Passengers on the Bus

The animation in this video has been created to aid in training, research and clinical work, and is based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy's (ACT) popular clinical metaphor of 'Passengers on the Bus' (Hayes, Strosahl, & Wilson, 1999). It conveys a figurative story transporting the viewer to a world where pleasant and unpleasant emotions, thoughts and feelings are portrayed as passengers of our own 'bus of life'. Its story outlines unhelpful ways in which people interact with unwanted thoughts and feelings, such as thought-blocking and suppression (ie pretending the passengers are not there), experiential avoidance (ie escaping challenging routes as directed by the passengers) and internal struggles (ie trying to throw unwanted passengers off the bus). The metaphor examines the costs of these behaviours, and goes on to suggest alternative ways of relating to internal experiences such as gentle acceptance and committed, valued action. The animation initiative was funded by the BABCP ACT Special Interest Group -- visit www.babcp.com/ACT for further details.
For more information on the video, please see the May 2013 issue of the BABCP magazine CBT Today, which can be found online at www.babcp.com/CBTtoday.
Reference:
Hayes, S. C., Strosahl, K., & Wilson, K. G. (1999). Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: An experiential approach to behavior change. New York: Guilford Press.
The comments expressed in the video are those of the presenters and do not necessarily reflect the views of BABCP or any of its Trustees.