What originally began as a treatment for Borderline Personality disorder (BPD), but has proved to be effective for the treatment of other issues such as depression and substance abuse, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), has come a long way. The word ‘dialectical’ in the name suggests that the approach is the balanced kind and the word ‘behavioral’ indicates that the therapy is directed towards certain behaviors. Pioneered in the early 1980s by Dr. Linehan to better treat clients with BPD, the theory lays emphasis on validating the feelings and thoughts of the person along with pushing for change and growth.

Extracting from the principles of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), DBT adds to its basic concepts. One way the technique does this is by adding more than one therapeutic setting for each person. Usually, the main settings include; individual therapy and group therapy. In individual therapy, the emphasis lies in solving recently faced issues, usually in the past week. The precedence is given to self-harm-related behavior, and the therapy may then move on to targeting behaviors that negatively impact the progression of therapy, encourage behaviors that improve quality of life, etc.

The group therapy sessions are approximately 2 hours in length and are led by trained DBT therapists. The focus is given on certain modules which include: interpersonal effectiveness, emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and mindfulness. In a nutshell, Interpersonal effectiveness deals with understanding one’s interpersonal relationship needs and healthy ways to meet and fulfill them, emotional regulation deals with managing the intensity with which the person feels their emotions, distress tolerance deals with improving the way the person handles life stressors, and finally, mindfulness is a skill that teaches the person how to practice living in the present. People that attend group therapy sessions are also often given exercises to work on or think over when they leave.

Considering the multiple factors that are involved in both the individual therapy sessions and the group therapy session, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy has become much more well-known. It has proven to be beneficial and adaptable for disorders that have the general theme of self-destructive behavior including, Binge-eating disorder, Bulimia, Post-traumatic Stress Disorder etc. Disorders that are not necessarily self-destructive have also benefited including ADHD, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Major depressive disorder etc.

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy is supported by scientific evidence. Participants in certain studies who had been given this treatment were less likely to attempt suicide and self-injure, and reported less anger etc. In conclusion, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy is a promising integrated form of cognitive psychotherapy that is backed up by scientific evidence and is being used and adapted by all kinds of therapists.

This article was written by Faiza Arshad, a Psychology student

References:

About Us. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://depts.washington.edu/uwbrtc/about-us/dialectical-behavior-therapy/.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/therapy-types/dialectical-behavior-therapy.

Grohol, J. M. (2019, June 19). An Overview of Dialectical Behavior Therapy. Retrieved from https://psychcentral.com/lib/an-overview-of-dialectical-behavior-therapy/.

Schimelpfening, N. (2019, October 5). What to Know About Dialectical Behavior Therapy. Retrieved from https://www.verywellmind.com/dialectical-behavior-therapy-1067402.

The Four Skill Modules. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.dbtskillsgroupnj.com/four-skill-modules/

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