Self-Paced Webinar Series

Integrating Internal Family Systems & Polyvagal Theory

with Frank Anderson and Jan Winhall

Integrate Two Frameworks for Healing

This event covers Polyvagal Theory and IFS, highlighting where they may overlap or differ in your practice. Across three sessions, students will examine overlapping principles, explore how protective parts and survival states influence trauma and addiction, and learn how to combine compassionate parts‑work with nervous‑system regulation to support healing from trauma.

  • Three 90-minute recordings
  • Students have access for 365 days

Enroll at $40 Pricing Options

Supporter

  • Full access to the recordings for 365 days

  • Help cover our costs as a non-profit to produce this event

  • Align with our mission as an international organization in creating a safe and connected world

$40

Enroll

Impact

  • Full access to the recordings for 365 days

  • Help cover our costs as a non-profit to produce this event

  • Align with our mission as an international organization in creating a safe and connected world

  • Support the funding of scholarships for those without financial resources to study at PVI

$80

Enroll

Included in this course

Enroll

Session One: Foundations

Watch Frank and Jan present an overview of IFS and Polyvagal Theory as individual models, and then start to highlight how they connect. Ideal for clinicians who know one framework well but not both.

Session Two: Trauma & Addiction

Protective parts and survival states through an integrated lens. Move away from pathologizing and toward compassion.

Session Three: Healing

Unburdening steps from IFS + nervous system relational safety from Polyvagal Theory, together. Leave with a roadmap for holding both frameworks in the room.

Timing

All registrants receive access to three 90 minute sessions with Frank Anderson and Jan Winhall, plus any associated slides they used in their presentation.

Description

Internal Family Systems is a therapeutic approach that helps us to recognize the distinct “parts” within ourselves, and to understand how these parts shape thoughts, emotions, and behavior. It is grounded in the belief that each person has a core Self that is steady, compassionate, and able to guide the internal system with clarity. 

Through engaging with protective parts and the more vulnerable parts they support, individuals can cultivate healthier inner relationships and move toward meaningful healing. This model offers a thoughtful and supportive pathway for deepening self-awareness and strengthening emotional well-being. 

This event unites the expertise of Frank Anderson, MD, and Jan Winhall, MSW — two recognized leaders in trauma‑informed care — in a three‑part webinar series exploring how Polyvagal Theory and Internal Family Systems intersect and complement each other in clinical practice.

Across three 90‑minute sessions, participants will examine overlapping principles, explore how protective parts and survival states influence trauma and addiction, and learn how to combine compassionate parts‑work with nervous‑system regulation to support healing from trauma. 

Each session includes a Q&A section featuring questions from registrants who attended this webinar live. Materials and recordings will remain available for a full year.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to know both IFS and PVT before enrolling?

Familiarity with at least one framework helps, but the series is designed to meet you where you are. In the first session, Frank and Jan present an overview of both models.

How long are the sessions?

90 minutes, for four and a half hours total.

How long do I have access to the course?

For 365 days!

Are CE/CEU credits available?

No, this course does not offer CE credits.

Meet Your Instructors

MD Frank Anderson

Frank Anderson, MD, is a world-renowned trauma expert, Harvard-trained psychiatrist and global speaker. He is the co-author of the IFS Skills Training Manual (2017), acclaimed best-selling author of Transcending Trauma (2021) and newly released memoir, To Be Loved: A Story of Truth, Trauma and Transformation (2024). Dr Anderson has a long affiliation with Bessel van der Kolk and is on the board at the Trauma Research Foundation. A former Lead Trainer with the IFS Institute, Dr. Anderson is also a member of the Clinical Advisory Board with Unyte Health. He is passionate about teaching brain-based psychotherapy and integrating current neuroscience knowledge with cutting edge models of therapy. Dr. Anderson believes that traumatic events can have a lasting effect on the health and well- being of individuals and that addressing these events will help lead people down a path of love, connection and unity. He is the director and cofounder of the Trauma Institute (traumainstitute.com) and Trauma-Informed Media (trauma-informedmedia.com), organizations that provide educational resources and promote trauma awareness. As a result of his early childhood experiences and personal journey transformation, he is dedicated to bringing more trauma healing to the world. He resides in Los Angeles with his husband and two sons. Follow him at FrankAndersonMD.com and on Instagram at frank_andersonmd.

Jan Winhall, MSW

Jan Winhall, M.S.W.  P.I.F.O.T. is an author, teacher and seasoned trauma and addiction psychotherapist. She is a Course Partner with the Polyvagal Institute where she offers a training program based on her book Treating Trauma and Addiction with the Felt Sense Polyvagal Model (Routledge, 2021).  Her newest book is 20 Embodied Practices for Healing Trauma and Addiction: Using the Felt Sense Polyvagal Model (Norton, 2025). She is also a contributing author to Somatic Oriented Therapies (Norton, 2025). She is an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Toronto and a Certifying Co-Ordinator with the International Focusing Institute. Jan is Co-Director of the Borden Street Clinic where she supervises graduate students. She enjoys teaching all over the world. Jan is founder of the FSPM Institute. You can reach her at FSPMinstitute.com

Learn at PVI

The Founding Home of Polyvagal Theory™

We believe our courses and trainings offer the most up-to-date information on Polyvagal Theory and it's applications. When you enroll in a course or attend an event from the Polyvagal Institute, you're supporting an international non-profit dedicated to increasing safety and connection across the world.

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Pricing options

All students receive access to the same materials regardless of which pricing tier is selected.