Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

ACT helps you learn more practical skills to untangle from your unwanted thoughts, emotions, body sensations, and painful memories. An overarching theory in ACT is that by learning to accept and unhook from your internal experiences [because you learn to see them for what they are and how they hinder you], it will help you respond flexibly and act in ways that are consistent with your deepest held values.

Clarifying your values and improving your ability to respond more compassionately to unwanted thoughts and feelings is at the core of ACT. We suffer less when we allow our thoughts and feelings to come and go. Rather than expending copious amounts of mental and emotional energy on trying to control them, we refocus on taking action towards our values and what's within our control. We can only change reality once we've accepted what it is. That's why ACT uses a variety of acceptance and change-based strategies to help you move when you're feeling stuck.

ACT Metaphor

Let's imagine you're lost at sea and sailing through stormy waters. There's quite some distance between you and the island that you want to arrive at and there's sea monsters rearing their ugly heads, which makes it terrifying and challenging to stay on course. Let's call these monsters, "Anxiety", "Depression", "Panic", "Fear", "Self-doubt", "Loneliness", and "Post-traumatic stress". Avoidance might save some sweat and tears temporarily, but ultimately, you know deep down that you want to reap the benefits of the island.

Working from an ACT approach means learning how to clarify what it is you're sailing towards and how you want to show up for yourself and others while waters are stormy and monsters are present. It also means learning skills to tame the monsters, so that they may exist, but they won't prevent you from sailing your desired path. We might not be able to make the monsters vanish completely, but we can get better at responding to them in ways that help us rather than harm us.