Acceptance and Commitment Therapy in Greenwich CT
Serving Greenwich, Darien, Westport, Westchester, and Surrounding Areas in Connecticut and New York
What is ACT? ACT is a form of behavior therapy based on the premise that trying to control your thoughts and feelings leads to more psychological issues and suffering. The goal of ACT is to help patients live a meaningful and rich life with less struggle. Although symptom reduction is never an explicit goal in ACT, it often occurs.
What does ACT look like? In ACT, we will give you the tools to stop attempting to control your internal experiences. We will teach you how to practice mindfulness. We will also work with you to change your reaction to your thoughts and feelings. You will learn to accept and defuse from problematic thoughts and feelings, and instead focus on living in accordance to your personal values.
How is the ACT perspective on pain and suffering different from the traditional perspective on pain and suffering? The traditional perspective on pain and suffering is that humans, given the right circumstances, are naturally psychologically healthy, happy and content (default state). If we are suffering due to unpleasant thoughts, feelings or emotions, then we should (and can) avoid, reduce, alter or eliminate them. ACT assumes that the normal psychological processes of human mind (thoughts, feelings, memories) are often destructive, and create psychological pain at some point. If we are suffering, that means we are stuck, not broken or sick.
What kind of training do you have in ACT? Dr. Sala has received extensive supervision in ACT at the Connecticut and Dallas VAs, and has attended several ACT trainings at national and international conferences. She has also delivered ACT-based protocols in research settings and has utilized ACT with many patients in her practice. Please contact her to learn more about her experience with ACT.