Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) in Calgary

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What is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy?

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a therapeutic approach that enables the present you to not only empathize with your past but also build your future. It works in two phases: Acceptance and Commitment.

Acceptance focuses on your past. This step helps you detach the negative perspectives you have about your past reactions, behaviors and feelings by breaking down and rationalising them. Here, your therapist focuses on helping you understand your responses and create empathy for yourself in those situations.

Commitment focuses on your future. This step is based on building a value system and moral code that you would like to lead your life according to. Here, you are empowered to make changes in your life that allow you to be the person you’ve always sought out to be.

In practice, an ACT therapist will start by helping you understand and accept that your reactions are human. While they may not be what you want them to be, there is nothing inherently wrong with your feelings, but rather, the problem lies in the negative thoughts and perspectives you have attached to them. It is important in this step to learn to approach these feelings with a neutral mindset and simply take them for what they are.

Your therapist will then work with you to uncover your values and beliefs. These values and beliefs are used to inform your “commitment”. Your commitments could range from smaller goals like not shaming yourself for doing badly on a test to larger goals like completely eliminating negative self talk.

Regardless of what goals you set for yourself at the beginning of your journey, each one is a remarkable step towards becoming the person you want to be - one that aligns with your own handcrafted values.

If you feel shame surrounding your reactions and want to modify your perspectives, ACT will be extremely helpful in helping you build and be that new “you’.

What Issues Can ACT Help With?

  • Negative self view/talk

  • Identity exploration

  • Relationship issues

  • Stress

  • Perfectionism

  • Depression

  • Anxiety

  • Addiction

  • Substance use disorders

  • Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Too Long, Didn’t Read:

ACT helps you empathize with and understand your past behaviors while also empowering you to become the person you want to be.

Frequently Asked Questions:

  • ACT is a very flexible therapy. If you are looking to change the way you view yourself or view situations/life, are striving towards improvement in any aspect or just want to lead your life with a new, well-rounded mindset, ACT will be great for you.

  • Since ACT involves breaking down negative thought patterns and building towards goals that make you a new “you”, it tends to be very flexible. It can range anywhere from 6 sessions to 24+ sessions depending on the depth of what you must learn to accept and what you want to build towards.

  • ACT works great as a support therapy for therapies that work with shifting mindsets about the past and/or the future - which is a lot of therapies! It supplements cognitive based therapies, body based therapies and even the ones in between. It intertwines goals with healing which makes it a really great addition to any therapeutic plan.

Our ACT Therapist in Calgary