An Overview Of Acceptance And Commitment Therapy

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If there was a therapy that didn't attempt to get rid of your symptoms, but has symptom relief in its byproduct would you do it? In the article Embracing Your Demons: An Overview of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy by Russell Harris people are doing just that kind of therapy. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, known as ‘ACT’ is a kind of behavior therapy that focuses more on your mindset and helps you rid your bad thoughts. Your mind is a very sophisticated series of mental processes that depend on language. A.C.T. is more focused on trying to get the individual to develop acceptance of their unwanted thoughts and experiences and change the way we have relationships with the thoughts most people describe as difficult. The more we try to get rid of painful feelings the more they overwhelm us. …show more content…
The goal of the A.C.T. is to establish a productive and meaningful life while enduring the pain that unavoidably goes with it. Most clients come to therapy thinking they will gain emotional control as a result. They want to relieve their depression, anxiety, urges to drink, traumatic memories, low self-esteem, fear of rejection, anger, grief and so on. In A.C.T therapy though there is no effort to attempt to manage or rid these symptoms. Instead, clients learn to reduce the effect and importance of undesired thoughts and feelings, through the effective management of mindfulness. Russell believes that it's only through mindful action that we can create a meaningful