Balancing Acceptance and Change in the Treatment of Anxiety Disorders Using ACT - Forsyth - London, Ontario, Canada
This introductory workshop outlines the application of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT, pronounced as one word) for persons suffering from any of the major anxiety disorders. ACT is a newer third-generation behavior therapy that balances mindfulness and acceptance processes with commitment and behavior change processes.
Within the ACT model, anxiety and fear are not problems because of their form, frequency, or intensity. Rather, anxiety disorders are thought to result from the application of excessive and inflexible thought and emotion regulation strategies (control, suppression, avoidance, escape) where they are unnecessary, don’t work in the long-run, and get in the way of life activities that clients care deeply about. This model, in turn, is supported by several emerging lines of research showing that excessive emotion regulation (i.e., experiential avoidance) narrows behavioral options and tends to increase undesired psychological and emotional content. Worse, excessive emotion regulation is, by definition, time and energy away from more vital and important life activities. It is a core process that transforms normative painful thoughts and emotions (e.g., anxiety, fear, painful memories) into life shattering problems.
ACT, therefore, is about undermining the emotion regulation agenda itself via strategies that foster greater experiential and psychological flexibility. In the process, clients learn that inflexible attempts to manage and control anxiety are the problem, not a solution. And, they learn that there is another way into their lives that does not require them to think and feel well (meaning less anxious) first in order to live well. This is accomplished in treatment by helping clients to (a) confront the costs of experiential avoidance (i.e., anxiety management and control); (b) learn new and more compassionate ways of relating with their unpleasant thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations using mindfulness and acceptance-based strategies; (c) clarify their values (i.e., what they care deeply about) while nurturing willingness to be with unpleasant feelings and thoughts; and (d) fostering engagement in activities that move them in directions that are consistent with their values. In short, ACT teaches clients how to be with their hurts and do what works – to live well, richly, and meaningfully, without first having to master and control anxiety and other sources of emotional and psychological pain.
ACT is a process-guided approach to psychological suffering and its alleviation, not a set of intervention technologies matched to specific DSM disorders. Thus, this workshop will build on the ACT model and illustrate its application with an eye on processes that feed and maintain all the major anxiety disorders. ACT experiential exercises (e.g., acceptance, mindfulness) and value-guided behavioral activation strategies will be emphasized throughout the workshop. Some techniques will be demonstrated, and participants will have opportunities to try them out too. Clinical worksheets and other tools will be provided.
Workshop Objectives:
Participants will learn:
1. Key elements of the ACT model of human suffering;
2. how to make experiential avoidance and valued living explicit treatment targets;
3. how to integrate experiential exercises, metaphors, and mindfulness techniques to foster greater experiential flexibility, acceptance, and self-kindness;
4. ways to help anxious clients balance acceptance and change while moving in the direction of their chosen values and life goals.
Who Should Attend: Psychologists, social workers, nurses, psychiatrists, and other mental health professionals, including graduate students and post-doctoral fellows.
Agenda:
9:00am – 10:30 The ACT Model of Human Suffering
Excessive thought and emotion regulation can transform pain into suffering
10:30am BREAK
10:45 – 12:00pm ACT #1: Challenging the Struggle and Control Agenda and Letting Go
Control is the problem, not the solution
12:00 – 1:00pm LUNCH
1:00pm ACT #2: Self as Context: Acceptance, Mindfulness, and Defusion
Letting go and showing up to anxious discomfort (and life) as it is
2:30pm BREAK
2:45 – 4:30pm ACT #3: Values Clarification and Mindful Exposure in the Service of Living Well
What do I want out of this one crazy life?
What are the barriers that get in the way of vital action?
Learning to move with hurts and do what works with both eyes on values
Recommended Readings:
Eifert, G. H., & Forsyth, J. P. (2005) Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for anxiety disorders: A practitioner's treatment guide to using mindfulness, acceptance, and values-based behavior change strategies. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger.
Forsyth, J. P., & Eifert, G. H. (2008). The mindfulness and acceptance workbook for anxiety: A guide to breaking free from anxiety, phobias, and worry using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger.
Hayes, S. C. (2004a). Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Relational Frame Theory, and the third wave of behavior therapy. Behavior Therapy, 35, 639-665.
Orsillo, S. M., Roemer, L., Lerner, J. B., & Tull, M. T. (2004). Acceptance, mindfulness, and cognitive-behavioral therapy: Comparisons, contrasts, and application to anxiety. In S. C. Hayes, V. M., Follette, & M. M. Linehan (Eds.), Mindfulness and acceptance: Expanding the cognitive-behavioral tradition (pp. 66-95). New York: Guilford Press.
To Register: See attached flyer.
Visit Dr. Forsyth's Blog: http://mindfulness-and-anxiety.blogspot.com/
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