Steven Hayes is a clinical psychologist and creator of ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy).

<aside> 💡 ACT is one of the leading so-called 3rd wave therapies – a new generation of therapies that are built on cognitive-behavioral foundations. ACT in my opinion this is the one of the most effective and scientifically backed type of therapies out there.

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Techniques

Following techniques create a distance between thoughts and your brain. Some of them might feel silly but they actually work and are backed by studies.

• name your brain. Hayes names his brain „George” in order to build sufficient distance to thoughts that the brain produces.
• Techniques for treating thoughts
  • sing the thought in a silly tune of “happy birthday” or say it in a silly a voice from a silly cartoon
  • say it out loud as fast as you can for one minute
  • imagine yourself as a really young boy saying the painful thought (compassion kicks in)
  • publicize it, put in on your t-shirt, or a screensaver “I am mean”
• mindful awareness of thoughts – watch your thoughts come and go with a sense of distance and dispassionate curiosity

No unlearning so we need techniques to be able to build distance to unfunctional thoughts