Defusion
Defusing from Unhelpful Thoughts
Our minds constantly try to make sense of our experiences, keep us safe, predict and control. We tell ourselves nonstop stories of "how it is" through language, but these descriptions are often oversimplified and can limit us (Hayes 2019).
Defusion is about stepping back from thoughts and judgments to see them as constructions of words and pictures. When we pay attention to thoughts with curiosity, openness, and flexibility, we can create distance between ourselves and the content of our thoughts, deciding when they are helpful in guiding us.
Defusion is particularly important when it comes to moral distress:
Morally injurious events can challenge our belief systems, requiring us to reexamine fundamental beliefs (Smith-MacDonald et al., 2018).
Rigid beliefs about right and wrong, good and bad, just or unjust can contribute to moral pain when unhelpful stories dominate our meaning-making (Currier, et al., 2015; Evans et al., 2020).
Our problem-solving minds can try to fix or change the past in unhelpful ways
Defusion helps us:
Put distance between our stories about the morally injurious event and the event itself, examining whether our thoughts are working for us.
Spend less time in our thoughts and more time and energy caring for ourselves and others (Borges, 2019)
Step out of never-ending self-criticism, fears about the future, or guilt about the past, rumination about wrongdoers, watching our thoughts instead of being caught up in them.
Practice defusion by:
Labeling your thoughts as thoughts (e.g. “I am having the thought that ______;” “I am telling myself the story that_____)
Repeating thoughts in a silly voice, or to an obnoxious tune
Thank your mind (one of my veterans started calling his brain "Mr. Tater" (as in Dick Tater), and playfully thanked Mr. Tater for his most unhelpful thoughts. A game changer for this veteran!)
Appreciate what your mind is trying to do. “I really get that you are trying to be of use. You are trying to (keep me out of trouble? Warn me? Make sense of a difficult situation? Get rid of troublesome aspects of my experience?). Thanks.
If you notice yourself "buying into" judgmental or blaming thoughts, ask yourself, "have I bought into this thought before?" "Is this an old and familiar pattern?" "In my experience, will it help to continue buying into this thought?" Ask yourself this question: "Will buying into this story lead to a more vital and fulfilling life, or will it lead to more pain and suffering in the long run?"
Remember, the goal isn't to eliminate or change your thoughts but to see them for what they are - just thoughts. This way, you can create space to focus on caring for your emotions and living a vital, fulfilling life.
For Further Exploration:
Russ Harris has some excellent metaphors and exercises to practice defusion:
References
Borges, L. M. (2019). A service member's experience of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Moral Injury (ACT-MI) via telehealth:“Learning to accept my pain and injury by reconnecting with my values and starting to live a meaningful life”. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 13, 134-140.
Currier, J. M., Holland, J. M., & Malott, J. (2015). Moral injury, meaning making, and mental health in returning veterans. Journal of clinical psychology, 71(3), 229-240.
Evans, W. R., Walser, R. D., Drescher, K. D., & Farnsworth, J. K. (2020). The Moral Injury Workbook: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Skills for Moving Beyond Shame, Anger, and Trauma to Reclaim Your Values. New York, NY: New Harbinger Publications
Hayes, S. C. (2019). A liberated mind: How to pivot toward what matters. Avery.
Smith-MacDonald L., Lusk J., Lee-Baggley D., Bright K., Laidlaw A., Voth M., Spencer S., Cruikshank E., Pike A., Jones C., Bremault-Phillips S. (2022). Companions in the Abyss: A Feasibility and Acceptability Study of an Online Therapy Group for Healthcare Providers Working During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 12: 801680.
Smith-MacDonald, L. A., Morin, J. S., & Brémault-Phillips, S. (2018). Spiritual dimensions of moral injury: contributions of mental health chaplains in the Canadian armed forces. Frontiers in psychiatry, 9, 592.