Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) - FULLY ACCREDITED

In this lecture your tutor will introduce herself to you and tell you a bit about her background and her interest in teaching at Udemy.

In this video you will find out about the benefits of learning about Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and how you can use it for yourself and others you work (or live) with.

In this video you will be introduced to various definitions of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, and explanations of the usability and effectiveness of this approach in therapy today.

When we start learning about a new concept or theory, it is always important to find out as much as possible about its creator or developer too.  This information gives us a better grounding and a wider view on the topic that we are studying at that time.

In this lecture we are going to learn about the founder of ACT therapy - Steven C Hays who has become a prominent figure in the field of Clinical psychology.  See you in our class! ;)

In our previous lecture we have mentioned that Steven Hayes, the founder of ACT, has developed Relational Frame Theory (RFT) prior to that. In this lecture we will be looking at RFT and what it represents itself as, because RFT is one of most important underlying principles of ACT. In fact, throughout this lecture, you will see that ACT is deeply rooted in RFT and you’ve got to grasp the principles of RFT before learning about ACT! See you in our class!

In this lecture we will start looking at ACT therapy more closely. The foundational principles of ACT are those that serve as a base for the whole therapeutic approach that we are studying here. In one of our earlier lectures we’ve already established that ACT is deeply rooted in the Relational Frame Therapy, which is basically an understanding of human language construction and how this language construction affects our thinking, communication with others, and how it creates 'psychological suffering' in our minds.

The model of ACT is complex yet simple at the same time. Even though it has several components, the structure is very straightforward in learning and each component can be understood and examined individually. When you learn about each component and its functioning in the ACT structure, then you'll realise the bigger picture of ACT when it is applied as a multi-componential system.

When you’ll become more familiar with the concept of ACT from the books and articles on this subject, you will also come across the phrase ‘stuck, but not broken’. This phrase has been used in regards to the clients that come to ACT therapy. ‘Stuck, but not broken’ means that the client in a certain psychological state where they need help and guidance in order to move forward, they also need to learn to manage their emotional state as best as they can (becoming more efficient in it through therapy). As a result of this they should be able to get ‘unstuck’ in their thinking and behaviour.

In some of our previous lectures we have mentioned the notion of ‘psychological inflexibility’ several times and even attempted to understand it from various points of view. What we have learned so far is that ‘psychological inflexibility’ has several components and quite a complex notion to learn. In this lecture, we will continue discuss this topic and will focus on its components in a bit more detail. See you in our class!

You might be familiar with the concept of 'Therapeutic Relationship' and its importance, especially if you took any of my previous courses here.

Therapeutic relationship (or therapeutic alliance) is a significant factor that can predict the outcome of therapy for both the client and the therapist. In this lecture we will revisit the concept of ‘therapeutic relationship’ and will discuss its significance in ACT.

I hope you remember one of our previous discussions where we've discussed what 'psychological flexibility' is and why it's important. As you probably  remember, 'psychological flexibility' is not a simple attribute that we can develop or improve easily. In fact, it is clear that 'psychological flexibility' is a multi-componential structure or the model of ACT, and requires a great deal of attention and learning about each of its components.

The first component of the model (one of the core process in ACT) is Acceptance. Let's have a look at this concept in this lecture!

In one of our previous lectures we've briefly mentioned about the concept of ‘cognitive defusion’ and you might remember what it meant. If you don’t remember, then don’t worry, as in this lecture we’ll have a look at several definitions of this concept in order to understand fully what 'cognitive defusion' is. We will also discover what  ‘defusing our thoughts' mean and how this concept of 'defusion' can enhance our thinking and wellbeing overall. See you in our lecture!

In this video lecture we will be learning about the next core concept of ACT - ‘Contacting the Present Moment’ (or ‘Being Present’). If you ever came across the concept of ‘mindfulness’ or ‘being in the Now’ previously to this course, then you will grasp the concept of ‘Contacting the Present Moment’ really easy, because in essence all those concepts (e.g. 'mindfulness', being present) talk about the same thing: 'why' we need to ‘be present’, how we benefit from that activity, how to practice ‘contacting the present moment’ in your daily life, and so on. All these questions (and more) we will be discussing throughout our lectures here. See you in our class!

