Dr. Richard C. Schwartz, PhD - Blue Spirit Costa Rica

Join us for an immersive retreat led by Richard Schwartz, the founder of the Internal Family Systems (IFS) Model, designed for IFS practitioners who have completed a minimum of IFS Level 1 training. Set in the serene and transformative surroundings of Blue Spirit in Nosara, Costa Rica, this retreat will focus on healing Legacy Burdens—deeply ingrained emotions and beliefs patterns passed down through generations and culture.

Over the course of the week, Richard Schwartz will guide participants through a rich combination of didactic teachings, group exercises, and live demonstrations, offering you the opportunity to deepen your understanding and practice of IFS. You’ll explore how Legacy Burdens manifest within the system, and how to facilitate healing in both yourself and your clients.

Whether you’re looking to deepen your personal journey or enhance your professional practice, this retreat offers a unique opportunity to work directly with Richard Schwartz in an intimate and supportive environment.

Spaces are limited to ensure a personalized and transformative experience.

Program Fee: $1500*

*accommodations not included.

Blue Spirit accommodations range between $975-$3200 per person, depending on accommodations.

Blue Spirit accommodations include meals on-site.

Approved applicants will be directed to a private Blue Spirit registration and booking link.

Prerequisite: Completion of IFS Level 1 training.

This program will provide IFS Continuing Education Credits towards IFS Certification or Recertification.

Richard's Bio

Richard C. Schwartz, PhD began his career as a family therapist and an academic at the University of Illinois at Chicago. There he discovered that family therapy alone did not achieve full symptom relief and in asking patients why, he learned that they were plagued by what they called “parts.” These patients became his teachers as they described how their parts formed networks of inner relationship that resembled the families he had been working with. He also found that as they focused on and, thereby, separated from their parts, they would shift into a state characterized by qualities like curiosity, calm, confidence and compassion. He called that inner essence the Self and was amazed to find it even in severely diagnosed and traumatized patients. From these explorations the Internal Family Systems (IFS) model was born in the early 1980s.

IFS is now evidence-based and has become a widely-used form of psychotherapy, particularly with trauma. It provides a non-pathologizing, optimistic, and empowering perspective and a practical and effective set of techniques for working with individuals, couples, families, and more recently, corporations and classrooms.

In 2013 Schwartz left the Chicago area and now lives in Brookline, MA where he is on the faculty of the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.

List of Books