The Path to Managing Stress: Insights from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

​In today's fast-paced world, stress has become a constant companion for many of us. Whether it's deadlines at work or studying, challenges in personal relationships, or the global issues highlighted in the news, stress seems to be lurking around every corner. Getting frustrated at ourselves for being stressed, or at other people or events for being the stressor, doesn't tend to get us very far. Sometimes we cannot eliminate or control the stressor, and sometimes we can't just "stop stressing". Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) offers a different type of approach. ACT encourages us to change our relationship with stress, embracing it as part of the human experience, focusing on what we can control, and living a meaningful life in spite of it.

Understanding ACT

​Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a form of psychotherapy that helps us to focus on what matters, how we want to live, and uses strategies to help us to develop flexibility when rigidity in how we think or act is unhelpful, and to be mindful when our attention has lost focus in distraction, anxiety or negativity  This approach is particularly effective in managing stress because it acknowledges that while we can't always control the external events happening around us that cause stress, that we can be mindful of how we are being affected by stress, consider how much attention we are giving the stressors, and focus on the control we do have - over our actions and responses.

The Six Core Processes of ACT

To navigate stress from an ACT perspective, it's helpful to understand its six core processes:

• Cognitive Defusion: Learning to perceive thoughts, images, emotions, and memories as what they are—simply bits of language and passing phenomena—and not what they say they are.
• Acceptance: Actively and openly accepting the experience without trying to change it. It's about making room for unpleasant feelings, sensations, and urges instead of fighting them.
• Contact with the Present Moment: Being fully aware of the here-and-now, experiencing the world directly and without judgment. This mindfulness allows us to decrease the impact of stress by focusing on what is actually happening rather than what might happen, which is when we become anxious.
• Observing the Self: Recognising that we can observe ourselves and what we are experiencing rather than getting hooked by the thoughts or emotions and spiraling into overwhelm. By connecting with this skill of observing ourselves we can see our thoughts and feelings from a new perspective.
• Values Clarification: Identifying what is truly important and meaningful to us—our values. These are chosen qualities that can guide us in how to behave in the world. Sometimes we need to check in with ourselves, that we are living by our values rather than the values of those around us. Values could be something like kindness, independence, creativity.
• Committed Action: Taking effective action guided by our values, even if it brings discomfort. This is about doing what matters to you, even when it's hard.

Applying ACT to Manage Stress

• ​Embrace Your Feelings: Instead of fighting against stress or negative emotions, allow yourself to feel them. Acknowledge your feelings without judgement and give yourself permission to experience them fully. When we let ourselves feel something, and disengage from negative thinking about the feeling, by staying in the here and now, emotions can change in a matter of minutes.
• Defuse Your Thoughts: When you're stressed, your mind can become your worst enemy, with negative thoughts amplifying your anxiety. Practice seeing your thoughts for what they are—that they are just things going through your head at a point in time, and don't have to mean anything more significant than that. You might even label them: "I'm having the thought that I can't handle this." and add "that doesn't mean that this is a true reflection of reality, it's just a thought going through my head." You can then choose what you want to focus thinking about, this might be remembering a really wonderful memory that makes you smile.
• Stay in the Moment: Bring your attention back to the present whenever you find yourself worrying about the future or ruminating on the past. Engage in mindfulness practices like deep breathing, or sensory awareness exercises to anchor yourself in the now. For instance, try to notice all the things you can hear, see, touch, smell and even taste when you are becoming stressed. You can even use your imagination to bring to mind things you would like to smell and taste.
• Connect with Your Values: Reflect on what is truly important to you. What values do you want to guide your life? Let these values be your compass, directing your actions and decisions, especially in times of stress.
• Take Committed Action: Identify small, manageable steps you can take to live in alignment with your values, even when you're stressed. This might mean setting boundaries, prioritising self-care, or reaching out for support. Remember, it's not about eliminating stress but aiming to reduce its impact on you and choosing to live a meaningful life in spite of it.

Stress might be an inevitable part of life, but it doesn't have to control it. Through the lens of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, we can learn to manage stress by accepting what we feel, connecting with our values, and taking committed action in the face of discomfort. By practicing these principles, we can cultivate a life of richness and meaning, and minimise the impact of the stressors we face.