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Healing Food and Body Struggles in Pregnancy, Postpartum, and Parenthood: 
An IFS-Informed EMDR Approach

Friday, September 25, 2026
10:30am – 5:30pm Eastern Time

Live, interactive webinar on Zoom

Facilitator: Andrea Wetterau, LICSW, LMHC, PMH-C, Certified EMDR Therapist and Consultant-in Training

EMDRIA: 6 credits
NBCC / ASWB: 5.75 CE hours


Live workshop limited to 50 participants.

All participants will receive access to the workshop recording for 60 days.

Workshop Registration Fee

Live Participation Fee: $250 USD

Recording-Only Purchase (No CEs): $150
The recording-only option provides on-demand access to the lecture content only and does not include live participation, experiential segments, or CE credit. Handouts, presentation slides, bibliography, and chat summary will be included as part of purchase.

Pregnancy, postpartum, and parenthood are powerful seasons of change that can reactivate long-standing wounds related to food, body image, control, and safety. Clients may present with renewed disordered eating patterns, heightened body distress, or internal conflict between wanting to “do better” for their children and feeling overwhelmed by coping strategies that resurface during this vulnerable time.

This workshop introduces an IFS-informed EMDR approach to treating food and body struggles within the perinatal and parenting context. Participants will explore how disordered eating and body distress can be understood as protective adaptations shaped by trauma, identity shifts, and cultural pressure, rather than pathology or resistance. Clinicians will learn how to integrate Internal Family Systems (IFS) principles within the standard EMDR therapy model to support case conceptualization, preparation, target selection, and reprocessing.

The training addresses key clinical considerations specific to perinatal populations, including nervous system vulnerability, medical trauma, loss of autonomy, and the impact of feeding and body-related experiences. Emphasis is placed on ethical practice, including pacing, informed consent, and adapting EMDR protocols to meet the needs of perinatal clients while maintaining safety and stability.

This workshop is designed for clinicians working in perinatal mental health, eating disorders, or trauma who want to move beyond symptom management and support lasting, embodied healing for parents and their families.

Intended Audience
EMDR Trained Master’s level social workers, counselors, marriage and family therapists; psychologists; and other EMDR Trained licensed mental health professionals

Eligibility Requirements: PARTIAL EMDR TRAINING
This workshop is open to clinicians who are at least partially trained in EMDR which means they have completed part of an EMDRIA Approved Basic EMDR Training and/or still finishing their 10 hours of required consultation. It is recommended that participants have completed the full EMDR Basic Training and have experience in using EMDR with clients. This workshop is not an EMDR Basic Training.

Level of Content: Intermediate

Course Interaction
The workshop features a dynamic blend of didactic teaching, case examples, experiential reflection, and large-group discussion. Participants are encouraged to ask questions, share insights, and engage in instructor-led conversations throughout.

Workshop Learning Objectives

  • Conceptualize food and body struggles in pregnancy, postpartum, and parenthood using an IFS-informed EMDR trauma framework, including understanding these patterns as protective adaptations.
  • Differentiate perinatal-specific presentations of food and body distress from pre-existing eating disorders, including the impact of biological, relational, and cultural factors.
  • Identify and assess protector parts and associated negative cognitions involved in restriction, bingeing, control, and body monitoring.
  • Develop EMDR treatment plans by selecting appropriate trauma targets and adapting preparation strategies for perinatal clients with heightened vulnerability or medical trauma histories.
  • Integrate IFS principles into EMDR phases of preparation, target selection, and reprocessing, including the use of parts-informed language and pacing strategies.
  • Apply ethical and nervous system–informed approaches to EMDR therapy, including maintaining safety, consent, and appropriate pacing in perinatal work.
  • Implement integration strategies that support healing of food and body relationships while addressing generational patterns and parenting values.

Trainer Information

Andrea Wetterau is a highly experienced therapist who specializes in eating disorders, trauma, and perinatal mental health. She is a Licensed Clinical Independent Social Worker and Licensed Mental Health Counselor; certified in Perinatal Mental Health; and a Certified EMDR Therapist and EMDR Consultant-in-Training (CIT). She has also completed Level 1 training in Internal Family Systems (IFS) through the IFS Institute.

