Welcome to My Blog

I am excited to announce the launch of my St.Claire Psychology Blog, a new effort dedicated to exploring psychological health and well-being. As a licensed psychologist, my aim is to provide insightful, evidence-based psychological content that resonates with those seeking to maintain and restore psychological well-being. If you are experiencing psychological problems interfering with your life, practice self-care by finding a licensed psychotherapist for yourself

What You Can Expect:

• In-Depth Articles on Mental Health: We’ll delve into topics such as anxiety, depression, trauma, and stress management offering practical strategies to navigate these challenges.

• Exploration of Therapeutic Approaches: Gain insights into various psychotherapy methods, such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy and how they can facilitate meaningful change.

• Mindfulness and Wellness Practices: Discover practices and skills to cultivate mindfulness, enhance emotional well-being, and promote health.

• Personal Reflections and Experiences: I will share observations from my practice, aiming to foster a deeper understanding of the human experience.

This blog is an extension of my commitment to support your journey toward psychological wellness.

May we be well and find peace,

Dr. Rachael St.Claire, PsyD

Licensed Psychologist

How I Practice Psychotherapy: A Collaborative, Evidenced-based Approach

With over 30 years of experience as a clinical psychologist, I have had the privilege of working with people from all walks of life, helping them navigate personal challenges and cultivate meaningful, fulfilling lives. My approach to psychotherapy is integrative, drawing from multiple evidence-based modalities, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), Mindfulness-Based Interventions, and Emotion-Focused Couples Therapy (EFT). In this blog post, I intend to provide you with a clear understanding of these therapeutic approaches and what it might be like to work with me in therapy.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): Psychological Flexibility and Living with Meaning

ACT is an effective psychotherapeutic approach that encourages psychological flexibility—the ability to stay present, open, and engaged with life, even in the face of difficult emotions. Psychological inflexibility, in contrast, occurs when we become stuck in rigid thought patterns, avoid difficult emotions, and attempt to control our internal experiences. Avoidance and attempts to suppress thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations often contribute to maintaining distress rather than resolving it, resulting in being stuck with problem thoughts, emotions and behaviors.

One of ACT’s core components is cognitive defusion, which helps us reduce the impact of distressing thoughts by altering how we relate to them rather than trying to eliminate them. Another key component is mindfulness, which cultivates nonjudgmental awareness of the present moment, allowing us to disengage from unhelpful thought loops (rumination) and over-thinking.

ACT also emphasizes values, identifying and clarifying what truly matters to us, committing to and taking action in alignment with those values. Additionally, self-as-context helps us recognize that we are not our thoughts, emotions, or behaviors but rather we are observers of our own internal experiences. The distinction between who we are and our experiences is fundamental to liberating ourselves from self-judgement. By integrating these principles, ACT empowers us to embrace psychological and emotional discomfort and pursue the rich, meaningful life we want for ourselves.

What working with me in ACT might look like: We may explore how avoidance of painful thoughts and feelings may be limiting your life. Through experiential exercises, metaphors, and mindfulness strategies, I guide you in understanding how to relate to your automatic thoughts, how to act rather than avoid, how to practice accepting what you cannot change while committing to actions that that create the life that you want.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Restructuring Thoughts for Emotional Well-Being

CBT is one of the most widely researched and effective therapeutic approaches. It focuses on identifying and restructuring unhelpful thought patterns that contribute to emotional distress. Through CBT, we learn to challenge cognitive distortions, develop healthier thinking habits, and create lasting behavioral change.

What working with me in CBT might look like: Together, we identify thought patterns that may be contributing to your distress. I provide structured exercises and tools to help you develop more balanced and adaptive ways of thinking. We focus on practical strategies that can be applied in daily life to create real change.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): Finding Balance and Emotional Regulation

DBT is particularly effective when struggling with emotional dysregulation, intense interpersonal conflicts, and self-destructive behaviors. It combines acceptance and change strategies, helping us build skills in mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness.

What working with me in DBT might look like: I work collaboratively with you to develop specific coping skills to manage overwhelming emotions and navigate relationships effectively. We practice mindfulness techniques and explore ways to build a more balanced emotional life.

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT): Preventing Relapse and Cultivating Awareness

MBCT integrates principles of mindfulness with cognitive therapy techniques to help us break free from cycles of negative thinking (rumination), particularly when struggling with recurrent depression or anxiety and worry. By increasing awareness of thoughts and emotions without becoming entangled in them, MBCT helps us recognize early warning signs of distress and respond skillfully rather than reactively.

