When I discuss mindfulness with clients, I define it as: ‘Consciously bringing awareness to your here-and-now experience with openness, interest and receptiveness.’ There are many facets ACT teaches mindfulness skills as an effective way to handle these private experiences. Of course, as we attempt to create such a life, we will encounter all sorts of barriers, in the form of unpleasant and unwanted ‘private experiences’ (thoughts, images, feelings, sensations, urges, and memories). It is only through mindful action that we can create a meaningful life. ‘ACT’ is a good abbreviation, because this therapy is about taking effective action guided by our deepest values and in which we are fully present and engaged. The goal of ACT is to create a rich and meaningful life, while accepting the pain that inevitably goes with it.
A study by Bach & Hayes (2002) showed that with only four hours of ACT, hospital re-admission rates for schizophrenic patients dropped by 50% over the next six months. (Zettle & Raines, 1989 Twohig, Hayes & Masuda, 2006 Bond & Bunce, 2000 Dahl, Wilson & Nilsson, 2004 Branstetter, Wilson, Hildebrandt & Mutch, 2004). ACT has proven effective with a diverse range of clinical conditions depression, OCD, workplace stress, chronic pain, the stress of terminal cancer, anxiety, PTSD, anorexia, heroin abuse, marijuana abuse, and even schizophrenia. It utilizes an eclectic mix of metaphor, paradox, and mindfulness skills, along with a wide range of experiential exercises and values-guided behavioural interventions. A therapy so hard to classify that it has been described as an ‘existential humanistic cognitive behavioural therapy’.Īcceptance and Commitment Therapy, known as ‘ACT’ (pronounced as the word ‘act’) is a mindfulness based behavioural therapy that challenges the ground rules of most Western psychology. A therapy firmly based in the tradition of empirical science, yet has a major emphasis on values, forgiveness, acceptance, compassion, living in the present moment, and accessing a transcendent sense of self. Imagine a therapy that makes no attempt to reduce symptoms, but gets symptom reduction as a byproduct. AĬase study illustrates the six core principles of developing psychological flexibility ĭefusion, acceptance, contact with the present moment, the observing self, values, Of the suffering generated by experiential avoidance and emotional control. RUSSELL HARRIS provides an overview of ACT against a background View that ongoing attempts to get rid of ‘symptoms’ can create clinical disorders in Symptom reduction is not a goal of ACT, based on the That the psychological processes of a normal human mind are often destructive andĬreate psychological suffering. InĬontrast to the assumption of ‘healthy normality’ of Western psychology, ACT assumes 12, 4.įOREWORD: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy is one of the recent mindfulness-basedīehaviour therapies shown to be effective with a diverse range of clinical conditions. Published in Psychotherapy in Australia (2006). We hope you enjoy Dr Harris’ article – Dr Stuart Edser. Here at NPH, the psychologists are all trained in its use and find it extremely helpful for therapeutic outcomes. For the real thing, you will need to see a therapist trained in ACT.
Committed action act metaphor full#
Dr Harris’ brief article is written as an introductory piece in a peer-reviewed journal, but it’s not full of clinical terminology or difficult to follow paradigms, so it will give you a sense of what ACT is and how it works. It is very powerful and many clients have found that it has helped them immensely. It also offers a way to live that we can all aspire to, ie., living according to our values. ACT has been shown to be extremely helpful in assisting clients to find a new way to deal with uncomfortable or distressing thoughts and feelings something we all struggle with. about a very exciting treatment method that many psychologists have been training in – Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Below is a wonderful article by author and trainer Dr Russ Harris M.D.
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