IFS Healing and Connecting Retreats
All 2026 options here for booking
Therapy Northwest offer 3 day retreats. They are particularly suited to individuals with some experience of IFS (although this isn’t necessary as an introductory workshop is included in the retreat price). Participants are often but not always therapists, practitioners, psychologists or similar. The retreats offer a healing space for all parts of you.
Each offer an intensive yet gentle healing experience, combining Internal Family Systems Therapy, somatic work and ritual work with holistic approaches to healing trauma and providing missing experiences. They are a true mind, body, spirit experience.
Retreats are offered within beautiful surroundings in the UK. Non residential retreats will have accommodation options within walking distance. Residential retreats offer you a private room within shared accommodation with your small group in stunning countryside.
There is a maximum of 16 individuals per retreat to provide a high ratio of supporters and offering a balance of group experience and small group internal exploration.
- A retreat where all parts of you are welcome
- Opportunities to explore and map your internal system
- Body focused practices to access safety, connection and self compassion.
- Deeper inner work held by the compassion and safety of the facilitators and broader group each day
- Exploration and healing of experiences of shame
- Deepen your understanding of patterns that show up in your internal and external life which are barriers to a life more fulfilling and joyful.
- Multiple opportunities to practice ways to anchor the body into the energy of safety, compassion and connection with Self, others and Mother Earth.
- Leave the retreat with many practices to continue to enjoy in your daily life
- Yoga
- Breathwork
- Sound Healing
- Voice and somatic practices
- Optional follow up consultation for further integration
- Some retreats incorporate shamanic journeys and a greater emphasis on spiritual connection
These retreats will be led by Dr Zandra Bamford, a Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Approved IFS Consultant & Certified IFS Therapist with many years experience working with trauma within a deeply compassionate and holistic approach, and supported by other Psychologists, IFS approved consultants or/and therapists. We also collaborate with Yoga Therapists, Craniosacral Therapists, trauma specialists, sound and energy healers to provide sessions for a full mind, body, spirit experience.
HEALing THE MOTHER WOUNDs: An IFS and Somatic Retreat for profound Healing
A retreat for those who carry unresolved pain, guilt, or longing from your relationship with your mother. Most participants are psychologists, practitioners or therapists.
A space to break generational patterns and reclaim your inner peace and connection.
Our bodies remember the echos of the women who came before us even though our minds may not. Healing the mother wound requires deeper somatic and spiritual work held in love and presence.
Join us for a transformative 3-day retreat designed to gently uncover and heal the mother wounds using powerful practices from IFS, Somatic therapies, Sound healing and connected loving presence in community.
What to Expect:
- Guidance to connect with parts carrying grief, anger, aloneness or abandonment
- Somatic healing large and small group work to safely release stored emotional pain
- Sacred rituals, devotional yoga, sound healing and voice work
- Internal and external healing through relationship with Self and our community
- Exploring and healing legacy and burdens down the maternal ancestral line
- Work with cultural burdens of daughters and mothers
- 3 nights accommodation in a retreat center
- Highly nutritional food created for our work by our own chef
In a safe, nurturing environment, you’ll be supported in meeting the parts of you that felt unseen, unworthy, or unloved. With great gentleness we will be working with the primitive agony of parts that hold this wounding.
Who This Is For:
- Adults struggling with perfectionism, striving, people-pleasing, or shame rooted in early maternal dynamics
- Those looking to deepen their self-compassion and emotional freedom
- Anyone committed to breaking cycles for future generations
- Individuals with feelings of deep aloneness and / or distancing in relationships
Healing the mother wound is a profound act of courage and love.
It is a journey that winds from the depths of one’s own childhood pain to the far reaches of the ancestral lineage and wider culture.
Dates:
April Retreat: 16th to 19th April 2026
June Retreat: 19th to 22nd June 2026
These are 3 night residential retreats at Brinscall Hall, a meditation centre in Lancashire.
Booking includes accommodation and highly nutritious food throughout prepared by our own chef.
Led by Zandra, an IFS Approved Clinical Consultant Psychologist with over 20 years experience in working with relational trauma. Supported by other IFS Approved Clinical Consultants, sound healers and shamanic practitioners.
