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Does ACT work for trauma?
ACT has a growing body of empirical support as a treatment modality for use in mental health settings and can be useful for anyone who struggles with depression, anxiety, PTSD, or other trauma-related difficulties. ACT can help a person living with depression, anxiety, or other mental health conditions. It is also a supported treatment for psychosis, chronic pain, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The goal of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is to increase psychological flexibility, or the ability to enter the present moment more fully and either change or persist in behavior when doing so serves valued ends. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT therapy) is a type of mindful psychotherapy that helps you stay focused on the present moment and accept thoughts and feelings without judgment. It aims to help you move forward through difficult emotions so you can put your energy into healing instead of dwelling on the negative. Hayes (2005) describes six core processes of ACT: acceptance, cognitive defusion, being present, self as context, valuing, and committed action. Whereas CBT works by helping you identify and change negative or destructive thoughts, ACT holds that pain and discomfort are a fact of life – something we must get comfortable with if we wish to live a happy, fulfilled life.
Is ACT helpful for trauma?
ACT has a growing body of empirical support as a treatment modality for use in mental health settings and can be useful for anyone who struggles with depression, anxiety, PTSD, or other trauma-related difficulties. ACT is a form of psychotherapy commonly described as a form of cognitive behavioral therapy. It is an empirically based psychological intervention that uses acceptance, mindfulness strategies, commitment and behavior-change strategies, to increase psychological flexibility. ACT is considered to be a shorter-term therapy, usually in the range of 8 to 16 sessions. It is an active and collaborative therapy between the client and the psychologist. ACT is, however, contraindicated for those individuals who are in situations where acceptance would be dangerous. For example, for those in abusive relationships, or behavioral problems where the individual is placing their physical health and safety at risk, ACT may not be the most appropriate approach.
Is ACT effective for trauma?
This course will help you become more flexible, fluent and creative in ACT, so you can work effectively not just with PTSD but with the entire spectrum of trauma-related issues: simple, complex, acute or chronic. So, as discussed in the definition, there are three parts to trauma: event, experience of the event, and effect. So, as discussed in the definition, there are three parts to trauma: event, experience of the event, and effect. Defining Trauma It results from exposure to an incident or series of events that are emotionally disturbing or life-threatening with lasting adverse effects on the individual’s functioning and mental, physical, social, emotional, and/or spiritual well-being. Trauma theory attempts to understand the different ways by which traumatic occurrences are demonstrated, processed, exposed, and repressed throughout a variety of literary and historical texts.
Is ACT therapy good for trauma?
ACT can be applied to the full range of emotional experience post trauma. And even better, it addresses quality of life above just symptom reduction. And preliminary studies show that ACT is effective for posttraumatic problems such as PTSD and substance use problems. In clinical trials, 12 – 16 sessions of ACT has been shown to be effective for treating anxiety, depression, and chronic pain as well as enhancing quality of life. Acceptance means allowing ourselves to experience emotions as an alternative to avoidance. The keywords in SAMHSA’s concept are The Three E’s of Trauma: Event(s), Experience, and Effect. When a person is exposed to a traumatic or stressful event, how they experience it greatly influences the long-lasting adverse effects of carrying the weight of trauma. A 2012 meta-analysis was more positive and reported that ACT outperformed CBT, except for treating depression and anxiety. A 2015 review found that ACT was better than placebo and typical treatment for anxiety disorders, depression, and addiction. The trauma-informed approach is guided four assumptions, known as the “Four R’s”: Realization about trauma and how it can affect people and groups, recognizing the signs of trauma, having a system which can respond to trauma, and resisting re-traumatization.
What is the ACT model of trauma?
Trauma-Focused ACT (TF-ACT) is a flexible, comprehensive approach model for treating the entire spectrum of trauma-related issues, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), addiction, depression, anxiety disorders, moral injury, chronic pain, shame, suicidality, insomnia, complicated grief, attachment issues, … The DSM-5 definition of trauma requires “actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence” [10] (p. 271). Stressful events not involving an immediate threat to life or physical injury such as psychosocial stressors [4] (e.g., divorce or job loss) are not considered trauma in this definition. A comprehensive review of the litera- ture on complex trauma suggests seven primary domains of impairment ob- served in exposed children: attachment, biology, affect regulation, dissociation (ie, alterations in consciousness), behav- ioral regulation, cognition, and self-con- cept. These 4 Cs are: Calm, Contain, Care, and Cope 2 Trauma and Trauma-Informed Care Page 10 34 (Table 2.3). These 4Cs emphasize key concepts in trauma-informed care and can serve as touchstones to guide immediate and sustained behavior change.
How does CBT differ from ACT for trauma?
The other goal of ACT is for the client to live a valued life. CBT focuses on symptom reduction, which is implied to lead to a fuller life; instead, ACT works toward creating the valued life in treatment. Whether you choose CBT or ACT, both therapies are likely to show positive results. Overall, CBT is older and better researched, and most therapists are trained to use it. ➢ Using CBT plus ACT gives the option of picking and choosing which strategies are effective depending on context and the client’s preference. this fits well with the ABC model with identification of cognitive errors and restructuring (Ciarrochi & Bailey, 2008; Kohlenberg et al., 2004). The main differences between ACT and DBT would be that DBT leans towards a more educative approach while ACT emphasises an experiential one. Perspective wise, DBT adopts a biosocial perspective on behaviour while that of ACT is contextual. Moreover, the underlying philosophy behind each form of therapy also differs.
Is ACT therapy effective?
Hundreds of studies have found ACT to be an effective treatment approach for many conditions. Because of this, mental health professionals may choose ACT to help with: Anxiety disorders. Depression. ACT develops psychological flexibility and is a form of behavioral therapy that combines mindfulness skills with the practice of self-acceptance. When aiming to be more accepting of your thoughts and feelings, commitment plays a key role. Our results indicate that CBT is not more effective in treating depression than ACT. Both treatments seem to work through changes in dysfunctional attitudes and decentering, even though the treatments differ substantially. Change in experiential avoidance as an underlying mechanism seems to be an ACT-specific process. Whether you choose CBT or ACT, both therapies are likely to show positive results. Overall, CBT is older and better researched, and most therapists are trained to use it. ACT has moved away from the traditional CBT emphasis on changing or correcting one’s thoughts in order to alleviate suffering. Instead, ACT aims to alter the functions of our private experiences (thoughts, feelings, memories, bodily reactions), so they no longer entangle us.