about pre-requisites for this course, and how to learn more about Twombly's suggested Phase 1 interventions.

*Breaks marked with an asterisk will not be counted towards CE time awarded 

 COST: $600 per person (plus choice of accommodations) 

REGISTRATION: Pay the $100 deposit per person by CLICKING HERE, or email sioux@mcaft.com with questions. 

Lodging prices are per person for Friday through Sunday and include all meals. 

Single Occupancy in 6 bedroom cottage, $544, Double Occupancy in 6 bedroom cottage, $348

Single Occupancy in 2 Bedroom Cottage, $533, Double Occupancy in 2 Bedroom Cottage, $343

Alternatively, you can choose to Commute (Lunch Only) for $62, or Commute with lunch and dinner for $138

Q: Do I need to be trained in EMDR and IFS?: 
A: No - you do not need to be trained in EMDR and IFS. Although we do prefer that you are IFS informed. No prior training in EMDR is required.

Q: What are the prerequisites?: 
A: This workshop is the second of two workshops. The first workshop was offered online on 12/8/25 and was titled: Intro to Working with Complex Trauma & Dissociation using IFS & EMDR Adaptations. The prerequisite is to have attended this workshop (recording available - please email sioux@mcaft.com to inquire) or to have a solid grasp of Phase 1, diagnosis of dissociative disorders, the basic coping skills, Safe Space imagery, and Containers. Reading this material in Joanne’s book would also serve as the prerequisite. 

Cancellation: Any and all deposits and/or payments for our retreats / courses are non-refundable and nontransferable. Please note that there will be no refunds for any reason, including illness. Thank you for your understanding. 

ADA Accessibility: The training site is ADA approved. If you need special accommodations or have questions, please email sioux@mcaft.com.

Contact Information: sioux@mcaft.com | 650-297-3400 | www.mcaft.com 

Grievances: To obtain our grievance policy or report a grievance, please email sioux@mcaft.com or call 650-297- 3400 x 8. 

Certificates: Course Completion Certificates will be awarded in exchange for a completed evaluation form. Course meets the qualifications for 11 hours of continuing education credit for LMFTs, LCSWs, LPCCs, and/or LEPs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences.

Mindful Child & Family Therapy (Provider #1032770) is approved by the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists to sponsor continuing education for LMFTs, LCSWs & LPCCs. MCAFT maintains responsibility for the program and all its content.