What type of therapy incorporates mindfulness and acceptance strategies?

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is designed to help individuals embrace their thoughts and feelings rather than fighting or feeling guilty for them. This therapeutic approach centers around the concept of mindfulness, which involves being present and fully engaged in the moment, alongside acceptance strategies that encourage individuals to accept their internal experiences without judgment.

ACT promotes psychological flexibility, allowing people to respond to difficult thoughts and feelings in a different way, leading them to focus more on living a meaningful life according to their values. This is achieved through mindfulness exercises that help individuals become aware of their thoughts and feelings, while acceptance strategies guide them to acknowledge these experiences without avoidance or suppression.

In contrast, while Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) does involve some aspects of mindfulness, it primarily focuses on changing negative thought patterns and behaviors rather than acceptance. Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) incorporates mindfulness too but is heavily focused on emotion regulation and interpersonal effectiveness, particularly for individuals with borderline personality disorder. Interpersonal Therapy (IPT) centers on improving interpersonal relationships and does not specifically incorporate mindfulness and acceptance strategies in the way ACT does. Thus, ACT stands out as the therapy that explicitly focuses on combining mindfulness techniques with acceptance strategies.