Posts Tagged ‘cognitive fusion’
How to Break Free from Mental Captivity – Part One
“You have power over your mind – not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” – Marcus Aurelius Do you ever feel like your mind has more control of you than you do of it? Many of us have experienced times when we feel like the captain of our own ships, confidently charting…
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“Leaves on a Stream” – Cognitive Defusion Exercise
“Nothing can bring you peace but yourself.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) provides us with the tools to practice cognitive defusion, which is the willingness to let go of the attachment and over-identification with thoughts that cause suffering. When fusion to thoughts becomes problematic, those thoughts become “true” and “real” in…
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Identify Cognitive Fusion
“Worry often gives a small thing a big shadow.” – Swedish Proverb Cognitive fusion takes hold when we become so attached to patterns of thinking or specific thoughts that they get in the way of leading a full, rich, and meaningful life. In order words, we are fused to our thoughts when they cause significant…
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What Stands Between You & the Life You Want?
“Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves.” – Henry David Thoreau Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) enlists people to identify their most cherished values, set goals in accordance with those values, and then begin to direct their behavior towards reaching those goals. One way of asking yourself a motivating question to…
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6 Core Processes of Psychological Inflexibility
“Nothing is softer or more flexible than water, yet nothing can resist it.” – Lao Tzu Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) uses a variety of mindfulness and acceptance-based strategies, along with behavioral changes and commitment to cultivate psychological flexibility. What does it mean to say that one is “psychologically flexible?” In the context of ACT,…
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Fusion vs. Defusion
“Doubt is not a pleasant state of mind, but certainty is absurd.” – Voltaire Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) contends that there are opportunities for purpose and meaning even in the midst of intense pain or suffering. The goal of ACT is not to merely eliminate suffering, but to find a way to use one’s…
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