What working with me in MBCT might look like: We incorporate mindfulness practices such as body scans, meditation, and mindful breathing to develop greater self-awareness. By noticing thoughts as they arise and practicing nonjudgmental acceptance, you will learn to respond to difficult emotions with greater clarity and self-compassion.

Mindfulness-Based Interventions: Cultivating Awareness and Presence

Mindfulness is a foundational element in many of the approaches I use. By developing mindfulness skills, we practice being more present in the moment, reduce unskillful automatic reactions, and cultivate a more emotionally balanced way of being in the world. Mindfulness helps create space between thoughts, emotions, and reactions, allowing for more intentional and skillful responses to life's challenges.

What working with me in mindfulness-based therapy might look like: We integrate mindfulness practices such as breath awareness, body scans, and mindful self-compassion into sessions. These practices can help you develop greater awareness of your thoughts and emotions, reducing stress and increasing overall well-being.

Emotion-Focused Couples Therapy (EFT): Deepening Connection and Understanding

For couples, EFT provides a roadmap for building secure, resilient relationships. It focuses on identifying and transforming negative interaction patterns, fostering emotional safety, and strengthening attachment bonds.

What working with me in EFT might look like: We work together to uncover underlying emotional needs and patterns that may be contributing to relationship distress. I guide couples in developing new ways of relating that foster closeness, trust, and emotional security.

Resources for Learning About These Psychotherapy Approaches

If you're interested in learning more about these therapy approaches, I recommend the following books and websites:

Books:

• Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life by Steven C. Hayes (ACT)

• The Mindful Way Through Depression by Mark Williams, John Teasdale, Zindel Segal, and Jon Kabat-Zinn (MBCT & Mindfulness)

• Living beyond OCD: Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (A Workbook For Adults) by Patricia E. Zurita Ona

• The Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook for Depression: Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to Move Through Depression and Create a Life Worth Living by Kirk D. Strosahl and Patricia J. Robinson.

• The Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety: A Guide to Breaking Free from Anxiety, Phobias, and Worry Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy by John P. Forsyth and Georg H. Eifert.

• The Mindful Way Workbook: An 8-Week Program to Free Yourself from Depression and Emotional Distress by John D. Teasdale, J. Mark G. Williams, and Zindel V. Segal.

• ACT with Anxiety: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workbook to Get You Unstuck from Anxiety and Enrich Your Life by Richard Sears.

• Overcoming harm OCD: mindfulness and CBT tools for coping with unwanted violent thoughts by Jon Hershfield MFT

• The Happiness Trap by Russ Harris (ACT)

• The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook by Matthew McKay, Jeffrey Wood, and Jeffrey Brantley (DBT)

• Radical Acceptance by Tara Brach (Mindfulness)

• Living Beyond Your Pain: Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to Ease Chronic Pain by Joanne Dahl and Tobias Lundgren.

• Hold Me Tight by Sue Johnson (EFT)

• Attached by Amir Levine and Rachel Heller (EFT & attachment theory)

Websites:

- Association for Contextual Behavioral Science ([www.contextualscience.org](http://www.contextualscience.org)) Visit the ACT page .

- National Association of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapists ([www.nacbt.org](http://www.nacbt.org)) (CBT)

- The Linehan Institute ([www.behavioraltech.org](http://www.behavioraltech.org)) (DBT)

- The Center for Mindful Self-Compassion ([www.centerformsc.org](http://www.centerformsc.org)) (Mindfulness)

- Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy ([www.mbct.com](http://www.mbct.com)) (MBCT)

- The International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy ([www.iceeft.com](http://www.iceeft.com)) (EFT)

Cognitive Fusion and the Shark Metaphor

The Sharks and the Aquarium Metaphor: Understanding Cognitive Fusion and Defusion

Our thoughts can be overwhelming, especially when they feel powerful, threatening, or inescapable. The sharks and the aquarium metaphor is a useful way to understand the psychological concepts of cognitive fusion and cognitive defusion—how we relate to our thoughts and whether we let them control us.

Cognitive Fusion:

Cognitive fusion happens when we believe our thoughts are absolute truths, urgent warnings, or direct reflections of who we are. When fused with a thought, we react as if it is real and must be acted upon immediately. It’s like being in the ocean defenseless with sharks swimming at us, while cognitive defusion is like standing safely behind aquarium glass observing the sharks swimming by.

