DBT and ACT for Worry and Anxiety

Experiences of worry and anxiety are a normal part of living, and they can be helpful and adaptive in moderate amounts. But intense worry and anxiety tends to interfere with our ability to cope by creating a negative and paralyzing perception of reality. Anxious thoughts and beliefs can negatively affect our relationships, our ability to work and play, and our spiritual self. Excessive anxiety can be life-limiting until we discover healthy ways of working with these intense thoughts and emotions. This course offers helping professionals an understanding of the therapeutic principles of Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and how these therapies engage worry and anxiety. Students are required to enter this course with a foundational understanding of CBT. Spiritual and theological understandings of worry and anxiety will be discussed with a view toward applying DBT and ACT principles with spiritually-oriented clients.