FAQ

Questions About The ACT Model:

  • ACT stands for Acceptance and Commitment Therapy/Training. In simple terms, it is an approach that helps people relate differently to difficult thoughts, emotions, urges, and discomfort — while taking action guided by what matters to them.

    Rather than trying to eliminate every painful feeling or “fix” every thought, ACT focuses on psychological flexibility: the ability to stay present, make room for inner experience, and move toward values-based action in everyday life.

  • ACT coaching is not therapy and does not replace therapy, psychotherapy, psychiatric care, or medical treatment.

    Therapy is provided by licensed mental health professionals and may involve clinical assessment, diagnosis, treatment, trauma work, or deeper mental health support.

    ACT-informed coaching focuses on everyday life, values, decision-making, emotional flexibility, relationships, work, transitions, and meaningful action. It is designed to help you notice patterns, relate differently to difficult thoughts and emotions, and move toward what matters with more clarity and intention.

    If clinical support is needed, working with a licensed mental health professional may be more appropriate.

  • Not necessarily. ACT does not require deep emotional disclosure before you feel ready.

    The work focuses on how you relate to your inner world — thoughts, emotions, sensations, urges, and discomfort — whether you choose to describe those experiences in detail or only touch them lightly.

    Some people speak openly from the beginning; others need more time, structure, or practical exercises before words come easily. Both are completely welcome.

  • ACT-informed coaching is usually designed as a focused process with a clear beginning, direction, and review point.

    Some people come for a short series of sessions around a specific decision, transition, or pattern. Others choose to continue for longer, especially when the work touches several areas of life.

    The aim is autonomy, not dependency. The goal is for you to leave with tools, awareness, and flexibility that you can continue using beyond the sessions themselves.

  • Not at all. ACT can be useful for people navigating crisis, but it is not only for moments of extreme distress.

    Many people come because they feel stuck, overwhelmed, disconnected, uncertain, or caught in patterns they want to understand and change. Others come because they want more clarity, direction, emotional flexibility, or support during a period of transition.

    Trauma-sensitive and addiction-aware perspectives can enrich the way I listen, but they are not prerequisites for ACT-informed coaching.

  • No. Acceptance is not agreement, approval, or giving up.

    In ACT, acceptance means making room to see what is actually happening — inside you and around you — without spending all your energy fighting reality, avoiding discomfort, or waiting for difficult feelings to disappear.

    This does not make you passive. It can actually help you act more clearly and effectively, because your next step is guided by values rather than by resistance, fear, or automatic reaction.

  • ACT is grounded in behavioral science and supported by research.

    At the same time, many people experience the work as personally meaningful because it touches presence, compassion, values, choice, and the way we relate to pain and uncertainty.

    You do not need to approach ACT spiritually for it to be useful. You can relate to it as a practical, evidence-informed framework, as a meaningful personal practice, or simply as a set of tools for moving through life with more flexibility and intention.

Questions About My Coaching Approach

  • ACT sessions are conversational, experiential, and shaped by what you bring. We might explore metaphors, notice recurring patterns in your thinking or behavior, use writing or drawing, or practice small awareness exercises.

    There is no script and no need to perform. The session adapts to you — your pace, your language, and your way of processing.

    Some sessions feel reflective, others creative, and some surprisingly playful. The aim is to create more clarity, flexibility, and movement toward what matters in your life.

  • Advice can be useful sometimes, but it often gives an answer before the person has had enough space to understand what truly matters to them.

    In ACT-informed coaching, my role is not to tell you what to do, what to think, or how to live. I do not judge your choices or position myself as someone who knows your life better than you do.

    Instead, the work focuses on helping you develop the skills to make your own decisions with more clarity, flexibility, and connection to your values.

    In that sense, I am less interested in handing you a fish — and more interested in helping you learn how to fish in your own waters.

  • Not at all. These practices are optional tools, not requirements.

    If they resonate with you, we can integrate them. If they don’t, we won’t. In ACT, mindfulness can also be very simple: noticing a thought, sensing your feet on the ground, pausing before responding, or becoming more aware of what is happening in the moment.

    ACT is flexible by design — it meets you where you are, not where someone thinks you “should” be.

  • My work brings together ACT, creativity, sociological research, lived experience, and years of listening to people across different personal, professional, and cultural worlds.

    I do not approach people as problems to fix, but as human beings moving through changing circumstances, relationships, pressures, identities, and choices.

    The work is grounded in curiosity, presence, and respect for your autonomy. I do not offer quick answers or judgment. Instead, I help create a space where you can understand yourself more clearly, reconnect with your values, and begin moving in a way that feels more honest and workable.

  • I was drawn to ACT because it created a bridge between several worlds that had already shaped my life: movement, mindfulness, emotional research, sociology, and everyday human struggle.

    Yoga and breathwork helped me understand that awareness is not only intellectual — it is also physical and lived. My academic background gave me language for emotions, identity, relationships, and social life. ACT brought these worlds together in a practical, evidence-informed framework.

    What I appreciate most about ACT is that it does not ask people to become perfectly calm, healed, or certain before they act. It helps people notice what is happening, make room for difficulty, reconnect with values, and move toward what matters.

