HOW DOES DBT WORK?

The Core Elements Of DBT

A comprehensive DBT program always work towards providing a holistic approach to help individuals struggling with emotional dysregulation.

A Path Forward with Four Core Elements

Dialectical Behavior Therapy is designed to be a relatively short-term treatment that provides a structured path forward by relying on the following four core elements: Weekly Individual Therapy One-on-one sessions with a therapist to assist clients in setting their goals, identifying the skills needed to reach the goals, and learning how to apply those skills in real life situations.

One of the key tools in DBT is a “diary card” that clients use to track their symptoms, moods, thoughts, and behaviors so that they and their therapist can identify patterns. Therapists use “diary cards” to help prioritize session time, creating a hierarchy of items that need to be addressed in order to achieve a client’s goals in the most efficient manner. The hierarchy sets the agenda for each session. This structured approach differs dramatically from traditional “talk therapy,” which typically involves open-ended discussions that can vary in focus from session to session depending on whatever is top of mind for the client.

Weekly DBT Skills Training Group

Weekly DBT Skills Training Group Group sessions resemble a class in which skills are taught and homework assigned. The skills are divided into four core modules—mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness. The insights and strategies gained in these sessions will be reinforced in individual therapy so that they can be effectively applied in day-to-day life.

Phone Coaching Between Therapy Sessions

Phone Coaching Your therapist will be available to you between sessions via phone calls, texts, or other forms of electronic communication. This type of ongoing support is designed to help clients apply the skills they’re learning when they need them most—in their daily life outside of therapy sessions.

Therapist Participation in DBT

Therapist Participation in DBT Consultation Team A team of DBT therapists meet weekly to help each other adhere to DBT principles, hone their skills, and improve their motivation so that they can best serve their clients. Participation in a consultation team is required of all DBT therapists. These teams are often referred to as “therapy for
therapists.” The approach is a key element of DBT, ensuring that no therapist works in isolation. The idea is to have a community of therapists treat a community of clients.

Core Functions

A comprehensive DBT program always works toward the following functions:

Skill Acquisition Learn new psychological, emotional and social/relationship skills.

Skill Generalization Apply the skills learned in therapy to daily life.
Motivation InstilI the motivation to change and identify alternatives to repetitive cycles that undermine a client’s goals.

Structure the social and family environment Encourage positive behaviors and discourage negative influences by adapting surroundings and embracing self advocacy.

To bolster the skills and motivation of DBT providers, support teams are utilized to encourage therapists, foster skill development, and prevent burnout.

Alternative Option:The Emotion Fitness Program

The Emotion Fitness Program (EFP) is an a-la-carte treatment plan curated by The Counseling Center Group™ for clients who do not need a full DBT program but would benefit from learning specific skills and/or aspects of DBT. Our therapists tailor the EFP to suit the needs of individual clients—kids and adults—with the broader goal of helping them improve their relationships and boost their Emotion Quotient (EQ), which is the measure of emotional intelligence. Enriching your emotional intelligence can increase your happiness, resilience and optimism. It can enhance your work performance and leadership skills, instill kindness, and improve the quality of relationships.

The EFP concentrates on developing the following five core domains:

Self Awareness Observe your internal state, preferences, resources and intuitions.
Self Regulation Curb your impulses and harness your resources.
Motivation Identify emotional tendencies that influence or help you reach your goals.
Empathy Register the feelings, needs, and concerns of others.
Social Skills Foster skills that prompt desirable responses from others.

Effective Tools Compilation: Your Personalized EFP

Your individualized EFP will borrow skills and exercises from numerous
sources—everything from DBT methods to the Buddhist philosophies of spiritual
leaders, the principles of Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) therapy and the Gottman Method of couples counseling. Think of EFP as a compilation of “The Greatest Hits of Effective Tools.”

The competencies developed through an EFP are designed to help clients boost their self-confidence, tackle obstacles, improve motivation, influence the actions of others, and think conceptually and analytically. An EFP can include one or some of the following components:

Group Therapy
Individual Therapy
Parent Coaching
Parent Skills Group

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