Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is a type of psychotherapy developed by Marsha Linehan, Ph.D. DBT has first introduced over a dozen years ago as a treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). People with BPD experience intense emotions which lead to actions such as self-injury, anger outbursts, or abrupt ending of important relationships. Although these actions temporarily reduce emotional pain they often wind up causing other problems that can make life even more difficult. DBT techniques help people with their struggles and help them live better lives. We are available to provide you with this form of therapy. Call today to schedule a free consultation session.
DBT is a compassionate type of behavior therapy that is intended to help people move toward having a life that feels even more meaningful and worth living. Distress, emotional pain, interpersonal difficulties, and behavior problems such as over-eating, not eating, using substances, self-injuring, losing control, withdrawing, and using-up relationships can make it incredibly difficult to function. DBT targets the issues that cause distress and teaches skills to deal with them without having to resort to self-defeating behaviors. It does so in a framework that helps clients understand that they are doing the best they can even though they need to learn ways that work better.
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is a type of cognitive-behavioral therapy. Its main goals are to teach people how to live in the moment, develop healthy ways to cope with stress, regulate their emotions, and improve their relationships with others.
Yes, DBT has been found to be effective for a variety of mental health conditions, particularly borderline personality disorder. It can also be helpful for individuals with other types of personality disorders, mood disorders, eating disorders, and those who struggle with self-harm behaviors.
DBT techniques include skills training in four key areas: mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, andinterpersonal effectiveness. Mindfulness focuses on improving an individual’s ability to accept and be present in the current moment. Distress tolerance is geared toward increasing a person’s tolerance of negative emotion. Emotion regulation covers strategies to manage and change intense emotions. Interpersonal effectiveness consists of techniques that allow a person to communicate with others in a way that is assertive, maintains self-respect, and strengthens relationships.
DBT was originally developed to treat borderline personality disorder. However, it’s now used for the treatment of other mental health disorders that involve emotion regulation difficulties, such as bipolar disorder, eating disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
