Summary: Brief Interventions For Radical Change

ACT made simple imparts a deep understanding of how language is an effective tool in the counseling process. The theoretical presentation and the many examples of clinical application are particularly informative. This book addresses the fundamental tasks of therapy, from conducting assessments to building the client’s confidence, fostering meaning and motivation, and enriching the therapeutic relationship.
Brief Interventions for Radical Change uses a variation on ACT therapy with new insights and additions to provide efficient and effective therapy with limited time. Brief intervention seems to focus low on theory and high on practicality. The book is full of new tools and techniques for brief but powerful ACT interventions. It was interesting to see how simple and easy the more complex aspects of ACT can be. The book presented a way to get better results in less time with more clients.
Acceptance and commitment are two important components in the therapy session. It helps clients to be fully present in the moment, aware and open to internal experiences while taking action guided by personal values. Focusing on the present
can help clients to cope with the present and prepare for the future. Life unfolds in the present. Too often we let ourselves slip away, allowing time to rush past unobserved and unseized, and consume our time with worrying about the future and ruminate about what has passed. We sometimes dwell on invasive memories of the past or fret about what may or may not happen in the future.
The first step in ACT is accepting your thoughts and feelings and being present.
This is being mindful of thoughts you may find difficult, and accepting them without judgement. It is our natural instinct to fight our anxious or negative thoughts and feeling out of our minds. I personally tend to quickly think about the negative before the positive or what can go wrong instead of what can go right. I almost always think about all of the terrible outcomes in situations. I have come to realize that suppressing my thoughts can backfire and even diminish my sense of contentment. After reading this book, I am motivated to teach myself how to acknowledge and accept how I am feeling without rushing to change my emotional state. Accepting situations as they are and changing negative thoughts is a process and takes some getting used
to.
The second step to ACT therapy is choosing a valued direction. Values are a mirror image of your personality and are central to defining who you are as a person. As a child, you usually choose your values based on your parents’ values. As you grow older, you may find your values threatened and cause you stress when they clash with those of your parents or your culture. After acknowledging and accepting your intra-personal conflicts, finding a valued direction is appropriate. Deciding which direction to take can be difficult if you are unsure of your values.