Cognitive fusion

Cognitive fusion is a concept from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) that describes the tendency to become entangled with our thoughts, seeing them as absolute truths or commands that dictate our behavior. When individuals are cognitively fused, they identify strongly with their thoughts and emotions, losing perspective and reacting as if these thoughts are definitive representations of reality.

When people experience cognitive fusion, their thoughts are not seen as transient mental events but as concrete realities that they must respond to or act upon, they become so intertwined with one's sense of self that they start to influence emotions and actions.