We have agendas at work and home. We thrive on making plans and acting according to those plans and targets. In our society, we are expected to fulfill certain milestones, such as achieving a good grade in +2, attending a renowned university, securing a good job, getting married, and so on. These values become ingrained in our subconscious, and functioning in autopilot mode, we tend to pursue these achievements without considering whether they align with our actual values. ACT therapy is pronounced as ACT (in ACTING). It is a therapy that examines your life with in a broader context and helps you identify your values, aligning your decisions and goals with those values. It lets youplan your life and articulate what you want in 10, 20, and 30 years.
It teaches psychological skills that enhance cognitive flexibility. It helps identify the factors you can control and those you cannot. The key ideas of the therapy are accepting factors beyond our control, practising mindfulness skills, and leveraging factors within your control.
In ACT, we do not focus on reducing symptoms. We focus on changing one’s relationship with the symptoms. A core principle of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is that psychological suffering is not the problem—our struggle is. Unlike traditional therapies focusing on symptom reduction, ACT helps individuals change their relationship with complex thoughts, emotions, and sensations insteadof eliminating them.
Why does ACT not focus on Symptom Reduction?
Many people enter therapy hoping to get rid of anxiety, depression, or pain. However, ACT recognises that controlling or avoiding inner experiences often backfires, leading to greater distress. For example:
Someone with anxiety may try to suppress fear, only to become more anxious about being anxious.
A person with chronic pain might exhaust themselves fighting discomfort, increasing their suffering.
ACT shifts the focus from “How do I feel better?” to “How can I live better, even with discomfort?”
How ACT Changes the Relationship with Symptoms
Cognitive Defusion – Learning to see thoughts as just thoughts, not facts. Instead of believing “I’m a failure,” a person learns to notice, “I’m having the thought that I’m a failure.”
Acceptance – Making space for discomfort rather than resisting it. Pain may remain, but suffering decreases when we stop struggling.
Mindfulness – Observing emotions without being overwhelmed by them.
Values-Based Action – Committing to meaningful actions even when symptoms are present.
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The Outcome: Psychological Flexibility
By changing their relationship with symptoms, individuals develop psychological flexibility—the ability to adapt, stay present, and take action aligned with their values. This approach doesn’t promise a pain-free life but offers a richer, more engaged life,even with discomfort.
Private use of language in thinking, writing, daydreaming, and pondering will all lead to what is known as cognition. Private use of language is cognition.
Just think of this example. You are thrilled about a beach holiday. At that time, you think about how your ex-spouse treated you. It is enough for you to ruin the entire day. The ex-spouse is not on holiday with you, but has destroyed your thoughts by taking up space in your mind. Now your holiday is ruined. How can we bring in mindfulness skills to stay in the present moment and enjoy the moment?
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