Values clarification — identifying what matters most to you at the deepest level — is a cornerstone of ACT therapy for psychedelics and provides direction when psychedelics removes other navigational tools.
Why Values Matter for Psychedelics
Psychedelics often disconnects us from our values through avoidance, withdrawal, and reduced capacity. Reconnecting with values provides:
- Direction when psychedelics has eliminated other motivation
- Meaning that persists even through difficult psychedelics periods
- A basis for action independent of how psychedelics makes you feel
Clarifying Your Values with Psychedelics
Ask yourself: 'If my psychedelics 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 Psychedelics
ACT therapy teaches: act according to values even when psychedelics is present. Small values-aligned actions, despite psychedelics, are more sustainable than waiting for psychedelics to lift first.