Passengers On The Bus: An ACT Metaphor

05:22

Passengers On The Bus: An ACT Metaphor

Rated

4.7

Type

talks

Activity

Meditation

Suitable for

Everyone

Plays

39

What if anxious thoughts, negative self-talk, difficult emotions, memories and fears didn’t have to disappear before we could move towards the life that matters to us? Passengers on the Bus is a powerful metaphor associated with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy founder Steven C. Hayes. Our inner passengers can become loud, frightening or demanding, but they don’t necessarily have to determine the direction in which we travel. This reflection explores Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), cognitive defusion, acceptance, mindfulness, values and psychological flexibility, helping us develop a different relationship with the mind while cultivating self-awareness, inner freedom, meaning and a deeper connection with the life we want to live.

Acceptance Meditation Values Clarification Observer Self Meditation Metaphor Self Limiting Beliefs Mindfulness Metaphor Usage

Meet your Teacher

Melbourne VIC, Australia

Meet your Teacher

Melbourne VIC, Australia

Transcript

Imagine you are driving a bus and this bus is called my life on the headboard right when people look at it as you kind of like go along the road it says my life and that's you the driver right so you know that what you need to do in your life is to drive in that direction, Right? As a bus driver, You pick up passengers along the way. You have to pick up passengers, Right? And these passengers, Some of them can be helpful and friendly, And some of them are really unhelpful, Unkind, And unfriendly, Right? Now these passengers picking them up On they come. Sitting down. Driving away again. These are metaphors for our thoughts and feelings, Right? So we pick up. We pick up these passengers. So as a bus driver, You have to stop off and pick up these passengers. And like I said, Some are pleasant, Some are unpleasant, But as you're driving along doing the thing that you want to in terms of your life direction, Maybe it is contacting a family member you haven't seen for ages or going to a social event or, Um, Visiting. Something recreationally, Going to the zoo to appreciate the animals, Right? These things in your life that are meaningful to you could be anything. Sometimes what happens is the passengers rear up. And they'll say things like, Hey, You said you wanted to go and play the piano. Don't do that. You're not musical. And they might say things like. . . Oh, It's too hard. Don't bother going, Just stay in bed. They might say things like, Don't contact your family member. They haven't spoke to you for eight years. So. You know, Um, You're going to get a really lousy reception, Right? Do you get. . . The idea here so as you're driving along in this direction passengers come up and then you spark a deal with them you basically have this deal it's kind of unwritten but what it is is if you don't do that thing in your life and you steer the bus away from doing that thing that was important you move away they kind of like simmer down a bit But after a while, You're driving in the wrong direction. You're not driving in the direction of your life. And after a while that feels really, Really unfulfilling. So what you do is you then go, I've had enough. I want to drive steer back again and start heading in the direction of my life. I actually want to go and drive. See that person or do this thing at this event or whatever it might be, Right? I want to learn. I want to do that course, I want to learn that. Song on the ukulele or the piano or whatever, Right? Oh, What happens then? Passengers come up. Yeah, But well, Not now. You don't really feel like it. You're not musical enough. You're not this. You're not that. Passengers are supposed to do this. The passengers on the bus are supposed to do this. It's your mind trying to protect you from the feeling of what it would be like if you were to do that thing. Right now, If I was to say to you, What do you what should you do with these passengers? The first thing that people say in the groups that I run is kick them off, Get rid of them. Now, Here's the thing. That is what we've kind of been doing, Right? As humans, It's like, Here's these difficult thoughts and feelings. Let me kind of like fight them, Challenge them, Change them, Suppress them, Deny them, Right? But here's the thing. The more we try and kick them off because the nervous system works on an input only function, Those thoughts and feelings in that moment, They have nowhere else to go. They've got nowhere else to go. So they are there. And the more we struggle with them, What's happening? You're having a fight with them. They can't even get off the bus and you're not driving in the direction of what's important to you. And so it is this life that you want, You will need to find ways to take all of the passengers with you. We've all got them. And this is about learning to recognize that they're there and allow them to be there because they are there anyway, As I've been saying, Right? We need to be willing to have them. If you're willing to experience the passengers and have them whilst you take those necessary steps forward, Or should we say whilst you drive forward on the bus, Right? Then we can do those things. Then life is more fulfilling, More enhancing. We're doing what in act, Acceptance commitment therapy we call a towards move right and sometimes towards moves are really difficult. Anyway, I hope that helps you and maybe you can. When you notice thoughts and feelings that come up to try and pull you away from things that are meaningful, You can just maybe gently say, Aha, Here's a passenger. Here's another passenger. See how you go. It can be really effective and it's also a doorway, This metaphor, Into the model of acceptance commitment therapy. I hope that helps guys and I will see you again soon. You take care.