Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a unique approach to manage our anxious thoughts and feelings. One major element of ACT is teaching people how to handle pain, anxiety more effectively using mindfulness skills
Does your mind ever say things like….
“This Is Bad. I Can’t Do This. This Is It. Why Does This Happen Only To Me? What Are They Going To Think Of Me? I Am Not Cut Out For This Work. I Can’t Handle It. I Am Dumb. Why Is This Difficult? I Shouldn’t Think This Way. I Can’t Control Anything.”
This first technique is said to be very effective with patients
This first technique has been very effective with my patients.
For example, I’m a loser or I’m not smart enough.
Rate your anxiety from 1-10, 10 being very anxious.
For example, I notice I’m having the thought that I’m a loser.
Rate your anxiety again. Even though it is just a mild difference, something is better than nothing!
What happened that time?
Did you notice a sense of separation or distance from the thought? If not, run through the exercise again with a different thought.
DISCLAIMER : Be wary of the thoughts you use this for. Validate your pain and nervousness. This might not be applicable for all kinds of thoughts.
This exercise (Titchener, 1916) involves three steps:
Say it out loud once or twice, and notice what shows up psychologically—what thoughts, images, smells, tastes, or memories come to mind.
For example, “bad,” “fat,” “idiot,” “selfish,” “loser,” “incompetent,”—or a two-word phrase such as “bad mother.”
Please try this now and notice what happens. Most people find the word or phrase becomes meaningless within about thirty seconds. Then we see it for what it truly is: an odd sound, a vibration. Your harsh words over a period of time then will provoke less and less anxiety.
There are other meditative and visualisation techniques which focuses on allowing the thought to come and go, focusing on the sensations and experiences. However these are most effective when done by a trained therapist.
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