What is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy?
Acceptance and commitment therapy or ACT for short, is a type of psychotherapy that uses acceptance and mindfulness strategies with an action-oriented approach. The aim is not the elimination of difficult or unpleasant feelings but to be open and accept them, find more effective ways to deal with these feelings, be present with what life brings, and go forward focusing on your values and things that are meaningful to you. This then creates a positive spiral where you feel like you have a greater understanding over your emotions and are more in control of how you live.
‘The goal of ACT is to create a rich and meaningful life, while accepting the pain that inevitably goes with it.’ (Russ Harris, ACT trainer)
This is a brief introduction video to ACT if you’d like to learn more:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScwXgqO_d7Y
There are 3 main components of ACT – being open (accepting and not fighting or avoiding your thoughts and experiences), aware (being more present to your experience and to your thoughts), and engaged (choosing what is important to you i.e. values and taking small steps to move towards the direction of your values i.e. goal setting).
Here are some videos that explain each of them:
Being open
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCp1l16GCXI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaNAwy3XsfI
Being aware or present
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQbx2haVfMU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QXmmP4psbA
Being engaged or doing what matters