  • Yes, but I prefer to think of them as between-session practices rather than homework.

    At the beginning and throughout the process, there may be a few short forms or reflections designed to help clarify values, notice patterns, and follow what is changing over time.

    You may also receive small, practical exercises to try in daily life. These are not worksheets for the sake of worksheets — they are ways of bringing ACT into real situations, decisions, relationships, and moments of pressure.

    The goal is to support movement and awareness between sessions, not to overwhelm you with tasks.

Questions About Identity & Inclusivity

  • Yes. This space is open to people of all genders, sexual orientations, cultural backgrounds, and relationship structures.

    ACT-informed coaching works with human experience rather than trying to reduce people to categories. Your identity is not an obstacle to the work — it is part of your story, your context, and the way you move through the world.

    The work is grounded in respect, curiosity, and the belief that people do not need to fit into predefined boxes in order to be heard, supported, or taken seriously.

  • You do not need to be artistic, expressive, or “creative” in any conventional sense.

    Creativity in this work is not about talent. It is about openness, curiosity, and the possibility of trying new ways of relating to yourself, your thoughts, and your life.

    You do not need to draw, write, move, or express yourself in any particular way. If creative tools are useful, we can use them. If they are not, we won’t.

    The work adapts to your style, not the other way around.

  • Yes. ACT is values‑based, which means it works with your cultural and spiritual framework, not against it. You define what matters to you. The process respects your traditions, your worldview, and your boundaries. ACT is flexible enough to support people from a wide range of cultural and religious identities without imposing any ideology.

  • Yes. ACT can be helpful when old definitions of yourself no longer feel accurate, but new ones have not fully formed yet.

    Rather than forcing you to choose a fixed identity too quickly, ACT-informed coaching creates space to notice the stories, expectations, roles, and fears that may be shaping how you see yourself.

    The work focuses less on finding one final answer to “Who am I?” and more on exploring how you want to live, what matters to you, and what kind of movement feels honest in this stage of life.

  • Yes. LGBTQ+ people and couples are welcome here.

    The work can include the same questions any person or relationship may bring — communication, intimacy, identity, pressure, uncertainty, change — while also respecting the additional social, cultural, family, or community layers that may be present.

    The aim is not to make identity the whole story, but to make sure it is not ignored, minimized, or misunderstood.

Questions About the Process, Structure & Costs

  • Yes. Some people prefer a weekly rhythm, while others choose a more intensive or more spacious schedule.

    The rhythm depends on your needs, availability, and the kind of work we are doing — individual coaching, couples work, sports support, or organizational work may each require a different structure.

    We decide together what pace makes sense after the introductory conversation.

  • The structure is clear, but the content remains flexible.

    After the introductory conversation, we decide together what kind of process fits your needs. This may include the number of sessions, the main themes we will focus on, and the tools or practices that may be useful along the way.

    Within that structure, each session adapts to your pace, your experiences, and what emerges naturally. The aim is to offer enough guidance to create direction, while leaving enough space for real life to enter the work.

  • Life happens. If you need to pause, we can adjust the process when possible.

    The work is designed to support movement, not create pressure or guilt. When you return, we can reconnect to what matters, review where you are now, and decide together how to continue.

    There is no judgment or urgency — only a renewed look at what support makes sense from here.

  • After the program ends, the work continues in your own life — through the tools, awareness, and practices you have developed during the process.

    Some people return months later for a focused session, a short “tune-up,” or a new process around a different question or transition. That is always possible.

    But the aim is autonomy. The end of a program is not the end of growth — it is the point where you continue moving with more self-guidance, flexibility, and connection to what matters.

  • We aim to keep pricing clear, fair, and transparent.

    For private clients, our current introductory rates are:

    Individuals

    60-minute session: €50

    Couples / Relational Sessions

    90-minute session: €75

    Introductory conversations are free.

    These introductory rates will remain available through the end of 2026.

    For athletes, coaches, organizations, and teams, pricing depends on the scope, format, frequency, and goals of the work. After an introductory conversation, we agree on a clear structure and proposal together.

    Sessions and programs are available online. In-person meetings may be possible around Lisbon and the surrounding area, depending on availability and location.

  • Yes. All sessions can take place online, making the process accessible from different locations and time zones.

    Online conversations can work very well for ACT-informed coaching, especially when there is a quiet, private space where you feel comfortable speaking openly.

    For people based in Lisbon and the surrounding area, in-person meetings may also be possible depending on availability and location.

  • What you share in conversations and intake forms is treated with care and confidentiality.

    I do not share personal information without consent, except where required by law or in situations involving serious risk of harm.

    For couples, relational work, organizations, or team settings, we clarify boundaries around shared information together so the process remains respectful and transparent.

  • That’s completely normal.

    The introductory conversation is designed exactly for that — to understand where you are, what you’re looking for, and what kind of structure may support you best.

    You don’t need to arrive with complete clarity. We can use the first conversation to explore what feels relevant and decide together what next step, if any, makes sense.

We Are Here For You…

If you have questions, thoughts, or anything you would like to explore before booking, feel free to reach out. We are here to help you understand what working together could look like.