DBT Therapy
What Is DBT Therapy?
Are you curious about DBT Therapy and how it can help you? Dialectical Behavior Therapy, commonly known as DBT, is a highly effective, evidence-based approach developed by psychologist Marsha M. Linehan in the late 1980s. Originally designed to treat Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), DBT has since been proven effective for a wide range of issues, including depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and PTSD. DBT Therapy combines cognitive-behavioral techniques with mindfulness practices, helping individuals manage their emotions, improve relationships, and cope with stress more effectively. At its core, DBT is about finding the balance between accepting who you are and making meaningful changes to improve your life.
How DBT Therapy works and who it can help.
So, what makes DBT Therapy so unique, and how does it actually work? DBT focuses on four essential skills: mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness. Mindfulness helps you stay present and fully engaged in the moment, reducing anxiety and emotional reactivity. Distress tolerance teaches you how to handle pain and stress without making things worse. Emotion regulation provides tools to understand and manage intense emotions, and interpersonal effectiveness helps you communicate more effectively and build healthier relationships.
In my practice, I use DBT Therapy to address a variety of challenges. Whether you’re dealing with intense emotions, relationship issues, self-destructive behaviors, or simply feeling overwhelmed by life, DBT offers practical skills and strategies to help you cope. One of the standout features of DBT is its dual focus on acceptance and change. This approach allows us to work on accepting your current reality while also striving for positive changes, making DBT particularly effective for those feeling stuck in unproductive patterns.
Have any questions? Send me a message!
How can I help?
I’ve been dedicated to DBT Therapy since 2009, with advanced training and over a decade and a half of hands-on experience. Each week, I utilize DBT techniques to assist clients facing a wide range of issues—from mood disorders and relationship struggles to self-harm behaviors. My training includes extensive coursework and practical experience, enabling me to tailor DBT to meet the unique needs of each client.
Choosing DBT as one of the cornerstone of my practice was both a professional and personal decision. Over the years, I have seen the profound impact DBT can have on people’s lives, helping them find stability, confidence, and hope amidst chaos. I believe in the power of DBT because I have witnessed its effectiveness time and time again. It’s not just about learning skills; it’s about transforming lives.
The 4 pillers
Of DBT Therapy
Through this process, individuals develop essential skills to better understand and manage their emotions, cope with distressing situations, maintain balanced relationships, and stay grounded in the present moment.
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Mindfulness is the foundation of DBT and involves staying present and fully engaged in the current moment. By practicing mindfulness, you learn to observe your thoughts and feelings without judgment, allowing you to become more aware of your emotional and mental state. This heightened awareness helps you to respond to situations thoughtfully rather than reacting impulsively.
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Distress tolerance skills focus on helping you cope with intense emotions and stressful situations without resorting to negative behaviors. These skills are about surviving crises without making things worse. Techniques include distraction, self-soothing, and improving the moment through acceptance and finding meaning. By building distress tolerance, you can handle life's inevitable challenges more effectively, reducing the impact of painful emotions and maintaining your well-being during tough times.
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Emotion regulation skills are designed to help you understand, manage, and change intense emotions that are causing problems in your life. These skills teach you how to identify and label emotions accurately, increase positive emotional experiences, and decrease the intensity of negative emotions. By gaining better control over your emotional responses, you can reduce vulnerability to emotional disruptions and lead a more balanced and fulfilling life.
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Interpersonal effectiveness skills focus on improving your ability to communicate and interact with others in a healthy and productive way. These skills help you to assert your needs, set boundaries, and navigate conflicts while maintaining relationships. By enhancing your interpersonal effectiveness, you can build stronger, more supportive relationships and feel more confident in social interactions. This pillar is crucial for maintaining healthy connections and achieving your personal and professional goals.
“Change your behavior and you will change your emotions.”
Marsha M. Linehan, PhD
The Unique Benefit Of DBT Therapy
Practical skills for real life challenges.
One of the standout benefits of DBT Therapy is its structured yet flexible approach to tackling a wide range of emotional and behavioral challenges. Unlike some therapies that can feel unstructured or vague, DBT provides a clear framework for understanding and managing your emotions. It’s all about equipping you with practical, actionable skills that you can apply in real-time, whether you're dealing with stress at work, conflicts in your relationships, or internal struggles like anxiety or depression.
Another unique advantage of DBT Therapy is its emphasis on the balance between acceptance and change. This isn’t about simply tolerating your current situation or blindly pushing for change; it’s about understanding and accepting your reality while also working towards meaningful improvements. This dual focus can be incredibly empowering, especially if you've felt stuck in unproductive patterns. This approach helps you build a life that feels more authentic and fulfilling, rather than just "fixing" problems as they arise.
Finally, DBT’s comprehensive skill set—covering mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness—addresses multiple aspects of your life. Whether you’re looking to improve your relationships, manage intense emotions, or simply find more peace and stability, DBT Therapy offers a robust toolkit tailored to your unique needs. The beauty of DBT lies in its ability to adapt to various situations and individual challenges, making it a versatile and powerful option for personal growth.
I want you to know:
You deserve a life of balance and peace.
DBT Therapy as a Holistic Solution.
DBT Therapy frequently integrates seamlessly with other therapeutic modalities, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Internal Family Systems (IFS), and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). Because of its structured and multifaceted nature, DBT Therapy offers a thorough and effective approach to addressing a wide range of issues.
DBT has proven to be an effective form of treatment for a variety of complex issues, including anxiety and depression, emotional dysregulation, relationship conflicts, self-harm behaviors, and trauma-related symptoms.
By combining the strengths of DBT with other modalities, clients can experience a comprehensive, well-rounded path to healing and personal growth.
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Break free from emotional struggles.
Over and over, I have seen clients overwhelmed by intense emotions and difficult relationships make incredible progress through DBT Therapy. Its comprehensive approach and proven effectiveness—particularly for issues like emotional regulation, relationship conflicts, and self-destructive behaviors—are truly remarkable.
If you’re interested in DBT Therapy and looking for a therapist who can guide you, please call me to learn more about how DBT can help you build a more balanced, fulfilling life.