In this lecture we will be learning about the next important concept in ACT therapy - The Observing Self (aka ‘Self as Context’). This concept is very close to the notion of ‘Being Present’ because it also teaches us to be more mindful and observant of self, of our thoughts and feelings, of our sensations. There is a significant distinction between ‘Being Present’ and ‘Self as Context’ though and that distinction lies in the point of view from which we practice our awareness from. Let’s talk about it in a more detail in our video lecture!

See you there!

In this lecture we will talk about ‘values’ and it’s meaning in ACT. Our 'values' is the foundation of life that we are living, and it is highly important to learn how to identify our values in order to live a more satisfying life. In this class we will be learning how to recognise our values and how to use this knowledge in our everyday life; how to choose what action to take wisely; how to teach the client to identify their values and explain the importance of prioritising when it comes to ‘values’ (and much more!).

See you in our class!

In this video we will be learning about another (final) ACT core process that is called ‘Committed Action’. So far, you’ve been learning about the other few principles of ACT such as ‘contacting the present’, ‘knowing your values’, ‘accepting emotions’, ‘cognitive defusion’ and so on. These are the principles and processes that in summary construct the principle of ‘psychological flexibility’ - the notion that can help you (and your client) to create the life that is fulfilling and satisfying.

In this new section of the course ('Positive Psychology and The Happiness Trap') we will be looking at the concepts of ‘Happiness’ and the ‘Happiness Trap’ - which basically means that sometimes we get ‘trapped’ in the pursuit of happiness! In this section we will also look at the issues related to our thought processes, coping strategies for negative thinking, and why 'suppressing thoughts' doesn't always work. Finally, we'll discuss what is ‘experiential avoidance’ and what the difference between ‘acceptance’ and ‘letting go’ is. See you in our class!

In this lecture we will be discussing another interesting concept in psychotherapy which we referred to as 'being stuck'. 'Being stuck’ can happen both in life and during therapy sessions, and it can happen to both - the client and the therapist!

Here, we will examine the meaning of  ‘getting stuck’, then we provide some examples and solutions related to this concept (from the ACT viewpoint of course!)

In this lecture we will continue our discussion on ‘dealing with thoughts’, whether this implies ‘getting unstuck’ with our thought patterns or attempting to control negative thoughts better than we did before. Managing our psychological state, and emotions and thoughts is not an easy task.

ACT offers us a toolbox of various strategies that can help with the management of psychological state and thought patterns. What kind of issues that we can identify related to 'thoughts' and 'thinking'? What do we need to be aware of when we are talking about management of our psychological state?

In this lecture we will continue discussing the topic of ‘thought management’ and in particular we will look at ‘why suppressing thoughts is not aways helpful’. There are many techniques available to us through psychology- and self-development articles that can teach us many useful things such as 'how to stop thinking process', for example, through distracting oneself with something different, focusing on 'the positives' in your life, counting the blessings, writing what you are grateful for in life, and so on.

In this lecture we will be looking at one of such techniques which involves 'stopping the thought' by the mean of ‘suppression’. Let’s discuss this topic in our class!

As you will be continuing your learning of ACT and its principles, you will come across the notion of ‘experiential avoidance’ time after time. Would you like to know what ‘experiential avoidance’ in ACT therapy means? Then head over to our class now!

As now you are familiar with the concept of ‘acceptance’, you have probably realised that 'acceptance' is one of the primary cornerstones of ACT therapy. You might have heard previously that ‘acceptance’ is what can help us to become more satisfied with life, to feel more positive with life experiences, and become fulfilled in many other ways. Other times you have probably read that ‘letting go’ is the key to a happier (more) fulfilled life too. So what should you do: to ‘let go’ or to ‘accept’; what is valued more: a total ‘acceptance’ of what we’ve been through or ‘letting go’ of our past experiences that possibly still hold us back?

In this lecture we will be discussing the difference between ‘acceptance’ and ‘letting go’; what should be our primary focus on; what we can advise to our clients when we explain the concept of ‘acceptance’ to them, and much more.

In this lecture we will be looking at the concept of ‘self-doubt’ which is one of the aspects of (low) self-esteem and its related issues. In Psychology we can recognise many aspects of (low) self-esteem such as negative repetitive thinking, self-criticism, low self-worth, mistrust towards others, self-blame, feeling 'unlucky' or 'unfairly treated', and so on. These aspects can lead to a more problematic future of the individual, adding to their neurosis, psychological and even physical issues. Let’s discuss this in a greater detail in our lecture!

