A live conversation with Tamala Floyd and Daniel Foor
Parts Work & Animism
Confronting the Limits of Individualism
MARCH 26, 2025
9AM LA | 12PM NYC | 18:00 Madrid
90 MINUTES
Our Invitation
Modern psychotherapy invites us to turn inward, to navigate the intricate landscapes of our inner world, to uncover the stories that shape our internal dynamics. But what happens when the lens is too narrow; when the framework assumes that all those perspectives, stories, and aspects belong solely to “me”?
In the Eurocentric approach to contemporary healing, the individual becomes the center of their universe, and there’s a tendency to overidentify with the contents of one’s own consciousness. The unseen, the collective, the relational—become secondary, if they’re considered at all. This can lead us into a familiar trap: the myth of individualism, and its many tributaries into isolation and exceptionalism. From those ports of call, it’s a short walk to supremacy of all kinds, and we find ourselves back where we started: in need of help.
In this live 90 minute event, Tamala Floyd, IFS practitioner and author of Listening When Parts Speak, joins Daniel Foor, author of Ancestral Medicine: Rituals for Personal and Family Healing, and Founder/Director at Ancestral Medicine, for a provocative and illuminating conversation about the intersections—and tensions—between parts work, animism, and ritual arts.
Our life is a continuation and extension of all that has come before, a new and resounding word in a story still being told.
What You Will Learn
Together, they’ll explore where parts work harmonizes with ancestral and relational practices and where it falters, leaving room for the collective wisdom of animism and the transformational power of ritual to enter the conversation. Our hosts will navigate the possible points of convergence between parts work and animism, like how they each encourage polyvocality: there is not just one “us.” This perspective is spacious, kind, and good. The hosts will also explore points of divergence. The areas where parts work replicates notions found in extreme individualism, rather than being part of an interconnected web, a bigger collective energy that’s not only within us.
You’ll learn how animism invites a broad view, one where the internal voices of “parts” are not just fragments of self but echoes of sacred, unseen forces as well. And there will be discussion about how ritual can expand the field of healing beyond the individual, reconnecting us with what is shared, timeless, and alive.
Whether you’re a practitioner of psychotherapy or parts work, a seeker on a grounded but mysticism-oriented path, or someone curious about the intersections of these frameworks, this conversation will inspire and challenge you to consider fresh insights for personal and cultural healing, and how to build a foundation for tomorrow’s healing practices.
What is IFS or Parts Work?
Internal Family Systems (IFS), often referred to as parts work, is a therapeutic approach that views the mind as composed of distinct sub-personalities or “parts,” each with its own perspective and role. These parts often represent emotions, beliefs, or coping mechanisms that have developed in response to life experiences.The goal of IFS is to foster an internal dialogue that allows these parts to be seen, heard, and healed. By accessing the “Self,” a core state of calm, clarity, and compassion, individuals can develop a harmonious relationship with their parts.
What is Ancestral Healing?
Ancestral healing is rooted in the understanding that ancestral influences shape our lives, identities, and challenges both personal and cultural. By tending to these relationships, we can address inherited patterns, recover lost wisdom, and restore harmony in our lives and communities. Ancestral healing invites us to honor the unseen, engage with the sacred, and recognize our interconnectedness with the broader web of life. Through ancestral healing, we can reframe personal struggles as part of larger, collective dynamics, providing a pathway for transformative change that is both deeply personal and expansively relational.
What is Animism?
Animism is a worldview rooted in the recognition of profound relationality. It acknowledges that humans are deeply interconnected with the natural world, ancestral forces, and unseen energies. Rather than centering the human experience, animism emphasizes reciprocity, honoring the inherent intelligence, agency, and vitality of all beings—seen and unseen—in an interconnected web.
Tamala Floyd
Psychotherapist, consultant, author, and speaker with over 20 years of experience, Tamala received her Master of Social Work from the University of Southern California. She is the author of Listening When Parts Speak, a book that interweaves concepts from Internal Family Systems Therapy (IFS) with the power of ancestor wisdom to support people on their healing journey. The process she describes in her book makes generations’ worth of ancestor wisdom accessible and increases access to healing energy on individual and generational levels. As a psychotherapist, Tamala’s work focuses on women’s trauma, mothering, and relationship issues.
Daniel Foor
Daniel is a doctor of psychology, experienced ritualist, and the author of Ancestral Medicine: Rituals for Personal and Family Healing. He is an initiate in the Òrìṣà tradition of Yoruba-speaking West Africa and has learned from teachers of Mahayana Buddhism, Islamic Sufism, and the older ways of his English and German ancestors. Daniel is passionate about training aspiring leaders and change makers in the intersections of cultural healing, animist ethics, and applied ritual arts. He lives with his wife and two daughters near Granada, Spain in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
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