What is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)?

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a form of cognitive behavioral therapy that focuses on building psychological flexibility your ability to stay present, make room for hard internal experiences, and still take actions aligned with your values.

ACT doesn’t ask you to “get rid of” anxiety. Instead, you learn how to:

• Unhook from the thoughts that pull you into spirals

• Make room for emotions without being controlled by them

• Reconnect with what matters (your values, your relationships, your life)

• Take steady, values-based steps even when anxiety shows up

You don’t have to win an argument with your mind to feel better

A lot of anxiety treatment becomes a full-time job: tracking, preventing, fixing, avoiding. ACT takes a different stance:

Anxiety can come along. It doesn’t get to drive.

When you change your relationship with thoughts and feelings, you create space for choice. And choice is where change happens.

ACT can help if you’re stuck in patterns like…

• Overthinking, rumination, “What if?” spirals

• People-pleasing, guilt, fear of disappointing others

• Perfectionism and harsh self-criticism

• Panic sensations, chronic stress, nervous system overwhelm

• Avoidance, procrastination, shutdown, emotional numbing

• Relationship anxiety, fear of conflict, difficulty setting boundaries

• Feeling disconnected from yourself or what you want

What ACT looks like in therapy

ACT is experiential and skills-based—but not in a “just do these steps and you’ll be fixed” way.

In sessions, we’ll work on:

• Defusion: noticing thoughts as thoughts (not commands or truths)

• Acceptance: making room for emotions and sensations without fighting them

• Present-moment grounding: coming back to your body and the here-and-now

• Values clarification: getting clear on what matters to you

• Committed action: building small, realistic steps you can actually follow through on

This approach is supported by a substantial body of research across concerns like anxiety and depression (with evidence continuing to grow).

If you’re in a relationship, ACT helps there too

ACT is powerful for relationships because it targets the hidden drivers of disconnection:

• avoiding hard conversations

• getting hooked by threat thoughts (“they don’t care,” “I’m too much,” “this won’t change”)

• reacting from fear instead of values

• cycling between escalation and shutdown

We’ll focus on building emotional flexibility, clearer boundaries, and more intentional repair so your relationship isn’t run by anxiety-based reflexes.