The Absence of Presence: Healing Neglect Through Internal Family Systems
Description
The Absence of Presence: Healing Neglect Through Internal Family Systems
A 3-Day Experiential Retreat for IFS Practitioners
Neglect is often described by what didn't happen rather than what did. While abuse leaves visible wounds, neglect leaves an absence—of attunement, protection, comfort, delight, and connection—that profoundly shapes the nervous system, attachment, and the protective strategies we develop to survive.
Join IFS Institute Lead Trainer Jenny Fiebig for a three-day experiential retreat exploring neglect through the lens of Internal Family Systems. Together, we'll deepen our understanding of how developmental absence, misattunement, and relational trauma contribute to collapse, shame, dissociation, and the challenges clients often face in accessing Self.
Through a blend of lecture, experiential exercises, live demonstrations, meditation, and small-group practice, participants will explore both their own lived experiences of neglect and the ways these experiences influence the therapeutic relationship. Together we'll learn to recognize and work compassionately with the protective systems that emerge from neglect while cultivating greater trust in Self leadership, relationship, and repair.
IFSI Level 1 or higher is recommended. This retreat is for therapists and practitioners who already have a solid grasp of core IFS concepts and skills, since these won’t be reviewed. Participants should be able to unblend and be ready to go deeper into their own inner work, both for personal healing and for their clinical practice, within a supportive, relational learning community.
We will be applying for IFSI CE's.
About Jenny
Jenny Fiebig, MS, NCC, LCPC/LPC: IFS Institute Lead Trainer | Certified IFS Therapist
Jenny Fiebig is an IFS Institute Lead Trainer, Certified Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapist, and licensed professional counselor in Colorado and Montana. She teaches Internal Family Systems internationally, including throughout the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe. Her work has become particularly recognized for advancing the understanding of neglect, developmental trauma, attachment, and relational healing through an IFS lens. Jenny helps clinicians understand how experiences of absence, mis-attunement, and early attachment wounds shape the nervous system, protective strategies, and our capacity for connection. Her teaching integrates Internal Family Systems with attachment theory, interpersonal neurobiology, somatic approaches, and relational neuroscience, with particular attention to neglect, collapse, shame, dissociation, and the developmental impact of what was missing. Known for her warm, experiential teaching style, Jenny creates learning environments that blend clinical depth, embodied practice, and genuine human connection. Before becoming a therapist, her first career in outdoor education and wilderness guiding profoundly shaped the way she understands growth, resilience, and transformation. The lessons learned from guiding individuals and groups through remote landscapes continue to influence how she facilitates learning today—creating spaces that are experiential, relational, grounded, and deeply connected to the wisdom of both the nervous system and the natural world. Whether teaching internationally, consulting with therapists, or working intensively with clients, Jenny is passionate about helping people develop greater trust in Self leadership while fostering healing through relationship, community, and connection. She believes that lasting transformation occurs not simply through insight, but through experiences of safety, presence, and compassionate connection—with ourselves, with others, and with the landscapes that hold us.
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