In this lecture we will continue to study topics related to the management of ‘thoughts’ and ‘emotions’.
Can you explain, why do we get ‘emotional’? What kind of ‘emotions’ we can feel as human beings? Why do we 'suffer' and 'hurt' from emotional pain? What is the difference between ‘psychological pain’ and ‘emotional pain’? We’ll have a look at the answers from the ACT perspective to all these questions and more. See you in our class!

In this lecture we will continue discussing the nature of ‘emotions’ and particularly how ‘normal’ it is to experience a variety of emotions when they occur frequently and negatively impact our psychological wellbeing. Is it possible to stop feeling emotions at will? How to change ‘negative’ emotions for those which are more pleasant to us? How to help the client to ‘normalise’ what they are feeling? Let’s discuss these questions in our lecture!

We are all aware that to recall certain moments from our past is ‘normal’. We all have memories that we cherish, but we also have some memories that we wish to forget. What can we do when we are ‘haunted’ by our past? How can we stop thinking of something that we so want to forget and never remember? What to do when we get overwhelmed with the feelings and emotions from the memories caused by past traumas? These are the questions that we are exploring in our current lecture.

In this part of the course we will be looking at several metaphors that are used in ACT therapy. The benefit of using these metaphors for yourself and others is that they give you a visual representation of managing your thoughts and feelings, no matter how difficult or ‘loud’ they seem to be.
If you remember, earlier on in this course we’ve already looked at one well-known metaphor called ‘Clouds in the Sky’ where ‘clouds’ are your thoughts that can change from ‘white’, 'fluffy', and 'pleasant-to-look at’ to ‘dark and angry’. One of the well-known ACT metaphors that we will be looking at in this lecture is called ‘The passengers on the bus’  which is easy to follow and understand exercise. Let’s learn more about it in our class!

In this lecture we will be looking at another well known ACT metaphor (proposed by Russ Harris), known as ‘The Struggle Switch’ . It is an easy-to-follow exercise can be helpful to anyone who struggles with negative emotions and thoughts on daily basis. Let’s discuss it in our class!

In this lecture we will be discussing another ACT metaphor (in the form of exercise) which is called ‘Thanking Your Mind’. To some individuals this exercise might seem 'silly', but try it out time after time and you will be surprised to learn that it's very effective as a long-term approach to our thought and emotion management! Let’s continue with our discussion in the class!

In this lecture we will be discussing two important concepts in ACT - ‘positive thinking’ and ‘cognitive restructuring’. You might realise by now that the concept of ‘positive thinking’ is not as straightforward as we might think at first. If it was so easy to achieve, then why don’t we all do it, right?

'Cognitive restructuring' is another effective strategy that can enable us to reframe our negative thoughts into those which are more pleasant and acceptable. Let’s discuss these two concepts in our lecture now!

As research shows, ACT has been effectively used for the treatment of a wide variety of mental health issues for several years. For example, its affirmed itself as a very helpful treatment for some severe diagnosis such as Bipolar Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder and so on. What else can we say about ACT and mental health disorders and conditions? Let's continue this discussion in our class!

Welcome to our first BONUS video where we will be discussing what ‘stress’ and ‘anxiety’ is, how they interact with one another, how they affect our thinking and behaviour, and what we can do about them (the actual ‘management’ bit!)

In this lecture we will be looking at several definitions of ‘addiction’ which can be related to various substances (for example alcohol, cigarette smoking, illegal and prescription drugs). Addiction can also include a certain behavioural pattern that negatively affects the individual involved (and perhaps their family too).

Addictions is a topic that can be discussed from many standpoints and give a different picture each time. For example, we can study this topic from perspectives of 'psychology' and 'psychiatry', social work, cultural norm and sociology, spirituality and religion, and much more. So let’s start our course here!

In this short video your tutor would like to say her 'thanks' and 'good bye' to you, dear student.

Final Test  'Acceptance & Commitment Therapy: ACT' course

Complete the test to your best ability. You can re-take the test as many times as you need.

Chose the answer that is most accurate or complete in relation to the question asked.

Good luck!

After you complete the test you qualify for your well-deserved certificates!

Instructions on how to obtain your certificate