John Forsyth & Jamie Forsyth — Harnessing the Transformative Power of Mindful ACT Therapy
Harnessing the Transformative Power of Mindful ACT Therapy: How to Live Well When Life Is Hard, a 2019 Cape Cod Institute workshop led by John P. Forsyth & Jamie R. Forsyth July 22-26, 2019
John P. Forsyth and Jamie R. Forsyth
Harnessing the Transformative Power of Mindful ACT Therapy: How to Live Well When Life Is Hard
July 22-26, 2019
Life invites obstacles, problems, and pain. There is no escaping this simple truth. But for many, the pain of life is neither a teacher nor a friend, but instead the enemy and source of considerable suffering, hardship, and despair. Mental health professionals know this all too well. The pain may take psychological, emotional, or physical forms, but it's there and people are desperately seeking a way out and a way forward.
But what if the pain of life could be had just as it is. What if there was a way to nurture the conditions for our own genuine happiness and peace of mind, even when life is (or was) hard. Suppose even, that we could empower those we serve to develop a new relationship with the difficulties they carry and move forward with those difficulties in ways that dignify the pain and support what truly matters. In this intensive workshop, we will learn about one particular approach and set of practices that aims to do just that. It's called Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).
ACT is an evidence-based approach that balances mindfulness and acceptance processes with commitment and behavior change in the service of living a more vital life. Acceptance and mindfulness-based practices, including ACT, are rapidly making their way into mental health care, medicine, and society. This body of work offers a fresh perceptive on psychological suffering and powerful clinical strategies to cultivate transformative life changes.
You will learn powerful strategies to help your clients:
Gain freedom from suffering
Let go of unhelpful struggles
Cultivate peace of mind & self-compassion
Show up to life as it is
Get unstuck and moving
Live a rich & meaningful life
Led by a dynamic husband and wife team, this workshop will introduce ACT, both as a model and intervention technology, and illustrate its use across a broad set of problem areas that are commonly seen in mental health settings. This work can be challenging for both therapists and clients alike, for much of ACT work involves contacting difficult and painful psychological content without defense and for a purpose other than psychological relief. Thus, understanding the application and integration of the ACT model of psychological health and suffering is essential for effective ACT work.
Through lectures, live and video demonstrations, and practical experiential exercises, we learn ways to help our clients live well, richly, and meaningfully, without first having to eliminate sources of emotional and psychological pain. We will also learn how ACT can be integrated effectively into your mental health practice. Clinical worksheets and other practical tools will be provided.
Mental health professionals, including graduate students and post-doctoral fellows, are invited to attend. Familiarity with ACT is not required.
Monday
Why It's Hard Being Human: Getting Inside the ACT Approach
Tuesday
Confronting the System of Stuckness: Making Space for Something New
Wednesday
Contacting the Sweetness in Life: Clarifying What Matters and What Gets in the Way
Thursday
Cultivating a New Relationship with the Difficulties We Carry: Skillfully Disarming & Transforming Forms of Suffering
Friday
Empowering ACTions that Matter: Stepping Openly, Mindfully, and Wholeheartedly
John P. Forsyth
Jamie R. Forsyth
As an active researcher and practitioner of ACT and contemplative practices, John is the author of several popular books, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Anxiety Disorders, The Mindfulness & Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety (2nd edition), ACT on Life, Not On Anger, and Your Life on Purpose. His latest book, Anxiety Happens, is for anyone who gets tripped up now and then by anxiety and fear.
For over 20 years, his work has focused on developing ACT and mindfulness practices to alleviate human suffering, awaken the human spirit, and to nurture psychological health and vitality. His personal journey and experience, balanced with practical insights grounded in scientific evidence, offers hope to those wishing to find a path out of suffering and into wholeness. See www.drjohnforsyth.com
Jamie R. Forsyth, PhD, is an active and gifted psychologist and clinical supervisor, with extensive expertise in the use and application of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy with severe forms of mental illness (e.g., psychosis and personality disorders) and forms of psychological and emotional suffering in inpatient, outpatient, and college mental health settings. Beyond ACT, Jamie is a skillful integrationist and researcher, with specialized knowledge in relational and process-oriented therapeutic work, addictions, motivational interviewing, including mindfulness and self-compassion practices. As a husband and wife team, Jamie and John are known to infuse their teaching and trainings with energy, humility, lightheartedness, and compassion, and their down-to earth workshops are consistently praised for their clarity, depth, and practical utility.
See / Hear John and Jamie Forsyth
What our alumni are saying:
"I can't wait to incorporate ACT into my personal life, my team at work, and my clients."
The Forsyth’s were awesome, and the structure of the course was manageable and enjoyable. They work extremely well together and play off of each other well as a team.”
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