As I’ve mentioned previously, I have a preference for acceptance commitment therapy (ACT). It’s what I’ve found success with personally and professionally. However, I’ll note a willingness & readiness for this type of work is required. A significant element of ACT is working toward acceptance, with the concept that we can use that process to create and live the life we want/value. I began to wonder, is acceptance such a big deal? What’s its power & pull for me? Below you’ll find the 3 top reasons why I find acceptance work integral to therapy.
- In a lack of acceptance for thoughts, feelings, and experiences, we often find ourselves fighting against them.
- In fighting against, we fuel the fight against ourselves. We become further entangled with the thoughts, feelings, experiences we seek to avoid. Our minds make them bigger, more meaningful, and harder to overcome, partly just because we’re focused on them.
- When we’re fighting against, we’re using energy and passion that could be used to move us toward our goals.
- When we’re fighting against, we prolong our suffering from the very things we aim to avoid.
- Getting to a place of acceptance, makes perceived barriers null and void.
- Acceptance works to help drop excuses, fears, anxieties, and worries. All the reasons we may have been told we can’t, and all the reasons we’ve come to believe we can’t, disintegrate.
- Acceptance isn’t about passivity. Acceptance begs, “okay… now what?”. From the right perspective, it’s bold. From a place of acceptance, we gain freedom, we can go after our dreams, have conviction & follow passions.
- Acceptance brings peace & empowerment.
- Not only does it calm the fight, calm the suffering and remove barriers. It creates space. Acceptance creates room to for choice and with that opens up possibilities.
- When our minds open up to possibilities, we gain capacity to figure out what we want more of in life. As well as, empowerment to actively move toward living that life.
All of that said, life and therapy is unique to each person. Thus, I take a collaborative and integrated approach to therapy. The role acceptance work may play in therapy, depends mostly on the individual and their needs.