we	believe	necessary	to	avoid,	push	away,	or	somehow	“fix”	the	upset.
We	all	experience	negative	emotions,	including	anxiety.	No	one	is
immune.	Even	people	without	full-on	anxiety	disorders	go	through	anxious
spikes;	it’s	just	part	of	life.	Bringing	acceptance	to	your	emotional	world
means	giving	up	the	fight	against	suffering	and	pain,	so	you	may	be	free	in
spite	of	it.	And,	too,	it	means	recognizing	and	believing	that	experiencing
negative	emotions	is	normal.
Accepting	situations	and	experiences	doesn’t	mean	you	want	them	or	that
you’re	resigning	yourself	to	a	lifetime	of	emotional	pain.	Acceptance	doesn’t
mean	feeling	you’re	the	victim	of	your	pain	and	that	your	pain	controls	you.
Acceptance	doesn’t	mean	you	necessarily	like	what	you’re	experiencing.
Acceptance	is	the	idea:	“It	is	what	it	is.”
The	metaphor	of	the	Chinese	finger	trap	used	in	acceptance	and
commitment	therapy	clearly	shows	how	struggling	against	the	experience	of
difficult	emotions	only	increases	negative	emotion.	The	Chinese	finger	trap	
is
a	small	woven	cylinder	that	children	often	enjoy.	You	place	a	finger	in	each
end	of	the	cylinder,	pull,	and—wham—suddenly	and	unexpectedly	your