Acceptance and Integration Training (AAIT)
I use AAIT because it works
Acceptance and Integration Training
What is Acceptance and Integration Training™ (AAIT)?
Developed by Melanie McGhee in Maryville, TN, Acceptance and Integration Training™ is an efficient and promising, leading edge model of intervention used by social workers, therapists, coaches, spiritual directors and others to heal from past traumas, hurts and struggles resulting from life experiences.
The results of AAIT are healing, positive growth, feelings of wholeness, and emotional freedom.
The Story
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We all have a story, the one you may have spent years telling in therapy. Stories are good. They are important, but the problem with stories is that we define ourselves by them. Unfortunately, our "stories" are often shaped by outside forces that attempt to tell us what we can and cannot (should and should not) be and do. This creates a false conditioned self, one where we act and respond to life in ways that are contrary to who we are at our core. Conflicts “entangle”, or trap us in that story. AAIT is not like talk therapy. We examine thoughts, images, emotions and body sensations that arise from everyday situations to provide a space of neutrality from which to explore the the true self.
How does AAIT help?
AAIT helps to free us from narratives. Our work does NOT focus on the story or how you came to this point. You don't need to divulge your entire life history. We work from this moment in time, with today's problem, to quickly provide relief that is lasting and transformative. To do this, we use a collection of tools, processes that Melanie McGhee has compiled from lifelong study and training with master therapists and spiritual directors from around the world. These methods are designed to relieve unwanted feelings and behaviors, reactivity, emotional distress, pain and confusion associated with problems and life goals.
Six Guiding Principles
Session Structure - What a session looks like
Session Structure Beginning
Session Structure Middle
Principles of AAIT
Session Structure End
1. The true self is not defined by the limitations associated with a narrative. The true self is a being.
So many things have happened in life that have shaped who you think you are, but beneath all of the expectations of society, family and culture, the true you exists. Find out who that is by moving beyond the expectations of others.
2. Taking responsibility for and tending to our inner state is the source of our freedom.
“We cannot change others. We cannot change circumstances. We CAN change our state and our experience. “ (Bob and Mary Goulding, authors of Self Acceptance Training and contributors to this work) It’s easy to blame others for the bad things that happen to us, especially if we experience discrimination and oppression. When we realize that we can only control ourselves and our reactions, there is freedom. Learn to operate from this place.
3. Self-acceptance is a means and a measure of well-being.
Acceptance is not a "like or dislike" of something. It is the idea of seeing things as they are without judgement. When we accept ourselves as we are, we heal. That is our means to a better life. Experiencing the wholeness that comes as a result of that healing is how we measure our well-bering.
4. Resolving reactivity reveals higher states of consciousness.
Do you experience conflict with your loved ones or partner on a regular basis? Sometimes we “react” to situations around us from a place of charged emotion. This makes it difficult to resolve problems. We will create a space to explore problems that is free from emotional charge so you can make choices that are good for you.
5. Integration of two opposing states can alleviate psychological suffering.
We live in a bipolar world where concepts like dark and light, male and female, sadness and happiness create unnecessary separation and keep us from making conscious choices that lead to peace in our lives. When we experience these polarities, there is an emotional charge associated with ideas of “good and bad”. We explore those opposites, experience them together, and neutralize the charge that keeps us trying to choose one or the other. By doing this, we find peace.
6. The non-dual states of empty consciousness are an indication and mechanism of transformation. Cultivating an awareness of these states contributes to increases in present-focused attention, empathy, self-compassion and more skillful choices.
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you
Basic Assumptions and Concepts of AAIT:
Integration and Non-dual States of Awareness
We live in a bipolar world where concepts like dark and light, male and female, sadness and happiness create unnecessary separation and keep us from making conscious choices that lead to peace in our lives. When we experience these polarities, there is an emotional charge associated with ideas of “good and bad”. Strong emotions or heavy, sticky thoughts cloud our judgement and create suffering. AAIT is grounded in non-dual thinking. The methods we use help to alleviate that emotional charge or "tension" associated with those polarities by exploring them without judgement and integrating them.
When we integrate negatives with their opposites, we find a "spaciousness", a calm center that allows us to see all sides of a situation. It allows us to see others’ points of view and how our choices impact them as well. Integration allows us to find alternative solutions to the conflict we are attempting to navigate. Being able to make decisions from a neutral place is the source of emotional freedom. It eliminates the reactivity that occurs when we make decisions from a polarized mindset.
Acceptance and Sphere of Influence
Acceptance is not a "like or dislike" of something. It is the idea of seeing things as they are without judgement. “We cannot change others. We cannot change circumstances. We CAN change our state and our experience. “ (Bob and Mary Goulding, authors of Self Acceptance Training and contributors to this work) The AAIT concept of “sphere of influence” guides our interaction and work together. Our clients learn to take responsibility for their own state of being by examining problems with a focus on the self and improving only their experience of a situation, realizing we have no control over the reactions or responses of others. The power to create change lies solely within us, but amazing changes are possible when we truly understand this concept. There is a ripple effect associated with changing one’s perspective in this way, and it often alters multiple situations where conflict is present.
The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
-Lao Tzu, Chinese Philosopher