top of page

Hello,

I'm Kelsey Feinstein

MSW, RSW, IFS THERAPIST - LEVEL ONE TRAINED

Kelsey Baby_edited.jpg

MY APPROACH

I recognize the place you are in because I have been there myself & know that healing is possible. I am passionate about helping you realize and fulfill your potential by restoring leadership, balance, trust and harmony in your system. Whatever patterns are presenting in your system, these may be perfectly normal adaptations that your system developed to protect itself from pain and attachment wounds. I believe that our extreme thoughts and emotions are hard enough to have, however when we try to fight them and push them away this often intensifies the problem or makes life unbearable. I hope to offer you another approach that does not involve band aid solutions, distractions, or quick fixes; but rather involves deep personal healing. If you are reading this you likely have already tried to distract from your 'problem', find a solution to it, or tried to stop thinking about it. However, things keep triggering the 'problem', and perhaps you feel like you are on a roller coaster that never stops. If this is you, then I invite you to learn to relate differently to your inner world. 

I hope to discover together how to reconnect you with your innate courage, clarity, and confidence, allowing you to transform. As a Level One IFS Trained Therapist, I use IFS support you in being the driving force in your own healing journey. My clients value my ability to develop meaningful connections with each of them by cultivating an intentional space, that embodies companionship, inner peace, and presence, to inspire healing. 

 

I am passionate about providing individual counselling to adult professionals & other therapists/helpers who would like to transform through exploring their inner world, engaging in healing deep wounds, and foster increased self understanding. Adult professionals are facing particularly difficult situations as they enter a new chapter of life, especially, if they never experienced a secure safe attachment in early life. Helping professionals are faced with additional challenges professionally and it is essential to understand your own practitioner Parts that may show up in your work, so that you can be more present to your clients.

In addition to 1:1 therapy, I also love supporting other to learn and grow as practitioners, which is why I offer consultation as well as teach IFS to other practitioners. I understand that learning a new modality can be challenging and I would be honored to help you to integrate IFS into your practice. 

 

I would love the opportunity to truly understand your individual needs, and would be honored to walk this journey with you. 

Location of Self Identity: 

Before moving forward in working with me it might be important for you to know a little more about my identity. I believe that my professional experience is only one aspect of me that makes me who I am. There are other personal aspects of who I am that inform the way I practice or limit the way I practice. I see it as important to name personal aspects of myself, as these may be helpful for you to know before choosing to work with me. I am a cisgendered, heterosexual, middle class, Jewish identifying, young parent, who also identifies as female and uses the pronouns she/her. I am able bodied, married, and live with my partner, dog, and son.  I am available to talk about my identity and privleged and I invite folks to reach out and connect further if you would like to discuss anything more regarding this. 

Outside of the Therapy Room:

I embody the principles of self leadership outside of the therapy room and am constantly checking in with my system (Parts of myself) throughout the day. Outside of being a mom and a therapist (which are my two main roles) I love to read, learn, listen to music, travel, go to concerts, be with my family and spend time outdoors on canoe trips. I welcome the opportunity to learn a bit about you and your interests. 

Meditating on Beach_edited.jpg

IFS TRAINED THERAPIST- MY APPROACH

Internal Family Systems (IFS)

Developed by Richard Schwartz, IFS focuses on harmonizing a clients internal world by understanding and relating to aspects (Parts) of an individual and accessing ones inner resources and strength, so that individuals can heal. IFS is a transformational theraputic model that heals deep wounds by respecting the complex nature of the personality system. Through listening and engaging with our inner Parts, IFS supports folks in accessing their inner wisdom, facilitating increased self compassion, and cultivates inner harmony. 

You may be wondering what the heck are Parts! - well as you have been reading here or speaking to other therapists - you may have noticed a Part of you that dislikes the process, a Part of you that is tired, a Part of you that is eager, a Part that is annoyed, or perhaps a Part that is thinking about work or the kids.

