Fusion → Defusion
When we’re caught in avoidance, we tend to see our thoughts as “true.” ACT calls this process “fusion.” When we are fused, we react to a thought as if it were an external reality, as opposed to a cognitive and physiological experience happening inside of our mind and body.
Examples of a few types of thoughts people can fuse with are:
• Reasons - “I can’t do X because…” • Judgments - “People always are only looking out for themselves.” • Rules - “I shouldn’t feel Y” or “I have to work harder than others to be successful.”
Defusion, on the other hand, is about noticing our thoughts as simply thoughts. When we can experience our thoughts as events happening inside our awareness, rather than taking whatever our mind says as reality itself, we can choose to pay attention to the thoughts that are more “workable” in moving us toward where we want to go in life.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy tells us to consider our thoughts as separate from reality - possibly true or false.
There’s gotta be a better term than Fusion… How about static?