A daylong workshop to facilitate personal growth, self-compassion, and values-based action for the public. Proceeds benefit Compassion Works for All (CWFA), a prison outreach program that brings meditation, yoga, compassionate communication, and ACT to people incarcerated in Arkansas. Sponsored by CWFA, $60 to attend all day, trainer Matthew Boone.
Reserve Spot!
Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT) is an evidence-based method of changing behavior rooted in mindfulness, acceptance, and compassion. In contrast to many methods of personal growth, ACT rejects the assumption that well-being is measured by an absence of pain. ACT assumes that pain is a part of normal life. If you’re going to fall in love, you are going to risk rejection. If you are going to pursue a meaningful career, you will encounter failure. If you’re going to build a family, you invite great joy and great sadness. This is the human condition.
Instead of trying to make pain go away, ACT teaches you to encounter any kind of suffering, from sadness and anxiety to anger and physical pain, with kindness and compassion. From this place, where you can embrace all emotions as a normal part of you – and notice even the most troublesome thoughts with mindfulness and curiosity – ACT encourages you to move in the direction of what’s most important. The best life is a life full of meaning and vitality, even when pain shows up.
This workshop is geared towards the general public. Anyone with an interest in mindfulness, acceptance, and personal growth is welcome to come. At the same time, those mental health professionals wanting to learn more in the interest of incorporating ACT into their work are encouraged to attend as well. 6 CEUs will be offered for Arkansas social workers.
Additional Details
ACT workshops are experiential. Through a variety of mindfulness practices, meaningful conversations, and playful yet poignant exercises, you will get to know what it’s like to open up to your experience with love and compassion as you put your energy toward your deeply held values.
You can expect to be engaged both intellectually and emotionally – and to walk out at the end of the day inspired to make small but significant changes in your life.
*Matt Boone is a social worker, psychotherapist, writer, and public speaker who specializes in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), an evidence-based intervention for a broad spectrum of health and mental health problems. He serves as the Clinical Director of Lyra Health’s mental health coaching program. Lyra is a technology startup devoted to increasing access to high-quality mental health care. Matt is an Association of Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS) peer-reviewed ACT trainer and a former consultant for the VA ACT for Depression training rollout. He regularly gives ACT workshops around the country. He taught ACT at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock School of Social Work for five years and has published a variety of articles and book chapters on ACT topics. He is the editor of Mindfulness and Acceptance in Social Work: Evidence-Based Interventions and Emerging Applications and a recipient of the Boston University School of Social Work Alumni Association award for outstanding contributions to the field of social work.
Disclaimer: Though ACT is used in mental health contexts to treat clinical problems, this workshop should not be considered a form of treatment or a substitute for seeing a clinical professional. It is intended as an educational workshop only. Those who have mental health problems like depression and anxiety, or suspect they do, are welcome to attend, but they should always seek the advice of a qualified professional with whom they have a working relationship.