Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a modern, evidence-based form of psychotherapy that helps people accept difficult thoughts and feelings while committing to actions that align with their values. Rather than trying to eliminate distress, ACT teaches psychological flexibility—helping you respond more effectively to life’s challenges.

How is ACT different from CBT?

While CBT focuses on challenging and changing unhelpful thoughts, ACT emphasises accepting them without judgement and shifting your attention to values-based action. Both are evidence-based and effective, and they can be used together depending on your needs.

Who is ACT suitable for?

ACT is especially helpful for professionals experiencing anxiety, depression, chronic stress, burnout, or difficulties related to self-criticism, avoidance, or perfectionism. It’s also commonly used to support people living with chronic pain or long-term health conditions.

What can I expect in an ACT session?

Sessions involve exploring your values, identifying patterns of avoidance or stuck thinking, and learning mindfulness-based strategies. You’ll work with your psychologist to develop skills for living more fully—even in the presence of discomfort.

Is ACT evidence-based?

Yes. ACT is supported by a large body of research and is recommended for a range of psychological difficulties, including anxiety, depression, OCD, chronic pain, and PTSD. It’s increasingly used in NHS and private healthcare settings.

How many sessions will I need?

The number of sessions depends on your goals and circumstances. Some clients benefit from short-term ACT (6–12 sessions), while others may prefer longer-term support. Your psychologist will work with you to create a tailored plan.

Do you offer ACT therapy in person or online?

We offer both. You can access ACT therapy at our London clinic or via secure online video sessions, depending on your preference and location.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, often called ACT, is a practical, evidence-based therapy that helps you change your relationship with difficult thoughts, feelings, memories, physical sensations and internal pressure. It is particularly useful when you feel stuck in patterns of avoidance, overthinking, self-criticism, anxiety, low mood or emotional struggle, and when attempts to control or get rid of distress have started to narrow your life.

ACT does not aim to remove all difficult thoughts or feelings. Instead, it helps you build psychological flexibility: the ability to notice what is happening inside you, step back from unhelpful mental patterns, make room for difficult emotions, and take action in line with what matters to you.

At Hampstead Psychology, we offer ACT therapy in London and online across the UK. We help you understand what is keeping you stuck and work with you in a focused, collaborative way to build greater flexibility, resilience and meaningful change.

This page is for information and does not replace a clinical assessment, diagnosis, or medical advice.

When ACT might be helpful

You might recognise some of these experiences:

You spend a lot of time trying to stop, control or get rid of difficult thoughts and feelings.
Your mind gets caught in worry, rumination, self-criticism or “what if” thinking.
You avoid situations, conversations, emotions or decisions because they feel too uncomfortable.
You feel as though anxiety, low mood, stress, pain or trauma has started to shape your life.
You keep pushing through, overworking or functioning on the outside while feeling overwhelmed inside.
You feel disconnected from what matters to you, or unsure how to move forward.
You know what would be helpful, but find yourself pulled back into familiar patterns.
You want therapy that is practical and active, but also spacious enough to work with complexity.
You want to spend less energy fighting your mind and more energy building the life you want.

If this sounds familiar, ACT may help. It is especially useful when distress is being maintained by avoidance, internal struggle, self-pressure, or repeated attempts to control experiences that cannot easily be controlled.

What ACT can help with

Anxiety, worry and overthinking

ACT can help with anxiety, worry, panic, health anxiety, social anxiety and fear of uncertainty. It helps you notice patterns such as scanning, checking, overthinking, reassurance-seeking or imagining worst-case scenarios, while learning how to step back from anxious thoughts, reduce avoidance and take useful action even when anxiety is present.

Depression, low mood and feeling stuck

When mood is low, life can become smaller. You may withdraw, lose confidence, stop doing things that matter, or feel as though you need to feel better before you can re-engage. ACT helps you notice the patterns that pull you away from meaningful activity and take small, values-led steps towards movement, connection and purpose.

Stress, burnout and high internal pressure

ACT can help when stress is driven by perfectionism, over-responsibility, people-pleasing, fear of failure or the feeling that you cannot stop. Therapy helps you understand the relationship between pressure, achievement and self-worth, so you can respond more flexibly, set clearer boundaries and make choices that are more sustainable.

