Values clarification — identifying what matters most to you at the deepest level — is a cornerstone of ACT therapy for personality disorders and provides direction when personality disorders removes other navigational tools.
Why Values Matter for Personality Disorders
Personality Disorders often disconnects us from our values through avoidance, withdrawal, and reduced capacity. Reconnecting with values provides:
- Direction when personality disorders has eliminated other motivation
- Meaning that persists even through difficult personality disorders periods
- A basis for action independent of how personality disorders makes you feel
Clarifying Your Values with Personality Disorders
Ask yourself: 'If my personality disorders were less present, what would I be doing more of? What kind of person would I be?'
Values are not goals (achievable and done) but ongoing directions: being a present parent, creating beauty, contributing to others.
Values-Based Action in Personality Disorders
ACT therapy teaches: act according to values even when personality disorders is present. Small values-aligned actions, despite personality disorders, are more sustainable than waiting for personality disorders to lift first.