Overview of the Externship in Kansas City

An Externship in Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy® is an immersive four-day (24+ hour) training experience, foundational for therapists aiming to specialize in EFCT. Led by certified trainers, it offers a comprehensive introduction to the EFCT model, focusing on the science of attachment and the systematic approach to couple therapy. This training is crucial for therapists because it equips them with the necessary skills to foster secure, resilient relationships in therapy. It’s the first step in formal EFCT training, opening the door to advanced practice and certification, enhancing therapists’ efficacy and confidence in their clinical work with couples.

What will I learn in an “Externship”?

Participants will obtain a clear understanding of the basic experiential and systemic concepts of an “Emotionally Focused” approach to therapy.
Participants will be able to view clients in the web of their interpersonal attachments and conceptualize relationship distress and repair based on theories of attachment and emotion.
EFT is a relational therapy. The Externship will focus on the model of EFCT laid out in the 2019 book, Attachment Theory in Practice, and teach the model as implemented in couple therapy sessions.
Participants will develop skills in sharing and maintaining an engaged, open and collaborative alliance with clients.
Participants will develop skills in the 5 moves of the basic macro-intervention – the EFT Tango – in order to change patterns of affect regulation, models of self and other, strategies for engaging others and interactional patterns.
Participants will develop skills in EFT micro interventions taken from experiential and attachment systemic models of intervention.
Participants will develop skills in overcoming common blocks and impasses in couple therapy and so shape core corrective emotional experiences that lead to constructive dependency and what Rogers termed ‘existential living.’

Presented by Debi Scimeca-Diaz, LMFT, LCADC in Overland Park, Kansas

Debi Scimeca-Diaz is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with over 25 years of experience helping individuals, couples, and families navigate the complexities of relationships. She believes that while relationships can be a source of deep joy and fulfillment, they can also bring pain, and it is within these same connections that healing can occur. Debi is deeply committed to guiding clients toward greater understanding, connection, and emotional healing.

Debi is extensively trained in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), a research-based approach grounded in attachment theory, and is one of a select group of ICEEFT Certified Trainers worldwide. She works with a wide range of concerns, including depression, anxiety, trauma, stress, grief, and relationship conflict. Known for creating a safe and supportive environment, Debi helps clients explore barriers to connection and move forward on a path toward healing and reconnection.

Her professional credentials include being a Certified EFT Trainer and Supervisor, a Clinical Member and Approved Supervisor with the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (AAMFT), and a Licensed Clinical Alcohol and Drug Counselor.

About Emotionally Focused Therapy

Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) is a distinctive therapeutic approach designed to enhance individuals' and couples' emotional awareness and relational dynamics. Originating in the 1980s by Dr. Sue Johnson, EFT underscores the significance of emotions in shaping human experiences and interpersonal connections.

Central to its framework is the notion that humans possess an innate capacity for secure self-identity, fostering trusting relationships with others. This foundational premise suggests that fostering secure emotional bonds contributes to overall well-being and psychological health.

EFT exhibits remarkable versatility, renowned not only for its efficacy in enhancing romantic relationships through Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFCT) but also for its applicability to individuals and families.

Individually, EFT (EFIT) proves instrumental in addressing conditions such as depression, anxiety, and trauma-related emotional distress.

In family contexts, EFT (EFFT) serves to deepen familial ties and ameliorate relational strains, rendering it a viable option for families seeking to fortify their cohesion.

What distinguishes EFT is its emphasis on emotional intelligence and regulation as fundamental to relational success. By facilitating a deeper understanding of one's own emotions and those of others, EFT fosters healthier and more gratifying interpersonal connections. Its therapeutic approach transcends mere symptom alleviation, striving instead for enduring transformation.

Beyond its theoretical underpinnings, EFT's efficacy is substantiated by extensive empirical research, positioning it as a cornerstone in the therapeutic landscape. Moreover, EFT principles have been adapted to develop various relationship enhancement programs, including "Hold Me Tight® Online" for couples, "Hold Me Tight®: Conversations for Connection" in virtual format, and specialized interventions tailored to specific demographics, such as "Created for Connection" for Christian couples and "Healing Hearts Together" for couples navigating cardiac issues. Additionally, family-oriented programs cater to the unique needs of adolescents and adult children.

For those seeking to cultivate deeper interpersonal connections, navigate emotional challenges, bolster self-assurance, and enhance familial or romantic relationships, Emotionally Focused Therapy stands as an invaluable resource. Its ethos of nurturing secure attachments, fostering emotional literacy, and promoting psychological well-being underscores its potential to engender profound and lasting personal growth.

Who is this training for?

All mental health professionals including psychiatrists, psychologists, family physicians, social workers, psychiatric nurses, counsellors (including couples and family therapists), pastors and clergy, and students training in these professions. School counsellors are permitted to attend if they are licensed and belong to a professional body that has standards of practice for psychotherapy/counselling.

Life coaches are not permitted to attend unless they also meet one of the mental health professional categories listed above.

Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy Externship in Overland Park, Kansas

To Be Announced Soon!

Tentative Schedule for the Externship

(Click the arrow for more details)

Registration and Check in
Introduction to Externship & Attachment Science as a Guide for Psychotherapy ― EFIT, EFCT, EFFT
Basics of the EFT Model ― Experiential & Systemic
Overview of the process of change ― Stages and Steps
EFT Tango Across Modalities
Exercise or DVD Clip & Discussion
Case Presentation: Live Session or Tape Review or Case Role-Play ― Discussion
Assessment in EFIT & EFCT
Alliance Building
Stage 1 ― Stabilization / De-escalation of Negative Cycles
Exercise or DVD Clip & Discussion
Case Presentation / Live Session or Tape Review / Discussion
Micro Interventions / RISSSC / Catch-the-Bullet / Building Attachment / Slice It Thinner
Stage 2 and Change Events
Exercise or DVD Clip & Discussion
EFIT ― Goals ― Tango ― Watch DVD Sessions
Forgiveness and Attachment Injuries in EFCT
Escalated Couples / Traumatized Individual Clients
Exercises or DVD Clip & Discussion

Prerequisites & Sequence

ICEEFT recommends taking Fundamentals of EFT prior to this course. There are no prerequisites for an EFCT Externship.

EFCT Core Skills follows an Externship.

Required Reading:

The Practice of Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy: Creating Connection, 3rd edition, by Susan M. Johnson, 2020. Routledge.

Recommended Readings:

Attachment Theory in Practice: Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) with Individuals, Couples, and Families by Dr. Susan M. Johnson, 2019. Guildford Press.

Becoming an Emotionally Focused Therapist: The Workbook, 2nd edition, by James L. Furrow, Susan M. Johnson, Brent Bradley, Lorrie L. Brubacher, T. Leanne Campbell, Veronica Kallos-Lilly, Gail Palmer, Kathryn Rheem, Scott R. Woolley, 2022. Routledge.