Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) in Altona Meadows
Develop flexibility to pursue what matters most to you
A mindfulness-based therapy that helps you accept difficult experiences while committing to actions aligned with your values.
Quick Overview
What is ACT?
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT, pronounced as the word "act") is a mindfulness-based behavioural therapy that helps you develop psychological flexibility—the ability to be open to your experience and engage in valued action, even when facing difficult thoughts and feelings.
Unlike approaches that try to eliminate negative thoughts or emotions, ACT teaches that struggling against our inner experiences often makes them worse. Instead, ACT helps you:
- Accept your thoughts and feelings rather than fighting them
- Choose valued directions for your life
- Take action toward those values, even when it's uncomfortable
ACT is based on Relational Frame Theory and is supported by research for a range of psychological concerns. It's particularly helpful when you feel stuck—knowing what you should do but unable to make yourself do it, or feeling trapped by anxiety, depression, or other internal barriers.
How ACT Works
ACT develops psychological flexibility through six core processes:
Present Moment Awareness - Being fully present rather than caught up in thoughts about the past or future.
Acceptance - Making room for difficult thoughts and feelings rather than struggling against them.
Defusion - Learning to step back from thoughts, seeing them as mental events rather than literal truths.
Self-as-Context - Connecting with a transcendent sense of self that observes experience without being defined by it.
Values - Clarifying what truly matters to you—what kind of person you want to be and what gives your life meaning.
Committed Action - Taking effective action guided by your values, building patterns of meaningful behaviour.
Sessions are experiential and often include mindfulness exercises, metaphors, and behavioural experiments. The goal is not to feel better but to get better at living—creating a rich, full, meaningful life while accepting the pain that inevitably comes with being human.
Conditions Treated with ACT
What to Expect
Your First Session
Your first session explores what brings you to therapy, what you've tried before, and what a meaningful life would look like for you. You'll be introduced to the ACT approach.
Ongoing Sessions
Sessions blend conversation with experiential exercises. You'll practise mindfulness, explore values, and plan valued actions. Homework often involves practising new skills in daily life.
Evidence & Research
ACT has been studied in many randomised controlled trials across a range of concerns. Meta-analyses suggest it can be helpful for anxiety, depression and chronic pain, with results broadly comparable to other established therapies such as CBT in many studies. Results vary from person to person.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Therapies
EMDR
A structured, evidence-based therapy that helps people process distressing memories so they may feel less intense over time.
Clinical Hypnosis
A therapeutic technique that uses focused attention and suggestion, usually alongside CBT. It may help some people with anxiety, pain and some habits; results vary.
VR Therapy
A therapy that uses immersive virtual reality to help you confront and overcome fears, phobias, and anxiety in a controlled, gradual setting.
Fees & Payment Options
View session fees, Medicare rebates, and payment options for this therapy.
* Session estimates are indicative only. The number of sessions required varies depending on individual circumstances, severity of concerns, treatment goals, and progress in therapy. Learn more about therapy duration.
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