Clinician Spotlight: Alicia Dabney, LMFT, APCC, ATR*
Internal Family Systems SM (IFS) therapy, developed by Richard Schwartz Ph.D., is more than just a method — it is a paradigm-shifting approach for deeply understanding and appreciating every part of ourselves. The IFS framework encourages a gentle inquiry that allows us to understand ourselves, our families, and our world in a new and holistic way.
The IFS Telehealth Collective is delighted to introduce you to Alicia Dabney, LMFT, APCC, ATR* who is now accepting clients in California.
Q: Thanks for sitting down with us today, Alicia. Let’s dig right in. How do you approach your work with clients?
AD: I trust that my clients know themselves best and I aim to create a sense of safety while building a supportive therapeutic relationship. I take a client-centered and collaborative approach, acting as a guide and facilitator. Offering my own Self-energy and presence means that my clients experience compassion and non-judgment. Above all, I want my clients to feel fully seen and heard, to trust that they can bring all parts and experiences to our work together, and to know that those will be safely held and honored. The work I’ve done to build my own connection and access to Self imparts the space, clarity, and perspective needed to guide this healing in whatever way my clients most need.
Q: What do you want most for those you work with?
AD: To experience for themselves the deeply healing and lasting change that is possible with IFS, particularly with Self-compassion and acceptance.
Q: Do you have a favorite TED Talk or Podcast?
AD: My favorite podcasts are IFS Talks, the Trauma Therapist, Tara Brach, Esther Perél, Unlocking Us, and The One Inside.
There are two TED talks that stand out to me:
Unmasking the Invisible Wounds of War by Melissa Walker is presented by a creative arts therapist who shares how mask-making has helped military service members recover from trauma. Everything You Think You Know About Addiction is Wrong by Johann Hari provides a new perspective on addictions.
Q: How would you describe your professional background? Do you have any specific areas of interest?
AD: Psychotherapy is a second career for me. Creativity is perhaps the common thread, first with communication design and now with my MA-MFT in art therapy psychology. I have worked individually and in groups with children, adolescents, and adults in various settings including an underserved school community, interim shelter community, counseling center, private practice, and Nicaraguan refugees in Costa Rica.
I consider myself both an IFS therapist and an art therapist and draw upon both of these areas of training in my work. I enjoy exploring the ways these two connect with the externalizing approach of IFS. Areas of additional interest include Somatic IFS and Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy. My academic studies and research have focused on trauma and neuroscience.
Q: Would you like to give a shout-out to any particular parts of your internal system?
AD: My Advocate part is one I’ve been working with recently. I’ve only recently come to recognize her even though she has been active in my system for many years. She not only speaks up for other parts in my system that need attention or healing but is present as a guide and resource when advocating for others in my communities and beyond.
Q: Finish this sentence: Therapy is for you when…
AD:…you are ready to really know yourself, to heal, to change the way you relate to yourself and others, and to shift your overall way of being in the world.
Q: What makes IFS special to you?
AD: I really appreciate the idea that we all have what we need to heal within us, and that Self cannot be broken or damaged. There’s such compassion inherent in the idea that there are no bad parts, and that it’s not what’s wrong with us, but what has happened to us. I’ve experienced how gentle, inclusive, and healing this work can be. IFS honors all parts of us as humans, no matter our experiences, backgrounds, or goals for therapy. Each individual system sets the pace and the way the work unfolds. It addresses cultural and legacy burdens and can be both a lifestyle practice and psychospiritual practice.
Q: Favorite Book(s)/ Therapy Resource(s)?
AD: When I was young I tried to read every book in my hometown library, so it’s a challenge to provide a concise list! I’m currently reading Somatic Internal Family Systems Therapy by Susan McConnell, The Ethics of Caring: Finding Right Relationship with Clients by Kylea Tayler, and How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence by Michael Pollan.
Books that will always have a place on my shelf include Art is a Way of Knowing by Pat Allen, The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk, Internal Family Systems Therapy 2nd Edition by Richard Schwartz, Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, and Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed. For fiction, definitely Neil Gaiman.
Q: Can you share something about how your personal journey led you to become an IFS therapist?
AD: As is true for many in healing and helping professions, our own difficult experiences can lead us to this work. Transgenerational trauma, legacy burdens, parent and child loss, serious mental illness, and developmental and relational trauma capture the essence of what came before me. I am so grateful that my own work with a skilled and Self-led IFS therapist converged with my search for a more fulfilling career. There came a point where all the pieces fell into place, and I knew I wanted to be able to offer this kind of healing to others.
Q: What is your go-to method of accessing Self-energy?
AD: Nature, creativity, and movement are the most reliable ways for me to access Self energy. Most of the time, this takes the form of walking or spending time outside, preferably amidst tall trees and running water where I can slow down and just be. Yet even the simplest sensory details can bring me back to Self: clouds scattered across a vibrant sky, the glow of the moon, soft new growth on plants, fragrant blooms, wildlife, birdsong, the tree tops dancing with the wind.
Q: Favorite Quote?
AD: It’s so difficult to pick just one! I collect poems and quotes that capture the spectrum of human experience including that of joy, sorrow, love, loss, and healing. These two have endured through many pivotal points in my life.
“The wound is the place where the Light enters you.” —Rumi
“The path isn’t a straight line; it’s a spiral. You continually come back to things you thought you understood and see deeper truths.” —Barry H. Gillespie
Q: Care to share a fun fact about you?
AD: I am a mechanic’s daughter and can generally build, repair, craft, renew, or problem-solve my way through many household maintenance tasks, and auto issues. This mindset led me to teach myself soldering and metalwork to create jewelry. Some of my designs have been worn by characters on the television shows The Vampire Diaries, Bones, and This Is Us.
Does Alicia Dabney, LMFT, sound like the right fit to help you explore your angry, wounded, and playful parts? If you are based in California, contact our Client Care Coordinator or call 503-447-3244 to schedule a consultation.
Contact our Client Care Coordinator or call 503-447-3244 if you live in California, Florida, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, or Oregon to be matched with a well-trained IFS clinician. IFS Telehealth Collective is the place for your healing and Self transformation.
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*Alicia Larsen Dabney is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist #136816, Associate Professional Clinical Counselor #8016, Supervised by Andrew Pflueger, LMFT #86223, Internal Family Systems Level 3 Trained, Registered Art Therapist #20-261