When you’re in the ocean with the sharks, the sharks feel threatening and dangerous. You react instinctively with intense emotional distress, like anxiety, fear, despair, hopelessness. The more you react to the sharks swimming at you, the more distressed and trapped you feel. This process of getting stuck in our minds with distressing threatening thoughts is called rumination.

Examples of Cognitive Fusion: In the ocean with the sharks

1. Anxiety and Worry

• Thought: “Something terrible is going to happen.”

• Fusion Response: You take this thought as a real warning and spiral into worry, trying to predict and prevent every possible disaster.

• Shark Experience: The sharks are circling, and you start thrashing, desperately trying to escape the perceived danger, unsuccessfully.

2. Self-Criticism

• Thought: “I’m not good enough.”

• Fusion Response: You accept this as fact and withdraw from opportunities or beat yourself up.

• Shark Experience: You feel surrounded by sharks telling yourself that you’ll never succeed, and you start to sink.

3. Intrusive Thoughts (e.g., OCD)

• Thought: “What if I forgot to lock the front door and an intruder comes in while I’m asleep?”

• Thought: “What if my hand and clothes are contaminated?”

• Thought: What if I act on my thoughts of harming someone?”

• Fusion Response: You fear that thinking this means its actually true, leading to emotional distress, and compulsive checking, behavioral rituals, and reassurance-seeking.

• Shark Tank Experience: The shark appears, and you believe it’s a real threat—intense emotional distress is triggered, convinced it means something terrible.

Cognitive Defusion: Watching the Sharks from Outside the Tank

Cognitive defusion is the practice of stepping back from thoughts and seeing them as just thoughts—not threats, not facts, just mental events passing through the mind. Instead of being in the ocean with the sharks, you realize that the sharks are actually safe behind the glass of an aquarium.

The sharks are still there. They may still seem scary. But they can’t actually harm you. You don’t have to fight them or escape. You can watch them come and go.

Examples of Cognitive Defusion: Observing the Sharks from Safety

1. Anxiety and Worry

• Defused Response: “Ah, worry thoughts are arising in my mind again. This worry thought is just a thought in my mind. I don’t have to engage this thought.”

• Aquarium Experience: You see the sharks swimming by, but instead of panicking, you let them swim pass.

2. Self-Criticism

• Defused Response: “I’m having the thought that I’m not good enough. But thoughts aren’t always true.”

• Aquarium Experience: The shark appears, but you remind yourself it’s just another fish in the tank—not a danger to you.

3. Intrusive Thoughts

• Defused Response: “Oh, there’s that scary thought again. My brain is throwing me another strange idea. I don’t have to do anything with it.”

• Aquarium Experience: Instead of becoming emotionally distressed, anxious, or fearful, you acknowledge the shark’s presence and continue observing, allowing it to move on.

Practicing Cognitive Defusion: Learning to Watch the Sharks

1. Name the Sharks (Label Your Thoughts)

• Instead of saying, “I’m going to fail,” say, “I’m having the thought that I might fail.”

• Instead of “I am anxious,” say, “I notice that I’m feeling anxiety.”

• Naming the thought helps separate it from your identity, making it easier to watch from a distance.

2. Imagine the Thought as a Shark in the Aquarium

• Picture the thought as a shark swimming past you. It might look threatening, but it can’t touch you.

• Just observe it. No need to fight or chase it away.

3. Engage with the Present Moment

• Instead of pulled into the thoughts, redirect your attention to something real in the moment—your breath, the feeling of your feet on the ground, or the sights and sounds around you.

Final Thoughts: Let the Sharks Swim By

You don’t have to control your thoughts. You don’t have to push them away or believe everything they tell you. The sharks (your thoughts) will always be there, but you have a choice: Will you stayin the ocean with the sharks or change how you relate to the thoughts that arise in your mind, and realize you can observe them safely from behind the glass?

By practicing cognitive defusion, you can break free from the grip of your thoughts, reduce emotional distress and the control they have on your behavior, and live more fully and freely in the present moment.

In future blog posts, we’ll explore how cognitive fusion keeps us stuck in anxiety, depression, perfectionism, and self-doubt—and how cognitive defusion can help reduce painful emotions, improve moods, and free us to take healthy action in our lives.