2 mins

What is ACT?

Video Description

Steven Mahan, a clinical psychologist based in Chelsea, talks about acceptance and commitment therapy, and explains how it’s used to treat low mood and anxiety, and how it differs from CBT. https://www.thechelseapsychologyclinic.com Chelsea Psychology Clinic are a group of London psychologists and psychiatrists offering private psychological therapy and psychiatry treatment from their premises across central London and Chelsea. The private therapy sessions cover the following areas: – Acceptance & Commitment Therapy – Cognitive Analytic Therapy – Cognitive-behavioural Therapy – Couples Therapy – Dialectical-behaviour Therapy – Mentalisation Based Treatment – Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy – Schema Therapy

Video Transcription

Acceptance and commitment therapy is a relatively new option for treatment for a variety of different difficulties, such as low mood and anxiety. And the main difference between acceptance and commitment therapy and cognitive behaviour therapy for example is that acceptance and commitment therapy focuses on what do you really want to achieve in your life, or what is your anxiety or your depression or any other mental health difficulties stopping you from doing. So, starting from the end option of the values and what really matters to you, and then working backwards to try and understand the barriers that are stopping you from reaching that goal. So, often it’s about sitting with uncomfortable emotions and trying to understand what they’re stopping you from achieving, such as getting the job that you really want to do or going out with friends and thinking about ways of developing coping strategies that you can really engage in your life in a meaningful and fulfilled way.

Dr Steven Mahan

Dr Steven Mahan

19 June 2022

"Dr Steven Mahan is a Clinical Psychologist with many years’ experience in both the NHS and private sector. He specialises in adult mental health and has worked with clients of all ages with a wide range of emotional difficulties including depression, anxiety, personality disorders, trauma, social anxiety, eating disorders, work-related stress, health anxiety, and substance misuse. Throughout his career, Dr Mahan has gained extensive experience working with clients with relationship and interpersonal difficulties. "

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Today

Dr Elena Touroni

Dr Elena Touroni is a skilled and experienced consultant psychologist with a track record of delivering high-quality services for individuals with all common emotional difficulties and those with a diagnosis of personality disorder. She is experienced in service design and delivery, the management of multi-disciplinary teams, organisational consultancy, and development and delivery of both national and bespoke training to providers in the statutory and non-statutory sector.


Having obtained a first degree in Psychology (BSc) at the American College of Greece, she completed her doctoral training at the University of Surrey. Dr Touroni is highly experienced in the assessment and treatment of depression, anxiety, substance misuse, personality disorder, eating disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder, adjustment disorder and relationship difficulties. She works with both individuals and couples and can offer therapy in English and Greek.


Dr Touroni has held a variety of clinical and managerial positions including as Head of Service in the NHS. Further she has held academic positions for the University of Surrey and the Institute of Mental Health lecturing on specialist postgraduate Masters and Doctorate programmes.


She is trained in several specialist therapeutic approaches such as schema therapy, dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT), cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), mindfulness-based approaches and Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT). As well as holding a variety of NHS positions, Dr. Touroni is the co-founder of a private practice in Central London that has been a provider of psychological therapy for all common emotional difficulties including personality disorder since 2002. She is the founder and one of two directors of The Chelsea Psychology Clinic.