Skip to content
Home » ACT

ACT

Support for Psychological Distress: Approaches to Overcoming Anxiety and Related Challenges

Summary – anxiety treatment therapy: Many individuals grappling with anxiety are seeking diverse forms of support beyond traditional therapy. While established methods like Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and medication are widely available, challenges such as high dropout rates and a focus on symptom reduction mean they may not suit everyone. Alternative and complementary approaches, including… Read More »Support for Psychological Distress: Approaches to Overcoming Anxiety and Related Challenges

Heading: Exploring Support for Depression: Why Alternative Approaches and Coaching Are Gaining Traction

Many people seeking help for depression encounter challenges with traditional therapeutic models, including high dropout rates and a focus on pathology. Alternative approaches and coaching, often incorporating techniques like solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), and Havening Techniques, offer different perspectives that can empower individuals by focusing on strengths, solutions, values, and neurobiological change. These methods may resonate more with those seeking practical tools and a collaborative relationship rather than solely exploring problems or receiving a diagnosis. Havening Techniques, in particular, address the emotional residue of traumatic experiences often linked to depression, offering a gentle way to process the past and build resilience for the future.

Overcoming Social Anxiety

Social anxiety is an intense fear of social situations and judgment, distinct from general anxiety or shyness, often leading to avoidance. It involves a hyperactive amygdala and contributions from the cortex, fuelled by cognitive biases, negative beliefs, and safety behaviours, often rooted in genetic predisposition and early experiences. Consequences include physical and emotional symptoms, social isolation, damage to relationships, and increased risk of other mental health issues. Social anxiety coaching helps by employing evidence-based techniques like exposure, cognitive restructuring, mindfulness, and goal setting to challenge avoidance, reframe thinking, build confidence, and support individuals in living a valued life despite anxiety.

What is the ACT approach

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), pronounced as “act” rather than spelling out the letters, is a contemporary “third wave” behaviour therapy. It is an empirically grounded process approach built upon the foundations of traditional behaviour therapy and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). ACT is an evidence-based intervention supported by decades of research, including over 300 randomized… Read More »What is the ACT approach

Finding Freedom and a Fulfilling Life with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for anxiety is an approach that shifts the focus from trying to eliminate or control anxiety symptoms to living a full and meaningful life with anxiety present. It helps you identify how your attempts to avoid uncomfortable internal experiences (thoughts, feelings, sensations) may be limiting your life. Through acceptance, mindfulness, cognitive defusion, clarifying your values, and committing to value-guided action, ACT helps you build psychological flexibility. The goal is to drop the unworkable struggle against anxiety and instead take action that matters to you, allowing your experiences to be as they are.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Anxiety:What makes it different.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for anxiety is a process-based approach that helps individuals live a full and meaningful life while learning to coexist with anxiety. It does not view anxiety as a disease but as a normal human experience that can become problematic when one attempts to control or avoid it excessively. Key principles include acceptance (willingness to experience difficult thoughts and feelings without struggle), mindfulness (paying attention to the present moment nonjudgmentally), cognitive defusion (changing one’s relationship with thoughts), clarifying personal values (chosen life directions), and taking committed action (steps towards values, even with anxiety). The goal is not necessarily anxiety reduction itself, but building psychological flexibility to engage in a rich and meaningful life, guided by values.

Approaches to Change: NLP vs. Traditional and Modern Methods

Traditional therapeutic approaches often focus on exploring the underlying causes and history of problems, sometimes requiring significant time. Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), conversely, was developed by studying patterns of excellence and focuses on the structure of a person’s thoughts, language, and behaviour – the ‘how’ rather than the ‘why’. This focus on the mechanics of subjective experience, combined with techniques designed to access subconscious processes, establish outcomes, and empower the individual by highlighting their control over their internal states, can contribute to faster and potentially more lasting changes. NLP offers specific techniques like anchoring, timeline therapy, reframing, and belief change to facilitate rapid shifts in perspective and behaviour. Its principles and techniques are widely applied in modern fields such as coaching, where they are used to improve communication, understand client patterns, set goals, and motivate action. While NLP’s focus on outcomes and linguistic precision aligns with some principles of Solution-Focused Therapy, the sources do not explicitly detail an integration. Furthermore, the provided material does not describe how NLP is integrated into Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, presenting ACT as a distinct approach focused on acceptance, mindfulness, values, and committed action.

ACT or CBT for anxiety?

ACT and CBT offer distinct approaches to addressing anxiety. CBT often focuses on identifying and challenging maladaptive thoughts and reducing symptoms by altering thought content and structure. It also utilises exposure to counter avoidance. ACT, conversely, views avoidance and control efforts as key problems that paradoxically worsen suffering. Its goal is not symptom reduction but helping clients live a full, valued life by fostering psychological flexibility. ACT employs defusion to change the relationship with thoughts rather than disputing them and promotes acceptance and willingness to experience internal sensations and emotions fully, often using mindfulness and exposure techniques reframed within an acceptance context. While CBT is seen as a traditional behavioural/cognitive approach, ACT is considered a newer wave that integrates some CBT techniques within a broader framework centred on acceptance, mindfulness, values, and committed action.

