Mindfulness expert, Kabat-Zinn suggests that we view our thoughts as bubbles in boiling water floating to the surface and bursting. It means not entertaining them and being caught up in them as if they are reality. Watch what you are thinking – this involves standing back from your thoughts and observing them in a detached way.Fundamentally, it is about being present in the moment, rather than lost in thought. Being here now – consciously focusing on the here-and-now, including our inner and outer worlds.In this definition, mindfulness is explained in terms of three key elements – awareness through paying attention, an open attitude and flexible attention enabling a narrow or wider focus or a focus on the internal or the external.ĪCT incorporates six core processes as part of its therapeutic approach: Mindfulness means paying attention with flexibility, openness and curiosity. Mindfulness in the context of ACT is defined by Russ Harris, author of ACT Made Simple, in terms of the quality of paying attention: Just as mindfulness trainers are exhorted to deepen their mindfulness practice, so too ACT therapists are encouraged to practise the ACT approach and exercises to be able to act more consciously and effectively in therapy sessions. The approach actively discourages ineffective avoidance strategies and encourages acceptance of pain as a natural part of a life that is lived fully. Colleagues vouch for the fact that ACT often achieves the desired results in therapeutic situations.ĪCT aims to enable clients to experience a full, rich and meaningful life that is built on internal and external awareness. This approach is therapist-led with a defined sequence of exercises designed to enable clients to move from the entrapment of destructive thinking to taking effective action guided by their values ( committed action). What is different about Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)ĪCT as the name suggests is an approach that provides therapists with a structured approach to mindfulness development for their clients. Even in this course, led by teachers and mentors, there is ample scope for participants to pick and choose what types of meditations and mindfulness practices they will focus on – the choices are not individually focused or directed. One such approach is provided by the Power of Awareness Mindfulness Training conducted online by Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach. Some of the approaches to mindfulness discussed entailed the involvement of a teacher or mentor to guide the participant through various forms of meditation. In this blog I have been discussing different approaches to mindfulness and mindfulness meditation that are self-initiated and self-directed in the main.
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