Andrea’s clinical work focuses on supporting individuals during pregnancy, postpartum, and throughout the transition into parenthood. She is particularly passionate about helping clients heal from trauma, break generational cycles, and develop more peaceful and compassionate relationships with food and their bodies.

Program Content and Timeline
Friday, September 25, 2026
10:30am – 5:30pm ET

Module 1: Orientation, Ethics & Clinical Frame
10:30am–11:00am ET

This opening segment establishes the clinical and ethical foundation for the training. Participants are oriented to the course structure and learning objectives while reviewing scope of practice considerations relevant to treating perinatal clients with eating and body image concerns. The module frames food and body struggles as trauma-informed protective strategies, helping clinicians move away from pathologizing language. A brief overview of EMDR therapy and its relevance for treating trauma-related food and body disturbances in perinatal populations is introduced, along with an emphasis on consent, pacing, and client safety.

Module 2: Food & Body Distress in the Perinatal Period
11:00am–12:00pm ET

This module explores how pregnancy, postpartum, and the transition into parenthood can reactivate or intensify food- and body-related distress. Participants examine the intersection of biological, cultural, medical, and relational factors that shape body image and eating behaviors during the perinatal period. Common clinical presentations and diagnostic considerations are reviewed, with case examples used to highlight the complexity and variability of client experiences. These presentations are also explored through an EMDR framework, supporting clinicians in identifying potential targets for processing, including adverse experiences, body-based memories, and maladaptively stored information contributing to current distress. Participants are introduced to how perinatal-specific experiences inform EMDR case conceptualization and guide thoughtful target sequencing.

Break (15 minutes)
12:00pm–12:15pm ET 

Module 3: IFS Conceptualization of Food & Body Struggles
12:15pm–1:15pm ET

Participants are introduced to an Internal Family Systems (IFS)-informed conceptualization of food and body struggles. The module focuses on identifying protector parts involved in restriction, bingeing, control, and body monitoring, as well as the limiting beliefs (EMDR negative cognitions) that maintain these patterns. Shame, fear, and control are explored as organizing forces within the system. Clinicians are guided in cultivating Self-energy and internal safety prior to trauma processing, and a demonstration of IFS-informed parts mapping illustrates how to apply these concepts in clinical practice. This conceptualization is explicitly linked to EMDR case formulation and supports readiness for trauma processing.

Meal Break (45 minutes)
1:15pm–2:00pm ET

Module 4: Integrating IFS into EMDR Preparation & Target Selection
2:00pm–3:30pm ET

This segment focuses on the integration of IFS principles into EMDR therapy, particularly during EMDR Phases 1 (history taking) and 2 (preparation). Participants learn how to assess readiness for EMDR processing in perinatal clients, including evaluating internal system stability, protector concerns, and capacity for dual awareness. The module introduces IFS-informed resourcing and stabilization strategies that support both the client and their internal parts. Participants also learn how to identify appropriate EMDR targets, including medical trauma, body memories, and food-related shame, while considering pacing, containment, and contraindications. Emphasis is placed on maintaining fidelity to the standard EMDR protocol while adapting interventions to meet the unique needs of perinatal populations.

Break (15 minutes)
3:30pm–3:45pm ET  

Module 5: EMDR Reprocessing with Food- and Body-Related Parts
3:45pm–4:45pm ET

This module provides guidance on conducting EMDR reprocessing using an IFS-informed lens, with a focus on EMDR Phases 4–6 (desensitization, installation, and body scan). Participants learn how to incorporate parts-informed language during bilateral stimulation (BLS) while maintaining therapeutic presence and Self-energy. Strategies for addressing protector concerns about symptom change and loss of control are explored, along with techniques to support dual awareness and nervous system regulation throughout processing. Safety considerations for virtual EMDR are also addressed. A structured clinical demonstration illustrates how EMDR phases are implemented alongside IFS-informed interventions in real-time clinical work.

Module 6: Integration, Ethics & Generational Healing
4:45pm–5:15pm ET

In this segment, participants explore strategies for supporting integration and stabilization following EMDR processing, with attention to EMDR Phases 7–8 (closure and reevaluation). Ethical considerations in ongoing perinatal trauma work are reviewed, including maintaining clinician competence, monitoring for signs of overwhelm, and preventing retraumatization and burnout. The module also introduces the concept of generational healing, helping clinicians understand how food and body struggles may be connected to broader family and cultural patterns, and how EMDR can support adaptive resolution across generations.

