Summary: <p>Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Skills<br> Dr. Dawn-Elise Snipes PhD, LPC-MHSP, LMHC<br> Executive Director, AllCEUs</p> <p>Continuing Education (CE) credits can be earned for this presentation at <a href="https://www.allceus.com/member/cart/index/product/id/519/c/"> https://www.allceus.com/member/cart/index/product/id/519/c/</a></p> <p>Objectives<br> ~The Goal of ACT<br> ~What is Mindfulness?<br> ~How Does ACT Differ from Other Mindfulness-based Approaches?<br> ~What is Unique to Act?<br> ~Destructive Normality<br> ~Experiential Avoidance<br> ~Therapeutic Interventions<br> ~Confronting the Agenda<br> ~Control is the Problem, Not the Solution<br> ~Six Core Principles of ACT</p> <p>Why I Care/How It Impacts Recovery<br> ~”You can't stop the waves, but you can learn to surf” Kabat-Zinn 2004</p> <p>~Distracting oneself from distress is akin to constantly running away from one’s shadow. In the attempt to control the negative thoughts and feelings, one is at a loss for control in other life situations.</p> <p>ACT Acronym<br> ~Accept your reactions and be present<br> ~Choose a valued direction<br> ~Take action</p> <p>Overview<br> ~ACT is based on relational frame theory (RFT)<br> ~a psychological theory of human language.<br> ~developed largely through the efforts of Steven C. Hayes of University of Nevada, Reno and Dermot Barnes-Holmes of National University of Ireland, Maynooth.<br> ~Relational frame theory argues that the building block of higher cognition (reasoning) is ‘relating', i.e. the human ability to create links between things.<br> Overview<br> ~Contextualists seek to understand the complexity and richness of a whole event through appreciation of its participants and features.<br> ~Functional contextualism emphasizes:<br> ~Humans learn language (i.e., communication) through interactions with the environment<br> ~We must focus on changeable variables in the context in which these events occur in order create general rules to predict and influence psychological events such as thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.<br> The Goal of ACT</p> <p>~The goal of ACT is to create a rich and meaningful life, while accepting the pain that inevitably goes with it.<br> ~Who is important?<br> ~What is important to me? (Values, things, experiences)<br> ~How can I move toward those goals?<br> ~“ACT” is a good abbreviation, because this therapy is about taking effective action guided by our deepest values and in which we are fully present and engaged.<br> What is Mindfulness?</p> <p>~“Consciously bringing awareness to your here-and-now experience with openness, interest and receptiveness.<br> ~Facets to mindfulness<br> ~Living in the present moment<br> ~Engaging fully in what you are doing rather than “getting lost” in your thoughts<br> ~Allowing your feelings to be as they are, rather than trying to control them<br> ~Mindfulness does not require meditation</p> <p>What is Mindfulness?</p> <p>~Mindfulness skills are “divided” into four subsets:<br> ~ Acceptance<br> ~ Cognitive diffusion<br> ~ Contact with the present moment<br> ~ The Observing Self</p> <p>How Does ACT Differ<br> ~ACT can be used in a wide range of clinical populations and settings<br> ~Not manualized<br> ~ACT allows the therapist to create and individualize their own mindfulness techniques, or even to co-create them with clients.<br> What is Unique to Act?</p> <p>~ACT does not have symptom reduction as a goal.<br> ~The ongoing attempt to get rid of “symptoms” actually creates a clinical disorder<br> ~Private experience is labeled a symptom a struggle with the symptom<br> ~A “symptom” is by definition something “pathological” and something we should try to get rid of.<br> ~In ACT, the aim is to transform our relationship with our difficult thoughts and feelings, learn to perceive them as harmless, even if uncomfortable, transient psychological events.<br> D</p>
