Isabella Riojas, PhD

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

Have you ever felt like you're in a constant battle with your own thoughts and feelings? Fighting anxiety, trying to suppress difficult emotions, avoiding situations that make you uncomfortable? ACT offers a different path—one that's less about controlling your inner experience and more about living the life you want, even when hard feelings show up.

What ACT Is

ACT (pronounced like the word "act") is based on a simple but radical idea: suffering often comes not from pain itself, but from our struggle against it. When we spend all our energy trying to avoid discomfort, we end up stuck—missing out on the things that matter most.

Instead of teaching you to eliminate anxiety or negative thoughts, ACT teaches you to change your relationship with them. The goal is psychological flexibility—the ability to be present with difficult feelings while still moving toward what you value.

What to Expect in ACT

ACT combines mindfulness with values-based action. We'll work on noticing your thoughts and feelings without getting tangled up in them—learning to observe them rather than believe every story your mind tells you.

We'll also clarify what truly matters to you. Not what you think you "should" want, but what you actually care about. Then we'll take steps toward those values, even when it's uncomfortable. Because meaningful lives aren't comfortable lives—they're lives aligned with what matters.

It's Not About Feeling Better—It's About Living Better

ACT doesn't promise to make your anxiety disappear or your sadness vanish. What it offers is freedom from the endless fight to feel differently. When you stop trying to control your internal experience, you free up energy to invest in the things that make life worth living.

If you're tired of waiting to feel ready, or if you're ready to stop letting difficult emotions run the show, ACT might be the approach you've been looking for.