Coaching for Depression

This report has examined coaching for depression, drawing on principles and techniques found in various therapeutic modalities. Coaching-informed approaches differ from traditional therapy by focusing on solutions and positive emotions rather than problems, viewing the client as the expert rather than the therapist, and emphasising possibilities over impossibilities. Potential advantages include building confidence, fostering hope, and promoting action-oriented strategies. For clients, coaching can be preferable due to feeling more understood, empowered, and less blamed. Practitioners may benefit from a more collaborative role and the fulfillment of helping clients achieve lasting positive change. A critical element in coaching for depression is the constant monitoring of progress, often done through scaling questions, tracking goal achievement, and regular check-ins to identify what is better. Key techniques include using positive focus, finding exceptions, externalising problems, challenging negative thoughts, setting SMART goals, and promoting behavioral activation.

Comparing Havening Techniques and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Mental Wellbeing

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and its variants like Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) are established psychological approaches that address anxiety, depression, stress, and trauma by focusing on changing thoughts, behaviours, and responses to internal states. CBT often involves techniques like exposure therapy and thought records, aiming to modify reactions that interfere with life goals. While self-help resources exist for CBT, professional guidance is recommended for complex issues and challenging techniques.

Havening Techniques are a newer psychosensory modality that targets the neurobiological encoding of distress, particularly in the amygdala. It involves gentle touch (self-applied or by a practitioner) and aims to depotentiate traumatic memories and reduce stress quickly and effectively. Havening can be used content-free and integrates well with other therapies. It is effective for anxiety, stress, and trauma, helping to provide a sense of safety and facilitating shifts in perception. Self-Havening is a valuable tool for self-care, stress reduction, and building resilience, but professionals are necessary for treating significant or complex trauma. Both approaches offer distinct pathways to support mental wellbeing, with professional guidance being crucial for more severe or complex challenges.

A Comprehensive Understanding of Anxiety Treatment Options

Anxiety treatment encompasses a range of self-help strategies and professional therapeutic approaches aimed at helping individuals manage and reduce the impact of excessive worry and fear. Self-help options include breathing techniques, mindfulness, lifestyle changes, setting boundaries, examining unhelpful thoughts, and engaging in valued activities. Professional help is recommended for more significant anxiety and involves working with a trained practitioner who can provide understanding, identify unhelpful patterns like avoidance, teach specific skills, and offer support. Different professional approaches to anxiety treatment include Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), exposure-based methods, Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT), neuroscience-informed approaches, and techniques from NLP. Choosing the right approach depends on the severity and impact of anxiety, the success of previous efforts, the specific type of anxiety, and finding a professional with relevant experience and a good connection. Anxiety treatment is a journey that requires patience and commitment, ultimately aiming to help individuals live a more meaningful life less controlled by fear.

The role of client values in ACT therapy for anxiety

Client values play a central and fundamental role in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for anxiety disorders. Unlike traditional approaches that primarily focus on reducing or controlling anxiety, ACT emphasises living a life that is rich, full, and meaningful, guided by what is truly important to the client. Here are some key ways in which… Read More »The role of client values in ACT therapy for anxiety

ACT’s primary goals in treating anxiety disorders

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) has two major primary goals when treating anxiety disorders: (1) fostering acceptance of unwanted thoughts and feelings whose occurrence or disappearance clients cannot control, and (2) commitment and action toward living a life that they value. This means that ACT aims to help clients both accept their internal experiences and… Read More »ACT’s primary goals in treating anxiety disorders

The Benefits Of Depression Coaching

Depression coaching offers a solution-focused and action-oriented approach to overcoming low mood. By prioritising future goals, identifying existing strengths, and implementing practical techniques derived from methodologies like SFBT and NLP, it can help individuals to break free from negative thought patterns and build a more positive and fulfilling life. This approach directly addresses neurological changes associated with depression by stimulating the frontal lobe, rewiring negative pathways, increasing positive emotion, shifting focus towards solutions, and fostering a sense of control.

The Amygdala Brain Function

The amygdala is a critical part of the brain’s emotional processing system, primarily involved in detecting threats and generating fear and anxiety responses. It forms emotional memories that can influence future reactions. While its protective function is vital, an overactive amygdala or the misinterpretation of non-threatening stimuli can lead to negative issues such as heightened anxiety and inappropriate fear responses. Individuals can employ various self-help strategies like deep breathing, mindfulness, exercise, and trigger identification to help regulate amygdala activity. However, when anxiety significantly impacts life, professional help from therapists offering CBT, ACT, exposure therapy, or EMDR, and potentially medication, can provide more targeted support in retraining the amygdala and managing anxiety.