CALLING US HOME RETREAT: WOMEN WHO RUN WITH THE WOLVES
A carefully constructed “stretching the edges” retreat, uniquely for psychologists, therapists and practitioners. Please note that this retreat will have a deeper emphasis on the spiritual aspects of healing.
This retreat has been growing within for some time. Inspired by Clarissa Pinkola Estes “Women who run with the wolves”, shamanic work, yoga, my own journey and our beloved Internal Family Systems Therapy, we will be supported by Cacao and the forest land.
Clarissa Pinkola Estés’ book “Women Who Run With the Wolves” is a beautiful and powerful exploration of the feminine spirit. This will be a space for women to reconnect with and reclaim their wild, instinctive and spiritual nature, heal and be held in community.
The structure of our time will be woven around the lessons taken from blending Clarissa’s writings with IFS.
1. The Remembering of the Wild Woman Archetype: Reconnecting with our wild feminine side – our instincts, creativity, courage, tenacious loving and fierce gentleness.
2. Feminine Intuition: Estés teaches us to trust our intuition and inner knowings. We will be connecting with the parts of us that hold self doubt, uncertainty and fear. We will be listening to and amplifying the whispers of our wisdom, insight and intuition.
3. Connection with the parts of us who silence and hide us. We will be finding our voices, courage and reclaiming our birth rights of taking up space and shining in this life time. We will be exploring the boundaries of rage and forgiveness.
4. Healing from the Feminine and mother wounds: Connecting with the parts of us that hold cultural, societal and personal burdens and limitations of what it means to be a woman. Using IFS and spiritual work for healing, reclaiming our birth rights, joy in our bodies, our uniqueness and oneness.
5. Finding one’s pack: The importance of female community. Estés shows us the importance of fostering deeply supportive relationships with other women. In our village of female therapists we will be welcoming in all of our parts to feel deeply held and experience belonging on the inside and the outside.
6..The Power of Ritual and Ceremony: We will be held throughout our retreat by ritual and ceremony. Using heart opening cacao, sacred yoga, fire, sounds and intentional acts for releasing what no longer serves us, establishing our new beginnings, reclaiming our gifts, receiving guidance and connecting us to something larger than ourselves.
7.The Wild Woman’s Journey is uniquely yours. Estes offers us an individual path. We will be considering how we reclaim our own wildness and live an authentic life that aligns with our personal values, desires and purpose during this life time.
8.Our Own Future Legacy: Estes shows us the cycle of life, dancing with life, death and into life again. We will be considering with intentionality our relationship with death, the gifts we bring and leave for our daughters and future generations. Holding true: “It ends here”, we will be consciously healing not just for ourselves but for those who remain and arrive after us.
July 10th to 12th 2026
Lancashire
HEALING AND CONNECTING RETREAT
8th to 10th May 2026
The experience will be held within the Internal Family Systems Therapy (IFS) model and blended with body practices informed by Polyvagal Theory to release Self energy, inner and outer resourcing for your personal healing and growth. Somatic work to heal trauma held within the body, sound healing and spiritual yoga practices will be offered alongside IFS in action within a connected and safe group space.
A healthy, nutritious lunch and refreshments throughout the days are provided.
You can sign up to receive information about future retreats as they are released on our contact page and email to receive a brochure about our retreats.
RETREAT TESTIMONIALS
“The IFS Retreat was a wonderfully enriching experience for me and allowed attention to my personal needs as well as my professional curiosity. I felt that genuine healing occurred at the level of mind, body and spirit and opened the door to deeper understanding of myself and a clearer vision for my life. The space and group experience felt very safe and I really enjoyed spending time with like-minded others. It was joyous and fun with lots of laughter, as well as being emotionally impactful. I would highly recommend to all therapists.”
Dr Mel Lee, Clinical Psychologist, CAT Practitioner, EMDR Therapist and IFS Therapist, Managing Director, Trust Psychology Ltd.
