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Internal Family Systems

A calm still life featuring a stone yin-yang symbol resting on a stone platform, surrounded by natural objects including smooth stones, a lit candle, stacked old books, prayer beads, a brass bowl, and soft fabric. The scene is warm, balanced, and contemplative, evoking harmony, simplicity, and timeless wisdom.

Chapter 58 – Tao Te Ching

A grounded exploration of Tao Te Ching Chapter 58, revealing how humility, flexibility, and Self-led restraint create harmony—within society and the inner system alike.

Tao Te Ching

4 min read

An older man with short gray hair sits at a wooden desk in a warmly lit study, viewed entirely from behind so that his face is never visible. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves filled with books frame the room, while large windows overlook sunlit trees outside. Papers, books, and personal objects are arranged neatly across the desk, suggesting a lifetime devoted to learning, research, and reflection. Natural daylight fills the space, highlighting rich wood textures and creating a calm, thoughtful atmosphere. The image serves as a symbolic representation of Peter Levine and his contributions to Somatic Experiencing, emphasizing contemplation, observation, and the development of ideas rather than portraying a recognizable likeness. The composition feels scholarly, reflective, and grounded, with the unseen face directing attention toward the work and legacy rather than the individual himself.

🌊Module 2 — Who Is Peter Levine? | Somatic Experiencing Course

A free IFS Academy course on the life and discoveries of Dr. Peter Levine, the founder of Somatic Experiencing (SE): his background in medical biophysics and psychology, his work as a NASA stress consultant, the wild-animal observation behind his book Waking the Tiger, and his central conclusion that animals discharge survival energy and complete the response while humans tend to override it. Every lesson ends with a Somatic Experiencing practice so you can begin applying the

Everything IFS

A woman sits cross-legged on a floor cushion in a bright, sunlit room, writing thoughtfully in a small notebook. Around her are simple, calming objects—a candle, houseplants, bookshelves, and a singing bowl—arranged neatly within a warm and uncluttered living space. Natural daylight streams through a large window, illuminating soft textures and earthy tones throughout the room. The image conveys a sense of slowing down, careful attention, and measured engagement rather than emotional intensity. As a metaphor for titration in Somatic Experiencing, the scene represents approaching difficult experiences in small, manageable amounts rather than all at once, allowing the nervous system to process gradually and safely. The quiet act of focused reflection symbolizes working with experience one small piece at a time, emphasizing patience, pacing, and sustainable healing.

🌊Module 8 — Titration | Somatic Experiencing Course

A free IFS Academy course on titration in Somatic Experiencing (SE): how the term is borrowed from chemistry, where it means adding one drop at a time, what it means to contact only a small amount of difficult activation at once, why overwhelm is too much, too fast, too soon, what flooding is and why it backfires, touching the edge of a sensation rather than its center, and the principle that less is more and slower is better.

Everything IFS

A woman stands at the center of a landscape divided between two contrasting environments. On one side, dark storm clouds gather over a turbulent ocean as lightning flashes across the sky, creating a sense of intensity and activation. On the other side, bright sunlight illuminates rolling green hills, wildflowers, and a peaceful valley stretching into the distance. Viewed from behind, the woman faces the meeting point between these two worlds, neither overwhelmed by the storm nor lost in the calm. The image serves as a visual metaphor for pendulation in Somatic Experiencing—the gentle movement of attention back and forth between activation and regulation, discomfort and safety, allowing the nervous system to process difficult experiences without becoming overwhelmed. Bright cinematic lighting, rich environmental contrast, and expansive natural scenery emphasize balance, resilience, and the body's capacity to move between states and gradually return to equilibrium.

🌊Module 9 — Pendulation | Somatic Experiencing Course

A free IFS Academy course on pendulation in Somatic Experiencing (SE): the nervous system's natural swing between activation and settling, how activation rises and recedes like a wave, the trauma vortex as the pull of difficult sensation and the counter-vortex of resource and steadiness it swings against, and how moving between charge and calm shows the system it can recover.

Everything IFS