ACT is a structured time-limited therapy aimed at maximizing people’s potential for a rich and meaningful life while teaching skills to handle the pain the inevitably comes with it. Described by Hayes (2007) as “getting out of your head and into your life”, ACT proposes that most psychological suffering is caused by ‘experiential’ avoidance, or trying to avoid or get rid of unwanted experiences such as thoughts, feelings, and memories, versus allowing them to come and go without struggle.
ACT (pronounced like the word ‘act’) teaches focused strategies to deal with negative thoughts and feelings more effectively, and helps guide you in clarifying what is truly important to you (your values) and then commit to action that will enhance and improve your life.
The 6 core steps in ACT are: