Last week we explored values and how these can guide your life. Values can give you direction and help you to live a more meaningful life. This is easier said than done! Just identifying your values won’t help you to walk down a valued path – you have to commit to action. Committing to action ... [Read more...]
Values are talked about a lot in regards to mental health and wellness, however, values are not always defined the same way. As one of the core components of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, values are how we want to act on an ongoing basis, and this lets us walk down a valued path. This might ... [Read more...]
We’re halfway through the core processes of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)! We’ve talked about contacting the present moment and defusion, next up: acceptance. Acceptance is sometimes confused for tolerance. Acceptance is opening up and making room for painful feelings, sensations, urges, and emotions. While tolerance means enduring these things, acceptance means not struggling with ... [Read more...]
Last week we identified that defusion is a key concept in contacting the present moment, another core process of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). But what is defusion? How can we simply let go of our thoughts? Defusion is the act of watching your thinking. It means learning to step back and separate or detach ... [Read more...]
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a third wave cognitive behavioral therapy. ACT uses key concepts from more traditional therapy interventions but extends and adds an emphasis on holistic well-being, taking an all-around approach to improving how we think, feel, and act. The first core process of ACT starts with Contacting the Present Moment. This ... [Read more...]
We’ve mentioned social support is great for stress. In fact, we know that talking to someone (a friend, family member, loved one, or a mental health professional) can usually be really helpful in alleviating negative emotions. But how do you broach bringing up your stress? You might feel selfish, self-centered, or guilty – maybe you ... [Read more...]
We’ve learned about different types of stress. We know that stress can affect our mood, thoughts, body, and behavior. We also know that stress is just about everywhere and can even be a good thing. But how can we best manage stress? One of the more popular ways to manage and tackle stress is through ... [Read more...]
We experience a lot of stress! Whether it’s acute stress or chronic stress – you know exactly what someone is talking about when they say they’re stressed out. Stress affects your mood, body, thoughts, and even your behavior. Below are some signs of stress, but keep in mind that, like most mental health things, individual ... [Read more...]
Stress is something everyone knows about and you probably have a lot of experience with it. But there are different types of stress – acute and chronic. Acute stress is usually short in duration and results from a specific event or situation. This is generally the more obvious stressful event – like giving a presentation, ... [Read more...]