Dialectical Behavioral Therapy For Teens
What is DBT? And how does it work?
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, DBT for short, is a form of talking therapy. It’s a therapy created for people who struggle with intense emotions. It was originally developed by Dr. Marsha Linehan at the University of Washington as a way of helping people who had attempted suicide multiple times.
Throughout the years, it has been demonstrated as an effective therapy for a range of several different problems, being helpful in tackling problems such as (but not limited to):
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)
Self-harm
Suicide attempts
Eating disorders
Depression
Suicidal thoughts or behavior
Anxiety disorders
Impulsive behaviors
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy is influenced by two approaches to treatment. The first one, which you might have already heard of, is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), which involves changing thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that cause problems in your daily life. The second approach is a practice called Mindfulness. It is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we are doing, and learning to not become overwhelmed or overreactive by what is happening around us.
What is the difference between CBT and DBT?
Cognitive- Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focuses on helping you to change thoughts, behaviors, and emotions that are not helpful to your daily life. It addresses unhelpful thinking styles that contribute to perceived distress and focuses on helping the client reframe their thoughts and develop new neural pathways to ultimately reduce psychological discomfort.
Techniques Used in CBT:
Thought and Behavior Identification
Coping Skill Acquisition
Goal-Setting
Problem-Solving
Practicing New Skills
Reframing Thoughts and Behaviors
Self-Monitoring
Dialectical-Behavioral Therapy
Dialectical-Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is a modified form of CBT. It helps people regulate their emotions and manage maladaptive and self-destructive behaviors. It is commonly utilized to treat borderline personality disorder (BPD), addiction, eating disorders, self-harm, and severe anxiety and depression. DBT focuses on the treatment of intense emotions, complex relationships, and impulsive actions. It stresses the practice of mindfulness, strengthening emotions, growing relationships, and increasing distress tolerance. DBT typically involves therapeutic work done in a group setting in addition to individual therapy.
Techniques Used in DBT:
Mindfulness. The ability to control attention, be present, understand yourself and situations better, and accept reality. Mindfulness is helpful for people struggling with unstable self-images and facing difficulties staying focused on the present.
Distress Tolerance. DBT teaches the skills needed to get through a crisis and to manage difficult emotions without engaging in destructive behaviors - self-harm, substance abuse, suicide attempts - that can make situations worse.
Emotion Regulation. In DBT sessions, people learn how to respond to intense emotions and avoid losing control in triggering circumstances.
Interpersonal Effectiveness. This refers to the acquisition of relational skills to improve communication and interact with others in healthy and respectable ways. It involves mastering conflict-resolution skills, assertiveness, boundary-setting, and trust-building.
What are the different ways to do DBT?
There are three primary ways to receive standard outpatient DBT treatment and we recommend taking part in all three simultaneously to achieve the best results.
Individual DBT Therapy
A DBT Skills Group
DBT Phone Coaching
Individual Therapy:
You meet with your therapist once a week - or as frequently as needed - and during these treatment sessions, your therapist will help you work through the components of mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness, in order to achieve your treatment goals. The therapist provides a safe and encouraging space for you to progress.
Above all else, individual DBT therapy is focused on reducing or eliminating life-threatening behaviors (suicide attempts, self-harm, etc). Your therapist will also address specific behaviors that interfere with your ability to progress in therapy (not completing therapy homework, being late to the sessions), and behaviors that interfere with the quality of life you desire (struggles with anxiety, addiction, impulsive behaviors, etc). Your therapist will create a treatment plan with you and help you to achieve the life you want and deserve.
You can book an Individual Therapy appointment with one of our trained therapists at Your Journey Through today.
DBT Skills Group
DBT is often held in a group format, due to its focus on interpersonal effectiveness as a core component of treatment. The group setting allows for members to practice social skills and appropriate relational skills with one another.
DBT groups are led by qualified mental health professionals. Trained therapists guide you in learning more about yourself and improving the way you feel, as you create connections with other therapy group members who can relate to your feelings and experiences.
A DBT group would be recommended for someone struggling with intense emotions, impulsive behavior, and interpersonal challenges. The evidence-based approach of DBT helps individuals explore and manage their feelings and behaviors in a healthy and productive manner, and to achieve more success at school, work, home, and in their relationships.
At Your Journey Through, we offer a DBT Skills Group for residents of North Carolina.
Phone Coaching
Phone coaching is a form of therapy that allows you to receive support between sessions. It helps reinforce the DBT skills learned and how you can use them in situations outside of therapy. Calls may also focus on how to get through a crisis. You can access your therapist if you are feeling overwhelmed, need support, are at your wit’s end, or are at risk of harming yourself. Phone coaching is a form of supplemental DBT-focused support for clients.
DBT Therapist Consultation Teams
DBT therapists work in teams. They meet on a regular basis to provide feedback to each other, working to provide the most effective therapy to their clients, helping one another, and managing the high stress and potential burnout of treating clients at high risk of suicide. They want to provide the best support for you, which means they need to have a support team as well.
What does DBT hope to achieve?
Understanding and acceptance of your feelings
The provision of skills to help manage those feelings
A reduction in impulsive and maladaptive behavior patterns
An awareness of your impact on others socially
The ability to facilitate positive change in your life
What are the results?
DBT and its efficacy has been studied for many years now. Research has supported the effectiveness of DBT, indicating positive treatment outcomes including:
Long-term reduction in self-harm
Enhanced recovery from suicidal thoughts and behaviors
Reduction in depression and anxiety symptoms
Reduction in impulsive and addictive behaviors
Reduction in symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder
DBT is more likely to work for you if:
You're committed to making positive changes in yourself
You're ready to work hard at therapy and do homework assignments
You are prepared to be vulnerable in front of others, or willing to try to be
You're ready to focus mostly on your present and future
You are open to receiving group therapy
Teen DBT Skills Group in Raleigh, NC
Many of our teen clients come to therapy because they are struggling with anxiety, depression, behavior problems, difficult family dynamics, school stress, social life challenges, trauma, grief, gender identity exploration, substance use, and/or low self-esteem.
For this reason, we have started offering a Teen DBT Skills Group at our Raleigh, NC therapy office in addition to offering Individual DBT Therapy.
You can apply for our DBT group HERE.
Our teen therapists in Raleigh and Wake Forest are relatable and engaging, providing a safe space for clients to explore their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. We offer after-school appointment hours as well as virtual therapy appointments, to help make therapy convenient for the teens we work with.
You can learn more about Dialectical Behavior Therapy on our website, as well as book an appointment with a therapist by clicking the button below.