 

Parts are thoughts, feelings, needs, wants, and patterns within our system. We can view Parts of ourselves as separate entities, perspectives, and personalities within our system. Parts show up in many ways and you may hear yourself saying " I did not want to do XYZ but I could not help it" or "Part of me wants X and Part of me wants Y." Getting to know your Parts, through guided self exploration, allows you to gain deeper understanding of yourself, heal, and transform. 

IFS supports you in relating to yourself differently by focusing inside to get to know your inner world so that you can create lasting change, nurture self compassion, and feel more balance in your inner world.

For more information visit the IFS Instituteor you may find this video informative: What is IFS Therapy? by Dr. Tori Olds

"To better illustrate this idea, let’s use an analogy to human relationships. Let’s think of your anger as one of your children. Suppose you had a son whom you couldn’t control—say he threw tantrums every night. That would be bad enough, but suppose that because those tantrums drove you crazy, you constantly criticized him and tried to keep him locked in his room for fear that he’d embarrass you in public. You stayed home on weekends to make sure he didn’t run away and felt like a terrible parent because of his behavior. Suppose also that all of your reactions just made the tantrums worse because he sensed that you’d like to be rid of him. Because of the way you relate to your son, the problem comes to consume your life. The same is true with our extreme emotions and irrational beliefs—they’re difficult enough, but the way we try to handle them often exacerbates them and makes our lives miserable"

From Schwartz, R.C. (2001). Introduction to the internal family systems model. Oak Park IL: Trailheads Publications, The Center for Self Leadership. Schwartz, R.C. (1995)

Sunset Fishing

IFS is not behavior change it is transformational healing

SELECT TRAINING, PROFESSIONAL ENDEAVOURS, AND CERTIFICATIONS

- Senior Staff | IFSCA | 2024 - Present

- Support Staff | IFSCA 2022-Present

- IFS Therapy for Shame and Guilt | Martha Sweezy, IFSCA

Advanced Weekend Stepping Deeper |Mel Galbraith, Gustavo De Mello, Robyn Dickson, IFSCA

- PAing L1 | 875 IFS Training Seagull, IFSI                  

- IFS Support Staff| Derek Scott, IFSCA

- Direct Access Workshop| Risa Adams and Elizabeth Parsons

- Advanced Weekend IFSCA The Others Within Us | Bob Falcner, IFSCA 

- Level 1 IFS| Jory Agate Fran Booth & Carmen Jimenez-Pride., IFSI, Beverly, MA

- Internal Family Systems (IFS) Online Circle| Foundations of the IFS Model, IFSI

- Advanced Weekend IFSCA Introduction to IFIO| Liz Phillips, IFSCA    

- Advanced  Weekend IFS IFSCA: Deepening your Core Practice | Derek Scott, IFSCA.

- Advanced Weekend IFS: Healing Pre Verbal Trauma | Colleen West & Derek Scott, IFSCA

- Treating Complex Trauma with Internal Family Systems (IFS) Intensive Workshop | Frank Anderson, PESI

- Relational Intelligence 2 Day Training | Francois Le Doze, Self Therapie Formation

- Stepping Stones IFSCA: 16 week comprehensive IFS Course | IFSCA | Derek Scott

- Understanding the Foundations of Trauma and Attachment Dysregulation | The Attachment & Trauma Treatment Centre for Healing (ATTCH), Lori Gill

- Phase-Based Clinical Applications to Promote Healing and Integration of Trauma and Attachment Dysregulation |The Attachment & Trauma Treatment Centre for Healing (ATTCH), Lori Gill,

- Healing Broken Bonds: Traumatic Attachment and Emotional Dysregulation | The Attachment and Trauma Treatment Centre for Healing (ATTCH), Janina Fisher, Ph.D,

MEEKO

I understand that coming to session can be challenging. Meeko works with me to provide safety, comfort and calm in sessions. If you would like Meeko to join you in your  session please let me know in advance. 

bottom of page