Module 7: Reflection, Resources & Q&A
5:15pm–5:30pm ET

The final module provides space for reflection and consolidation of learning. Participants review key clinical takeaways, consider how they will apply the material in their own practice, and are provided with resources for continued learning and skill development. The session concludes with a live question-and-answer period to support integration of the training content.

Continuing Education (CE) Credit Information

Course Completion Requirements
To earn CE credit, participants must attend the entire course live and have their camera turned on, so attendance can be verified. Additionally, participants must complete an online course evaluation. Certificates of completion will be emailed after online course evaluation is completed via Flexiquiz.

CE Credits Available
Participants will receive 5.75 hours of continuing education (CE) credit upon completing this program. Carefully look at the approvals/acceptances that have been secured for the training for which you are registering.

This workshop qualifies for 5.75 continuing education clock hours as required by many national, state, and local licensing boards and professional organizations. Many states do not require specific approvals; several states require specific approvals; many accept national organization approvals or providers from other states. Save this workshop advertisement and certificate of completion, and contact your own board or organization for specific requirements.

By registering for this course, you agree to check in to and be knowledgeable about the continuing education approvals that are required for members of your profession in your state. You may contact Multiplicity of the Mind Learning Center with any questions PRIOR to the workshop. 

EMDRIA : 6 Credits
Multiplicity of the Mind Learning Center is an approved EC Provider (#24005) and this program (#24005-12) is approved for 6 EMDRIA Credits. Eligibility for EMDRIA Credits is restricted to those who have completed an EMDRIA-Approved Basic EMDR Training. Participants must attend the entire workshop to be eligible for EMDRIA credits. No Partial Credit awarded. Multiplicity of the Mind Learning Center maintains responsibility for this program and its content in accordance with EMDRIA requirements.


NBCC: 5.75 CEs
Multiplicity of the Mind Learning Center has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7522. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Multiplicity of the Mind Learning Center is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.

ASWB ACE: 5.75 CEs
Multiplicity of the Mind Learning Center, #2113, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 07/23/2025 – 07/23/2028. Social workers completing this course receive 5.75 clinical continuing education credits.

New York does not accept ASWB ACE provider or course/conference approval.

What states accept ASWB ACE clock hours? LINK

CE Broker Registrations
Please note: Only the states below use CE Broker to record/track CEs. This is not a full list of states that will accept/recognize this workshop as an eligible source to meet CE requirements.

Florida: Accepted by & Registered with the Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy and Mental Health Counseling.

Georgia: Accepted by & Registered with the Georgia Board of Professional Counselors, Social Workers, and Marriage & Family Therapists.

Kansas: Accepted by & Registered with the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board for Marriage and Family Therapists, Professional Counselors,Social workers, and Masters Level Psychologists.

Michigan: Accepted by & Registered with the Michigan Board of Social Work.

Mississippi: Accepted by & Registered with the Mississippi State Board of Examiners for Licensed Professional Counselors.

New Hampshire: Accepted by & Registered with the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice.

North Dakota: Accepted by & Registered with the North Dakota Board of Social Work Examiners.

Ohio: Accepted by & Registered with the Ohio Counselor, Social Worker, and Marriage and Family Therapist Board.

South Carolina: Accepted by & Registered with the South Carolina Board of Examiners for Licensure of Professional Counselors and Therapists.

South Carolina: Accepted by & Registered with the South Carolina Board of Social Work Examiners.

Tennessee: Accepted by & Registered with the Tennessee Board for Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Marital and Family Therapists and Licensed Clinical Pastoral Therapists.

Tennessee: Accepted by & Registered with the Tennessee Board of Social Workers.

Texas: Accepted by & Registered with the Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists.

Texas: Accepted by & Registered with the Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors.

Texas: Accepted by & Registered with the Texas State Board of Examiners of Marriage and Family Therapists.

Texas: Accepted by & Registered with the Texas State Board of Social Worker Examiners.

West Virginia: Accepted by & Registered with the West Virginia Board of Social Work

West Virginia: Accepted by & Registered with the West Virginia Board of Examiners in Counseling.

Registration Information