How Does Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Work?

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Acceptance and Commitment Therapy or ACT refers to a form of psychotherapy or clinical behavior analysis that encourages people to embrace their conditions as they are.

This therapy inspires people to accept their feelings and thoughts rather than feeling guilty about or fighting them.

According to platforms like The Human Condition, ACT practitioners assist individuals in recognizing how they attempt to manage, suppress and control the emotional experiences that create the challenges.

By identifying and addressing the challenges, the individuals can better accommodate the actions based on values that support their well-being.

When is ACT Used?

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy has been used efficiently to treat test anxiety, workplace stress, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social anxiety treatment, and psychosis. It is also used for treating medical conditions like substance abuse, chronic pain, and diabetes.

How Does Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Work?

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy does not define the emotional experiences that are unwanted as problems or symptoms.

Instead, it works to address the tendency amongst individuals seeking therapy that is flawed or damaged and aims to assist people in realizing the vitality and fullness of life.

This fullness involves a wide human experience spectrum, including the inevitability of pain and the related situations.

Acceptance without changing them is a skill developed through the exercise of mindfulness in and out of sessions.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy does not assist in stopping or changing unwanted feelings or thoughts. Instead, it inspires people to develop a compassionate and new relationship with those experiences.

This shift can free people from challenges that attempt to control the experiences and empower them to perform the actions consistent with their value clarification and the definition of the value-based goals, which are also ACT components.

6 Core ACT Procedures

The foundation of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy is built on 6 basic principles. They work towards the primary goals of handling painful experiences and thoughts effectively and creating a vital and rich life.

These core principles are:

1. Expansion and Acceptance
2. Cognitive Defusion
3. The Observing Self
4. Contact and Connect with the Present Moment
5. Committed Action
6. Values Clarification

What to Expect?

When working with a therapist, you learn to listen to the self-talk or understand how you handle your thoughts, especially about problematic relationships, traumatic events, physical limitations, and others.

You can then decide whether the situation has to be accepted while making behavioral modifications affecting the situation or if the situation can be dealt with immediately and transformed.

You may look at what hasn’t benefited you in the past so that the therapist can assist you in stopping to repeat the thought patterns and behaviors that are triggering more issues for you in the long run.

Once you face and accept the current issues, you must commit to prevent fighting your emotions as in the past and instead begin practicing more optimistic and confident behavior based on personal goals and values.

How to Find the Right ACT Therapist to Help You?

Look for an experienced and licensed therapist, professional counselor, or social worker with added training in ACT. Also, you may check the helpful information on websites like The Human Condition.

No special certification is required to practice ACT. The skills are acquired through workshops, peer counseling, and other training programs.

Apart from these, choose a therapist with whom you can feel comfortable and can discuss all your issues without inhibitions so that you can make the most of what ACT has to offer.