Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is an evidence-based treatment that was originally designed to treat individuals suffering from suicidal behaviors, non-suicidal self-injury, and symptoms of borderline personality disorder (BPD). DBT has since been adapted and validated in treating a range of problems, including depression, anxiety, PTSD, substance use, and eating disorders. DBT is designed to help individuals  stabilize life-threatening, impulsive, and high-risk behaviors through distress tolerance, mindfulness, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness. DBT consists of:

Individual therapy focused on increasing and maintaining the individual’s motivation, helping them apply DBT skills to specific situations and relationships, and working toward the individual’s goals. Therapy typically takes place a minimum of once per week.

Skills group that teaches patients the skills to identify, understand, and effectively manage their emotions. Skills group meets weekly and is mandatory for at least 6 months. DBT breaks down these skills into the following modules: Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Emotion Regulation, and Interpersonal Effectiveness.

Groups are run in a class-like format in which group leaders use a combination of lecture, discussion, and practice to teach the skills. Individuals are assigned homework so that they can practice skills in the situations where they experience distress

​Phone coaching: To help an individual generalize skills from session to their life, DBT therapists offer in-the-moment phone/text coaching. Therapists will support the individual in using skills to cope effectively with difficult situations. Together they collaborate to assesses the problem and urges for target behaviors, identify effective/feasible goals for the moment, and identify a plan for skills use. Phone coaching helps with skills mastery and generalization, so that the individual can learn to apply skills outside of a therapeutic environment.

To be ready for skills coaching, an individual must have made a commitment to DBT treatment, a commitment to refrain from engaging in target behaviors, and a commitment to their individualized safety plan and skills coaching protocol. Readiness is determined collaboratively between the individual and their therapist.

DBT therapists often respond within 20-60 minutes, though this is not always possible. Calls for skills coaching will be responded to within 24 hours. Skills coaching is not meant for emergencies and an individual will still need to contact emergency medical personnel in the event of life-threatening behavior.