181. Stop Avoiding Stuff with Matt Boone

by Jill StoddardJanuary 20, 2021

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In today’s world, it’s easy to stay on-the-go. Sometimes, on-the-go behaviors are necessary and functional. But often we engage in these behaviors to avoid discomfort. In this episode of Psychologists Off the Clock, Jill and Matt Boone, co-author of Stop Avoiding Stuff, discuss avoidant behavior and how to address it with skills from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Make a committed action and join us in this episode to learn more about what you might be avoiding and how to respond instead!

Listen and Learn:

Jill and Debbie’s personal encounters with “doom scrolling” and other behaviors that feel good in the moment but cost us in the long-run
Matt’s breakdown of what his book, Stop Avoiding Stuff, is about and how you can benefit from it
Why Matt decided to write about avoidance in a digestible (bathroom-book) format
About Matt’s professional understanding of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
Other places where Matt can train you in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
How to effectively use your understanding of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to practice the skills in Matt’s book
Why Matt’s accessible explanations of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy are particularly useful right now
The inside-scoop on what’s inside Matt’s book
Practical advice on how to identify and become more mindful of your own avoidant behaviors
Exercises for practicing awareness and willingness right now!
How Matt came to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and what role it plays in his personal life

Resources:

Matt’s book, Stop Avoiding Stuff: 25 Microskills to Face Your Fears and Do It Anyway, and the editor of Mindfulness and Acceptance in Social Work
Jill’s books, Be Mighty and The Big Book of ACT Metaphors
Matt’s webinar on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
Sign up for POTC’s First Annual Wise Minds Summit: How to Adapt and Thrive in Today’s Challenging Times

About Matt Boone:

Matt Boone is a social worker, psychotherapist, and public speaker who specializes in translating mental health concepts for the general public. He is the co-author, with Jennifer Gregg and Lisa Coyne, of Stop Avoiding Stuff: 25 Microskills to Face Your Fears and Do It Anyway, and the editor of Mindfulness and Acceptance in Social Work. He is the director of programming and outreach at the student mental health services of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, where he’s an instructor in psychiatry.

At Lyra Health, a mental health tech startup, he led the clinical development of Lyra’s mental health coaching program and gave talks on subjects like stress and stigma to audiences at Facebook, Uber, and Genentech. At Cornell University, he oversaw the development of Let’s Talk, an outreach program to underserved students that has since been replicated at nearly 100 colleges and universities.

He is an Association of Contextual Behavioral Science peer-reviewed acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) trainer and a former consultant for the VA ACT for Depression training rollout. He regularly provides ACT trainings for professionals and the general public.

He lives in Little Rock with his wife, cat, and guitars, and he loves talking about mental health with people who think psychotherapy and self-help are a bit cringy. Find out more about Matt on his website, matthewsboone.com.