What Is Dialectical Behavior Therapy For Adults (DBT)?

Are you looking for emotional support to regulate thoughts and behaviors that are causing you to struggle in life? Have you tried other therapeutic approaches and feel you weren’t able to acquire the skills you needed for lasting change? Perhaps you’ve benefited from talk therapy in the past, but now you need new options to take your life to the next level.

DBT was developed in Long Island in the 1980s by Dr. Marsha Linehan. This evidence-based treatment approach teaches clients to be mindful of their lives in the present moment so they can learn to cope with stress, improve relationships with others, and self-regulate harmful behaviors such as eating disorders or substance abuse. DBT was initially intended for individuals with borderline personality disorder, but it’s also been successfully adapted for other conditions, including anxiety, depression, autism, bipolar disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

DBT counseling is a form of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT focuses on correcting faulty thoughts and beliefs to enhance one’s emotional state while DBT’s emphasis is on regulating emotions, being mindful of them, and learning how to accept and manage challenges.

DBT helps people cope with unstable emotions and harmful behaviors, such as self-harm and suicidal behaviors. Mindfulness, a key element of DBT, helps individuals achieve greater awareness of thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. As a person learns to feel their emotions and recognize how the body reacts to them, they can start to recognize sources of stress and discomfort before they become too overwhelming.

With the help of a DBT trained therapist, you can start managing your emotions and behaviors so that you can achieve the lasting healing and growth you’ve always hoped for.

How Does Dialectical Behavior Therapy Work?

DBT treatment goes beyond talk therapy by providing you with skills you can use in your daily life to manage intense emotional impulses. It allows you to become self-aware of your urges and actions so that you can learn to reduce patterns of instability that may be causing you to struggle with life and relationships.

DBT therapy for adults involves individual and group therapy sessions, skills training, and phone coaching. Both individual and group sessions aim to bring forth acceptance of self; a necessary step to facilitating lasting change. During sessions, you’ll have the opportunity to identify harmful behavioral patterns so that we can work on replacing them with healthier ones. You’ll also learn to recognize your positive strengths and use them to change thoughts and behaviors that are not working for you.

During group sessions, you’ll collaborate with a team to work on exercises, assignments, and module lessons from previous meetings. You’ll be encouraged to fill out a weekly “Diary Card” where you’ll take notes of your daily emotions and behaviors that will help us identify patterns. This is going to allow us to help you develop practical skills for effectively dealing with the challenges you’re going through. You’ll also learn to set healthier boundaries for yourself that will help you to start feeling more in control of your life and relationships.

Our Approach To Dialectical Behavior Therapy For Adults

We offer you a safe and non-judgmental environment because we know that validation is an important part of acceptance and change. Our focus is to empower you and offer hope and optimism so that you can start feeling better about yourself and your future.

During our first sessions, we’ll work on developing a rapport so you can begin feeling comfortable with sharing your feelings and struggles. In the following sessions, we’ll work on specific issues or challenges you may be facing. We’ll also discuss group therapy and the importance of a weekly commitment.

In our individual therapy sessions, we’ll work toward identifying and managing emotional trauma so you can move on from crisis situations. We’ll practice mindfulness skills that will help you to regulate emotions and impulses effectively. You’ll learn distress tolerance tools that will help you cope with crisis and higher levels of stress. Emotion regulation skills are going to help you to better understand your emotional responses, accept them, or change the particular emotion. Interpersonal effectiveness skills are going to help you improve your relationship with others by managing conflict, setting healthy boundaries, assertiveness, and improve communication.

Finally, you’ll also have the option of phone coaching sessions with your therapist if you’re feeling stuck or you need help on how to apply your new skills to real-life.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy For Adults Can Help You Live Your Best Life

The specialists at Suffolk DBT in Long Island can provide you with new skills to manage painful emotions and harmful behaviors so that you can find healing and joy. If you’re ready to improve your quality of life and relationships, we encourage you to set up a 15-minute intake appointment with our staff by calling 631-828-2264. During the call, we can assess your concerns to match you with the right therapist based on your needs.