Promotional feature
ACT Peer Recovery™ (ACT-PR) is a new form of mutual aid recognised by Public Health England.
Get in on the ACt
WHAT IS IT?
ACT-PR is very simple. So simple it takes just
60 seconds to get started. Try it for yourself on
the website – push the ‘start learning’ button.
However, just because it’s easy to learn
doesn’t mean it’s lightweight or not backed up
by research.
ACT-PR is based on Acceptance and
Commitment Therapy (ACT), which has an
evidence base on a par with CBT. The peer
model is based on the ACT Matrix, which is a
simpler training format.
It was developed in Portsmouth from 2008
and eventually grew to 20 groups per week
across the whole community, from the general
hospital to the library. In 2013 the peers
wanted to make it available more widely, and
a community interest company was
established. Information days were held in
Manchester with Emerging Futures and it also
caught the attention of PHE in relation to
FAMA (facilitated access to mutual aid). ACT-
PR was approved for inclusion in the new
policy guidelines in July 2015.
Since then ACT-PR has grown steadily, and
there are over 40 meetings a week (excluding
Portsmouth) across 12 local authority areas,
with a further 15 areas developing. A new
group opens on average every week, and that
is accelerating.
The only requirement for attending an ACT-
PR meeting is that you commit to a challenge.
Of course there are obstacles – we call these
‘lemons’, summed up in the programme’s key
metaphor ‘passengers on the bus’:
‘Building your life can be like driving a bus
(behaviour) in a certain route (direction).
However, when you start driving the
passengers (lemons) get upset and bother the
driver, who usually responds by trying to get
them off the bus. Problem is, then the bus
doesn't go anywhere, or even crashes.’
'ACT-PR is
so simple it
takes just
60 seconds
to get
started.'
This is where acceptance comes in – some
painful thoughts and feelings like anxiety,
sadness or guilt are part of life. The
commitment part is driving the bus with the
passengers on board. So you learn to become
‘comfortable with being uncomfortable’ –
the key to freedom and a better life.
STRUCTURE
Meetings are arranged at different levels, each
divided into eight lessons delivered from a
manual by the peer facilitator. The facilitators
are trained, supported and licensed to ensure
quality. The meetings are always open access,
voluntary and independent.
FAMA
The new videos mean that anyone can be
introduced to ACT-PR in 60 seconds, and
connected to mutual aid. This can be built into
the assessment process so that everyone has
access to mutual aid right from the start.
Licensed peers also run basic level
‘introduction to ACT-PR’ meetings as part of
their service roles, providing a joined-up
pathway into mutual aid. ACT-PR fits very well
with the 12 steps and SMART so it is another
choice for people entering recovery.
ONLINE
An online version of ACT-PR is being rolled out,
with the first level a simple introduction, foll -
owed by an interactive version of the lessons.
This makes ACT-PR available to anyone with
internet access, and in time individual peer-to-
peer support will also be available online.
BEHAVIOURAL HEALTH
As a behavioural approach, ACT-PR can be
applied to many conditions that people face in
recovery, from anxiety and depression to
diabetes and pain. The peer approach can work
with anything that is behavioural.
Mark Webster is CEO of ACT Peer Recovery. To
find out more visit www.act-peer-recovery.com
SO HOW DOES IT WORK?
The unique feature of ACT-PR is its simplicity,
achieved via focus on behaviour (see the short
introductory videos). Behaviours are divided
into two categories – those that take you
towards recovery, and those that take you
away. By learning to notice this difference,
peers begin to reduce the ‘away’ behaviours
and increase the ‘towards’ behaviours. In a
nutshell, that’s it.
Recovery is defined as building a life of
meaning and purpose in the community. The
backbone of the programme is the monthly
challenge in which each peer chooses to make
a significant behavioural change. Sometimes
it’s successful, sometimes it isn’t. But what’s
important is to learn by a trial and error
approach in which failure leads to success.
16 | drinkanddrugsnews | May 2017
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