The Power of Acceptance & Commitment Therapy
How Acceptance & Commitment Therapy Helps You Reconnect with Life
For many people, feeling lost or disconnected from themselves is an all-too-familiar experience. It might feel like a dull ache of emptiness, a sense that life is passing by without you, or a deep disconnection from the relationships, work, and passions that once brought joy or fulfillment.
If you’ve ever found yourself in that space, you’re not alone. And it’s not because something is inherently wrong with you.
Why Do We Feel So Disconnected?
It’s common to hear messages that strong emotions—whether it’s anxiety, sadness, anger, or grief—are something to be “fixed” or controlled. Society often treats emotions as problems that need solving, suggesting that we’re somehow weak if we experience them intensely. This can lead us to avoid or suppress our feelings in an attempt to keep things under control.
But when we consistently avoid our emotions, we also begin to disconnect from the things that matter most to us. Over time, this disconnection can leave us feeling lost, like we’ve stepped away from the people, activities, and values that used to make life meaningful.
How ACT Approaches Emotional Pain
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT) offers a different perspective. Rather than seeing emotions as something to be battled or fixed, ACT views them as natural responses to difficult life experiences. It’s not about pathologizing suffering; instead, it’s about learning how to coexist with your emotions without letting them dominate your life.
The focus of ACT is on helping you change your relationship with your internal world—your thoughts, feelings, and sensations. Instead of spending energy trying to avoid or control emotional pain, ACT helps you develop the skills to experience those feelings without letting them pull you away from what really matters.
Reconnecting with What’s Important
One of the core ideas of ACT is that avoidance—whether it’s avoiding painful emotions, difficult thoughts, or uncomfortable situations—often leads us away from the things we care about. Over time, this avoidance can create a sense of disconnection, where we find ourselves drifting further from the relationships, activities, or goals that bring meaning to our lives.
ACT helps people clarify their values—the things that are most important to them—and take steps toward those values, even when discomfort shows up. It’s about finding the courage to face difficult emotions head-on while continuing to engage with life in a meaningful way.
What Can You Expect from ACT?
While the experience of ACT is different for everyone, some common themes include:
Developing Emotional Flexibility: Instead of seeing emotions as something to escape from, ACT helps you learn how to sit with them and respond with compassion and curiosity. Over time, this builds emotional flexibility, which makes it easier to face life’s challenges without feeling overwhelmed.
Clarifying Your Values: One of the most powerful aspects of ACT is its focus on values—what truly matters to you. By getting clear on your values, you can begin to take steps toward a life that feels fulfilling and true to who you are.
Mindfulness and Presence: ACT emphasizes mindfulness, teaching you how to stay present with your thoughts and emotions without becoming consumed by them. This can create a sense of grounding, even in the midst of emotional storms.
Taking Meaningful Action: Ultimately, ACT is about helping you live a life that feels significant and aligned with your values, rather than one ruled by avoidance or fear.
Moving Forward with Compassion
What many people appreciate about ACT is that it doesn’t ask you to “fix” yourself or your emotions. Instead, it encourages a compassionate approach to emotional pain, recognizing that being human involves experiencing a full range of emotions—joy, sorrow, anger, fear, and everything in between.
ACT offers tools and practices to help you engage with life more fully, even when things feel difficult. It’s about finding ways to move forward, not by avoiding or suppressing emotions, but by learning to coexist with them in a way that leaves space for what truly matters.
If you’re interested in seeing how we might work together, here are a few areas I specialize in: Therapy for Women, Therapy for Chronic Illness, Therapy for Body Acceptance.
