Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)

The aim of ACT is to maximise your potential for a rich, full and meaningful life.

ACT teaches mindfulness skills to deal with difficult thoughts and feelings – in such a way that they have less impact and influence over the person.

ACT is broken down into three areas of mindfulness:

Defusion: distancing from, and letting go of, unhelpful thoughts, beliefs and memories

Acceptance: making room for painful feelings, urges and sensations, and allowing them to come and go without a struggle

Contact with the present moment: engaging fully with your here-and-now experience, with an attitude of openness and curiosity

ACT also helps you to clarify what is really important and meaningful to you and then use that knowledge to guide and motivate you to make changes in your life for the better.

Compared to some other therapies, such as CBT, ACT doesn't focus on changing or challenging your thoughts to alleviate suffering. Instead, ACT aims to change your relationship with thoughts and feelings so you are able to become less caught up in them, freeing you from the patterns that get in the way of living a flexible, meaningful, and enjoyable life.