Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

ACT uses acceptance and mindfulness approaches for individuals to learn how to notice their thoughts, feelings, physiological sensations and memories that have been feared or avoided.

ACT uses three categories; Mindfulness – being in the present moment and diffusion techniques Acceptance – accepting the thoughts as a thought, an acknowledgement and willingness to allow experiences to be there.

Values – identifying the importance of what gives our life meaning and purpose.

How does ACT Work?

The approach was originally called comprehensive distancing. Steven C. Hayes developed Acceptance and Commitment Therapy in 1982 in order to create a mixed approach which integrates both cognitive and behavioral therapy.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) encourages people to embrace their thoughts and feelings rather than fighting or feeling guilty for them. It may seem confusing at first, but ACT paired with mindfulness -based therapy offers clinically effective treatment.

The core conception of ACT is that psychological suffering is usually caused by experiential avoidance, cognitive entanglement, and resulting psychological rigidity that leads to a failure to take needed behavioral steps in accord with core values.

As a simple way to summarise the model, ACT views the core of many problems to be due to the concepts represented in the acronym, FEAR:

Fusion with your thoughts
Fusion with your thoughts
Evaluation of experience
Avoidance of your experience
Reason-giving for your behavior

And the healthy alternative is to ACT:

Accept your reactions and be present
Choose a valued direction
Take action

Therapist Qualifications

Working with people with complex mental health needs in the NHS and privately.

BSc (Hons) Psychology
PGCert LIPI
PGDip CBT
BABCP Registered Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist

Research shows that online Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is can be just as effective as face to face CBT, with the added benefits of increased flexibility.