Acceptance and Commitment Therapy ACT (pronounced ‘act’ rather than saying the initials) is a scientifically developed therapy that is evidence based (as with all CBT) and clinical trials suggest its effectiveness with many psychological problems.
We often fight against difficult, unwanted emotional experiences and this fight causes an ongoing struggle which can become a bigger problem than the original one! It can lead to a poor quality of life and long term problems with behaviours like avoidance and control. We easily get stuck in all sorts of traps which not only maintain our problems but stop us from living our life according to our values. ACT helps us to acknowledge that life brings pain as well as pleasure in the normal course of events, to develop a willingness to bear the pain …..(experience the feelings) ….without falling into the traps of avoidance and control.
The following is rather complicated but for those who are particularly interested, these are the various components of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (apologies for mobile site users if the text is too small):
