Who is DBT helpful for?
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is a type of cognitive-behavioral therapy that has been specifically designed to help individuals who struggle with emotion regulation and borderline personality disorder (BPD). Developed by Dr. Marsha Linehan in the late 1980s, DBT has since been adapted for use with a wide range of other mental health issues, including substance abuse, eating disorders, and depression.
The core principles of DBT are based on the idea that individuals who struggle with emotion regulation have difficulty finding balance between two extremes: acceptance and change. On one hand, they may feel overwhelmed and consumed by their emotions, leading to impulsive behavior, intense mood swings, and interpersonal conflict. On the other hand, they may feel detached and disconnected from their emotions, leading to feelings of emptiness and meaninglessness. DBT aims to help individuals find a middle ground between these two extremes by teaching skills to increase acceptance and mindfulness, while also promoting change and behavior modification.
What are the components of DBT?
DBT is a comprehensive treatment program that includes individual therapy, group skills training, phone coaching, and consultation meetings for therapists. The individual therapy component focuses on building a strong therapeutic relationship between the client and therapist, and helping the client identify and work through specific issues related to emotion regulation. The group skills training component includes four modules: mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness.
Mindfulness is the foundation of DBT and is taught in the first module of group skills training. Mindfulness is the practice of being present in the moment and observing thoughts, feelings, and sensations without judgment. Through mindfulness practice, individuals learn to recognize and tolerate uncomfortable emotions and develop a greater sense of self-awareness.
Distress tolerance is the second module of group skills training and focuses on coping with crisis situations and tolerating distressing emotions. Individuals learn techniques such as self-soothing, distraction, and radical acceptance to manage intense emotions without engaging in impulsive or destructive behaviors.
The third module of group skills training is emotion regulation, which focuses on identifying and understanding emotions and learning strategies to regulate them. This module teaches individuals how to increase positive emotions, decrease negative emotions, and communicate effectively about their emotions.
The final module of group skills training is interpersonal effectiveness, which focuses on improving communication and relationships with others. This module teaches individuals how to assertively communicate their needs, set boundaries, and resolve conflicts in a healthy way.
In addition to individual therapy and group skills training, DBT includes phone coaching and consultation meetings for therapists. Phone coaching is designed to provide clients with support and guidance outside of therapy sessions, particularly during crisis situations. Consultation meetings for therapists are designed to provide support and guidance to therapists who are implementing DBT with their clients.
One of the unique aspects of DBT is the emphasis on validation. Validation is the act of acknowledging and accepting an individual’s experiences, thoughts, and feelings as valid and real, without necessarily agreeing with them. Validation is used throughout DBT as a way to build trust and rapport between the client and therapist, and to help individuals feel understood and heard. Validation is also used as a tool to help individuals regulate their emotions and communicate more effectively.
Is it evidence based?
Research has consistently shown that DBT is an effective treatment for individuals with borderline personality disorder, as well as other mental health issues. A meta-analysis of 11 randomized controlled trials found that DBT was more effective than treatment as usual or other active treatments for reducing suicidal behavior, self-harm, and hospitalizations among individuals with BPD (Kliem et al., 2010). DBT has also been found to be effective for individuals with substance abuse, eating disorders, and depression (Linehan, 1993; Telch et al., 2001; Safer et al., 2009).
How can I learn more?
At ITS, all of our therapists are skilled in both individual and group DBT. If you are interested in learning more about access our services, feel free to reach out to our intake line to discuss if it’s the best fit for you! You can reach use here.
Alternatively, you can learn more about DBT on this website which has free video and audio recordings for the public.