Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is a form of evidence-based psychotherapy that blends elements of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), psycho-educational modules, and eastern mindfulness-based practices to foster the systematic learning of new emotional coping skills. It was originally developed, by Marsha M. Linehan in the late 1980s, to treat borderline personality disorder (BPD) but has since been applied to various mental health conditions. DBT is a multifaceted, rigidly structured therapeutic approach that is designed to help individuals learn to manage painful emotions and decrease conflicts in relationships. It is carried out in three therapeutic settings, including weekly individual psychotherapy (one-on-one therapy) sessions; weekly DBT skills training group therapy sessions, and access to twenty-four-hour support between sessions via phone coaching. Within each setting, DBT focuses on providing therapeutic skills in four key areas, known as the four modules, which include the following:
- Core mindfulness: Focuses on improving an individual’s ability to accept and be present in any given moment. The skills in this module help individuals learn the importance and value of slowing down and taking pause instead of succumbing to intense emotions and acting in destructive ways.
- Distress tolerance: Focuses on increasing an individual’s tolerance of negative emotions as opposed to attempting to avoid or escape them. The skills in this module help individuals learn various techniques for handling crisis (e.g., distraction, self-soothing, improving the moment, etc.).
- Emotion regulation: Focuses on helping an individual identify, name, understand the function of, and regulate their emotions. The skills taught in this module are intended to help an individual learn to decrease the intensity of their emotions, sit with, and experience strong emotions that are causing problems in one’s life without impulsively acting on them.
- Interpersonal effectiveness: Focuses on increasing an individual’s communication strategies. The skills taught in this module help an individual learn to identify what their own needs are in a relationship and develop assertive and effective communication methods to ensure those needs are met in a healthy, nondestructive way.
There are numerous techniques and approaches that may be used throughout the DBT process. Although the DBT format allows some leeway for clinicians to select the most appropriate and useful techniques, all the therapeutic tactics relate to and fall within the parameters of the four modules. Still, the specific techniques and approaches used throughout the process will be directly informed by each client’s nuanced needs.
Treatment In Calabasas
Calabasas is a city in California. It is a well-known suburb of Los Angeles, located west of the San Fernando Valley and north of the Santa Monica Mountains. Over the past decade, the city of Calabasas has grown in its reputation for luxury as well as for privacy which makes it a hidden gem for residential living for society’s elite, and one of the most desirable destinations in Los Angeles County. It is also home to a plethora of highly qualified mental health clinicians providing an array of therapeutic services and treatment options.
The information above is provided for the use of informational purposes only. The above content is not to be substituted for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment, as in no way is it intended as an attempt to practice medicine, give specific medical advice, including, without limitation, advice concerning the topic of mental health. As such, please do not use any material provided above to disregard professional advice or delay seeking treatment.
