The Problem With Processing: Experiential Avoidance in ACTion

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Description: People often seek therapy to “process” their lives in some way. By speaking with a clinician who reflects back their story, offers perspectives, and provides psychological education, many people find a catharsis in being understood and validated. But does that change anything for the client? Acceptance and Commitment Therapy shows us that a phenomenon called “experiential avoidance” can often develop a set of tricky behaviors that appear to be beneficial (topography) but are actually ways of avoiding change (function). When this happens, both clinician and client can walk away feeling good about a session when possibly the therapist has reinforced unhelpful behaviors, not intervened on them. This workshop explores experiential avoidance and how it may show up in session. It explores what may be going on within the clinician and the client and how to use that information to intervene using a kind of immediacy ACT is known for but is often under-utilized by ACT clinicians. While a basic understanding in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy or behavior analysis may help you, it's not necessary to benefit from what this workshop has to offer: Didactic learning, case examples, and experiential learning to help you catch when processing is problematic and how to reorient the therapy towards the goal: change.

This event is sponsored by FMHCA, an NBCC-Approved Continuing Education Provider. FMHCA NBCC Provider# 2058. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified.  FMHCA is solely responsible for all aspects of the program. This course is approved by the Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy and Mental Health Counseling, LMHC, LMFT, LCSW – FMHCA CE Broker #: 50-748

Learning Objectives:

1. Participants will be able to define experiential avoidance in the context of process-based therapy.
2. Participants will be able to identify interventions that can be used to target experiential avoidance as part of the therapy itself.
3. Participants will apply new learning to some of their current cases.

About the Presenter:

John Powell (he/his/him) is a mental health counselor in private practice focusing on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Clinical Relational Frame Theory. John developed the therapeutic pillar of Two Roads Academy, an alternative school in Colchester, Vermont; developed the theory of the Values-Driven Education Model; and has been teaching ACT for seven years. He's a member of the Association For Contextual Behavioral Science and has spoken at three ACBS World Conferences (Dublin, Buenos Aires, and NewOrleans). He's presented twice at the LaMiss Regional conference. His clinical work spans adolescents, adults, couples, families, and parents. He lives in Melbourne, Florida, where he's also a musician, yoga teacher, and where he most recently started growing bananas, mangos, and papayas.

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