In this video from a recent Beck Institute Workshop, Dr. Aaron Beck discusses self-focus in Cognitive Therapy. Dr. Beck states that psychological disorders often involve some degree of self-focus. With health anxiety, for example, an over-focus on sensations in the body trigger irrational thoughts and beliefs. As patients become fixated on their bodily sensations, thoughts, and beliefs, their symptoms exacerbate. Mindfulness is one technique patients can use to help control their focus and distance themselves from fixations.
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