Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Skills Primer
Overview
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is an evidence-based treatment for folks who struggle with emotion dysregulation. DBT is helpful for folks with high emotional sensitivity (often rapidly shifting emotions), emotional reactivity (intense emotions), and impulsivity, which sometimes lead to maladaptive behaviors such as angry outbursts, using substances, self-injuring, under/overeating, avoiding school or work, socially withdrawing, or abruptly ending relationships. Although these behaviors may temporarily reduce emotional pain, they often end up causing more problems and make it difficult to lead a life that feels meaningful and worth living. Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) asserts that these pervasive difficulties in managing emotions arise in part from skills deficits. Accordingly, one component of DBT is skills training designed to remedy those deficits and build a “tool box” of skills. In this training, we will provide a brief overview of the four DBT skills modules: Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Emotion Regulation, and Interpersonal Effectiveness. We will discuss how to integrate and prioritize these skills into your work with your clients.
Learning objectives
- Identify the 4 skill modules: mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness
- Specify what skills each module consists of, and how to practice them in your own (and therefore your clients') everyday life
- Gain fundamental knowledge of how to teach DBT skills to your clients
Professional credit
- This activity offers the following types of credit: APA
- 1.5 CEs are available.
- Additional details can be found in the activity document for this resource.