Ep 202. How Can ACT Help You Manage Your Own Responses to Patient Distress? with Dr. Bronwyn Lennox Thompson
PT Pro TalkShow Notes
💡 In this insightful episode of PT Pro Talk, Mariana Parks sits down with Dr. Bronwyn Lennox Thompson to explore a game-changing perspective: using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for ourselves as clinicians. When faced with complex cases and patients in distress, our instinct is to "fix" the problem. But what happens when our treatments don't work, and our minds tell us we aren't good enough? Dr. Lennox Thompson explains how psychological flexibility and the therapeutic use of self can transform your practice. Discover how to manage your emotional responses, unhook from the pressure of having all the answers, and stay present in difficult interactions. Tune in to learn how reconnecting with your core clinical values can help you navigate uncertainty and build a more compassionate, fulfilling career.
💭 ‘’Physiotherapists must always have an answer... And yet, we can't always. That's the acceptance part: the willingness to say we don't have all the answers." - Dr. Bronwyn Lennox Thompson
👉🏻 Dr. Bronwyn Lennox Thompson leads the Postgraduate Programmes in Pain and Pain Management at University of Otago, based in Christchurch, New Zealand. Dr. Bronwyn Lennox Thompson’s clinical background is occupational therapy and psychology, and her clinical and research focus is on supported pain self-management in daily life. Her research interests include lived experiences of chronic pain, consumer/lived experience involvement in research, policy and service development, and supported self-management in painful medical procedures. Her primary academic work is teaching an interprofessional approach to pain and pain management to clinicians from a diverse range of clinical backgrounds. She was awarded the University of Otago Teaching Excellence Award in 2022, and the University of Otago Gold Medal for teaching excellence in 2025.
📚In this episode, you'll learn: How to manage your emotional responses when working with distressed or challenging patients
ACT techniques to unhook from unhelpful thoughts like "I'm failing them" or "They should be better’
How to stay present during difficult interactions without needing to fix everything immediately
Ways to reconnect with your clinical values and take action even when the work feels hard
🔎Bronwyn's Resource of Information: Harris, R. (2019). ACT made simple: An easy-to-read primer on acceptance and commitment therapy (2nd ed.). New Harbinger Publications
PRAXIS Courses
Blog
📲 Bronwyn's contact information: LinkedIn
IG
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