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Defusion

How to manage an anxiety attack

Managing intense anxiety and panic involves shifting from trying to control or eliminate the experience to accepting and allowing it. Key strategies include practicing acceptance, mindfulness, breathing and relaxation techniques, taking action aligned with your values despite anxiety, questioning unhelpful thoughts and beliefs, being compassionate towards yourself, and focusing attention outwards. Experiential exposure, or facing… Read More »How to manage an anxiety attack

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,… Read More »Finding Freedom and a Fulfilling Life with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

Mental Freedom

Mental freedom involves liberation from the dictation of your thoughts, allowing you to choose how to respond to your inner experience and the world. It is achieved not by controlling or eliminating unwanted thoughts and feelings, but by learning to relate to them differently through practices like mindfulness and acceptance. Key strategies include paying non-judgemental… Read More »Mental Freedom

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… Read More »ACT or CBT for anxiety?

Embracing Experience: Understanding and Moving Beyond Avoidance

Experiential avoidance, the attempt to evade unwanted inner experiences, plays a significant role in various mental health challenges, including anxiety, depression, stress, and trauma, leading to restricted lives and intensified distress. Overcoming this pattern involves cultivating awareness, acceptance, willingness, cognitive defusion, present moment contact, value clarification, gradual exposure, and self-compassion, enabling individuals to engage with… Read More »Embracing Experience: Understanding and Moving Beyond Avoidance

Steps to Overcoming Dread: Calming Your Mind and Building Resilience with Self-Help Techniques

Feelings of dread often involve activation of the brain’s threat system (amygdala) and an overwhelmed cortex, accompanied by negative thinking patterns, anticipation of threat, and negative self-talk. To overcome dread, techniques such as CPR for the Amygdala (combining self-havening and brain games), self-havening alone, challenging negative self-talk, practising mindfulness and acceptance, focusing on solutions, ACT-based… Read More »Steps to Overcoming Dread: Calming Your Mind and Building Resilience with Self-Help Techniques

Uncoupling from Thoughts: The Power of Defusion

Defusion techniques involve a shift in how we relate to our thoughts, so that we see them as mental events, not facts. This process can reduce reactivity, increase flexibility, and support general well-being. Defusion may seem strange but it can allow more freedom in life and less intense reactions to thinking.