Here’s what acceptance is (and isn’t) in mental health. Let’s talk about the difference between acknowledging reality and approving of it, and why acceptance is the first step in healing.
This month on Cadre, we are talking all about acceptance in mental health. Acceptance doesn't mean you like what's happening. It means you're acknowledging reality as it is instead of fighting against it. Once you accept what is true, you can finally decide what to do with it.
You cannot heal from something you're pretending isn't real. Let's talk about what acceptance actually is. Hi, my name is Rachel Havocost. I'm a writer and mental health advocate. And this month on Cadre, we are talking all about acceptance in mental health. We talk about acceptance a lot. We talk about radical acceptance, self acceptance, accepting your feelings. But what does that actually mean? What does that look like in practice? So acceptance doesn't mean you like what's happening. I'm gonna repeat that.
Acceptance does not mean that you like what's happening. It means you're acknowledging reality as it is instead of fighting against it. So think of it like this. You cannot heal from something you're pretending isn't real. You can't work with emotions you're denying exist. Acceptance is step one, not the finish line. So it is a vehicle for us to get to the place we wanna go. Acceptance is not about just saying, okay, well, this is the way things are. And now I'm fine, now I'm happy. Acceptance is how we acknowledge what's real so we can make choices to move forward.
I know it sounds simple, but it is one of the hardest skills in therapy to learn, and it is super hard for me, and I'm still practicing it. And this is because our brains love control. They want to fix, they want to change, they want to analyze, they want to resist. So when you practice acceptance, you're actually retraining your brain and your nervous system. You. You're saying, I don't have to like this to live with it. And that is a super powerful skill to have. The more you can adopt that mindset, the more you can train your brain and your nervous system to be that way.
The less anxiety you'll feel, the less stress you'll feel. The more flexible you'll be. The easier it will be for you to be in new situations or go outside your comfort zone, because you can simply acknowledge what is happening around you as what is, rather than feeling a lot of resistance, rather than feeling anxiety, or rather than pushing things away. So once you accept what is true, you can finally decide what to do with it.
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