When confronted with emotional situations in a romantic, friendly, or familial relationship, some people tend to react in an intense manner. Such people get worked up easily compared to a normal individual, attain a higher arousal level, and also take longer to return to their normal selves. Some of people are diagnosed with a mental disorder, like borderline personality disorder, and need the assistance of psychotherapies to help them control their emotions.
Dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) is a kind of a psychotherapy that concentrates on the psychosocial aspects of a mental health or addiction treatment program. It is a talk therapy and uses the cognitive behavioral approach. DBT empowers patients with novel skills to process their strong emotions and reduce clashes in relationships. It explicitly emphasizes on offering therapeutic abilities in four core domains:
- Mindfulness – Mindfulness helps an individual to be present in the existing moment and accept it.
- Distress tolerance – Distress tolerance helps an individual increase their threshold for tolerating a negative emotion, rather than escaping from it.
- Emotion regulation – This technique makes use of strategies geared towards coping with emotions and altering intense emotions which may be interfering with the general functioning of an individual.
- Interpersonal effectiveness – This approach uses techniques that help an individual communicate effectively with others in self-respecting and assertive ways, maintain boundaries, yet, strengthen the relationship.
When is DBT used?
Originally DBT was introduced for the management of borderline personality disorder (BPD). However, emerging data has established that it is an effective treatment modality for managing depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), bipolar disorder, bulimia, binge-eating, and substance abuse.
DBT skills can assist those who wish to improve their capability to control emotions, endure suffering and negative feelings, be mindful and present in the current scenario, and connect and interact efficiently with others.
What to expect from DBT?
Treatment with DBT comprises DBT skill groups and individual therapy sessions. The individual therapy sessions include a one-on-one interaction with a qualified psychotherapist, ascertaining that all the therapeutic needs of the patient are met. The psychotherapist helps the patient stay inspired, use the DBT skills on a day-to-day basis, and address problems that might develop while the treatment is still on.
During DBT skill group sessions, participants practice skills and learn along with the others in the group. The group participants are encouraged to share their stories and extend mutual support. A trained therapist who teaches skills and organizes exercises heads one of these groups. The group members are also assigned homework like practicing mindfulness techniques.
The group members usually meet on a weekly basis for approximately two hours. Depending on the needs of the group participants, these groups may be large or small. Therapists use different ways to deliver DBT. For example, some people might be asked to attend the weekly sessions without the one-on-one classes, whereas some might attend the individual classes without attending the group classes.
How does DBT work?
In the 1980s, Dr. Marsha Linehan introduced DBT as a cognitive-behavioral treatment therapy for the management of symptoms in people grappling with BPD. People diagnosed with BPD often struggle with excessively penetrating negative emotions that are challenging to handle. These extreme and apparently irrepressible negative emotions surface when an individual is interacting with friends, relatives, or romantic partners. People dealing with BPD have to struggle with extreme conflict in their relationships.
DBT is based on the principle of balancing the opposites. During DBT sessions, a psychotherapist consistently strives to achieve balance between two opposite perspectives, promoting balance and evading the thinking styles based on the all-or-nothing pattern. DBT endorses a both- point of view, without considering the either- or point of view. It is about acceptance and change.
DBT through Invictus Health Group
The Invictus Health Group is associated with multiple behavioral health centers in the United States that offer services for the treatment of mental disorders and addiction issues.
Our network centers are staffed with skilled mental health professionals who conduct a thorough evaluation of each patient at the time of admission. Based on these initial assessments, a personalized treatment plan is created which conforms to the individual needs of a patient. The specialists offering CBT ensure that the patient shows progress on a continuous basis and also focuses on their complete mental health recovery. Call our 24/7 helpline (866) 548-0190 or chat online with our counselor for more information about the various treatment modalities offered at our network facilities.