Health conditions, chronic pain and physical symptoms

ACT is often helpful for people living with long-term health conditions, chronic pain, fatigue, medically unexplained symptoms or ongoing physical uncertainty. It helps you make space for difficult sensations and emotions, reduce the extent to which symptoms or fear dominate your life, and stay connected with what matters.

Self-criticism, perfectionism and low self-worth

ACT helps when your life is shaped by harsh self-critical thoughts such as “I’m not good enough,” “I’m failing,” or “I should be doing more.” Therapy helps you notice these rules and stories without letting them dictate your behaviour, so you can build a more flexible, values-led way forward.

Related difficulties we often see together.

Many people come to ACT with more than one difficulty. Anxiety may sit alongside burnout, low mood may sit alongside avoidance, and chronic pain or health conditions may sit alongside grief, frustration or fear about the future.

Therapy works best when we understand the whole picture. We look at how your thoughts, emotions, body, behaviour, relationships and values interact, while keeping the work clear and focused.

What keeps problems going?

ACT looks at how people can become stuck in attempts to avoid, control or escape distress. These strategies often make sense in the short term, but can become restrictive over time.

You might worry, analyse, criticise yourself, replay conversations, seek reassurance, avoid situations, overwork, procrastinate, people-please or wait until you feel more confident before acting. This can bring short-term relief, but over time life can become organised around avoiding discomfort rather than moving towards what matters.

ACT helps you respond differently to thoughts and feelings so they have less power over your behaviour.

How ACT therapy helps

At Hampstead Psychology, ACT is not delivered as a set of generic exercises. We begin by understanding what shows up internally, how you respond to it, and what keeps the pattern going. In practice, ACT can help you notice thoughts without being dominated by them, make room for difficult emotions, reduce avoidance, clarify what matters, and take small, realistic steps towards valued action.

ACT can be especially helpful if you have spent a long time trying to think, control or reason your way out of distress. Where helpful, we may also integrate CBT, compassion-focused therapy, schema-informed therapy or other evidence-based approaches.

What to expect from sessions

We begin by understanding the problem in context, including symptoms, patterns, triggers, thoughts, emotions, bodily responses, relationships, responsibilities, values, avoidance and coping strategies. From there, we develop a shared formulation: a working map of what is keeping the difficulty going and where change may be possible. Sessions are collaborative, active and practical. The aim is not to stop all difficult thoughts or feelings, but to become less trapped by them, so you can act with more clarity, steadiness and direction.

How long does therapy take?

This depends on the difficulty, how long it has been present, and how many overlapping patterns are involved. Some people benefit from focused ACT work on anxiety, burnout, health anxiety, perfectionism or adjustment to a health condition. Others may need longer therapy, especially where difficulties are linked to trauma, shame, avoidance, self-criticism or relationship stress. We review progress together so therapy remains purposeful and aligned with your goals.

ACT therapy in London and online

We offer ACT therapy in person in Hampstead, London, and online across the UK and internationally. Some clients prefer in-person work, while others value the flexibility of online therapy. Both can be effective, and we can help you think about what would suit you best.

Take the next step

If you are feeling stuck in a pattern of anxiety, low mood, stress, avoidance, self-criticism, emotional overwhelm or internal struggle, ACT can offer a practical and meaningful way forward. Therapy helps you understand what is keeping you stuck, relate differently to difficult thoughts and feelings, and begin taking action with greater clarity and purpose. Contact Hampstead Psychology to enquire about ACT therapy in London or online.

Useful links: CBT, Health Anxiety, Stress and Burnout, Insomnia and Sleep Problems, Fees, Meet the Team, Contact.

Urgent Help

If you are worried about immediate risk to your safety, call 999 or go to A&E. If you need urgent support but it isn’t an emergency, contact NHS 111 or your GP. You can also contact Samaritans on 116 123 (24/7).

Meet The Team

At Hampstead Psychology, all of our psychologists have extensive training to doctoral level and decades of experience in their field of expertise. You will be matched with a psychologist that has the knowledge and skill to help you understand and overcome your problem - not just in the short term but for good.