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“Despite not knowing quite what to expect, this retreat exceeded all of my hopes and wishes. Everything from the venue, the facilitators, the group, to the food were all second to none and contributed to what was an incredibly powerful, connecting and healing experience. I cannot recommend Zandra, Maria and the Rewilding space enough“
Adele, Clinical Psychologist
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“This was a relaxing and life enhancing retreat skilfully and gently facilitated by the staff”
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“I left the retreat with a general sense that all was well with the world; that at the heart of it, there is something deep that connects us all that is fundamentally healing. It felt thoroughly therapeutic. The facilitators created the most calming, safe, playful, open and authentic context for the group to flourish. I was blown away by the healing power of IFS and feel so grateful to have experienced this gorgeous retreat.”
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“The food was exquisite, the location was wholesome and surrounded by wild and beautiful nature. On top of immersion in IFS, we had the opportunity to experience other healing and body-based therapies (craniosacral therapy, a sound bath, restorative yoga, and a range of exercises aimed at toning the vagus nerve). The facilitators had planned a programme for the mind, body and soul and gently adjusted the plans based on the ebb and flow of how the group naturally developed and what it needed at each stage. I felt genuinely nurtured. All my parts are so grateful for the beautiful Self-energy generated by this experience. Thank you!“
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“I’m fairly new to IFS but feel such a strong connection with it, so when the opportunity to attend this retreat came to me, I instantly had to book on. There were some anxious and petrified parts – they soon felt at ease when they were welcomed, along with all my parts to the retreat.”
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The location was perfect and the timetable felt a great balance of IFS practise as well as other practises that complemented each other nicely. There was plenty of time for self reflection and time to connect with nature and the others on the retreat. The food was just amazing too!
I could have stayed there longer and feel that the more familiar I get with IFS and the practise, the more I will get from attending these retreats. I will certainly be looking forward to book onto more and maybe next time for a longer period!!
Thank you Zandra, Maria, and all the other practitioners as well as all those who attended the retreat too, in creating such a safe and nurturing place for me to explore my internal family system more“
Dr Jenny Nam, Counselling Psychologist
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When I signed up for the retreat I didn’t really know what I was expecting but the whole experience truly exceeded any expectations I was holding on to. The experience I had over the 4 days is something I will hold on for many years to come, maybe even forever. Such a welcoming and holding space. As a group I feel that we all felt able to be authentic and vulnerable, all our parts were truly welcome. Zandra and Maria’s facilitation was so gentle, respectful and nurturing. I think I need this in my life at least once a year!!!
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This retreat was everything I needed and more. The location was stunning and was therapeutic in and of itself. The facilitators are the loveliest people you could meet. Their warmth and compassion was present throughout and we all felt safe and contained. The 3 days were a fabulous mixture of body and IFS focused activities. I have learned a lot about IFS and my need to explore my own parts further. I enjoyed everyone’s company and learned so much from everyone’s experiences. I didn’t want to leave and would love to return another year, if that’s possible.
Thank you so much for offering such a wonderful opportunity.
Sarah, Clinical Psychologist
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“The retreat was very enjoyable and nourishing on many different levels. Zandra created a safe, loving and nurturing space and I would definitely book up again”.
Kathy, Psychotherapist and Counsellor
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I went to the retreat not knowing what to expect but knowing that this is what I needed to do for both personal and professional reasons. The retreat exceeded all of my expectations. Zandra and Maria provided such a beautiful and safe space. The retreat was a wonderful mix of IFS in action and other healing activities such as a sound bath and yoga. I have recommended the retreat with Zandra and Maria to my colleagues and friends and I will be booking another retreat in the future – it was just what my parts needed!
Natasha, Clinical Psychologist
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Thank you for a wonderfully restorative and nourishing experience. The location was stunning, and the facilitators created a safe, containing space for some genuinely transformative exploration of self. I came away professionally and personally inspired. Thank you.
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So gentle, welcoming and nurturing. As someone who tends to find it hard to be vulnerable I felt truly held.
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The retreat was an extremely special experience -which felt incredibly nurturing and safe. Extremely generous and skilled facilitators who provided just the right balance of ‘work’ and ‘play’.
Yvonne, Satori Counselling Services
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Well planned and paced retreat with a great combination of wide ranging and lovely embodied and reflective practices and time for connection with others and with self. Held beautifully by Zandra and other supportive therapists. I felt nourished and nurtured and most importantly for me, safe – to do some deep dive work as well as have fun! A heartfelt thank you!
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Clinical Psychology Services 