What is Dialectical Behavior Therapy?
At Pivot Counseling we like to use an integrative approach to counseling, by using various theories so that each client can benefit from an array of perspectives and approaches on their path for success.
What is DBT?
One school of approach to counseling is Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). DBT helps clients through a combination of talk and behavioral therapy. DBT provides clients with new skills to manage painful emotions and decrease conflict in relationships, and specifically focuses on providing therapeutic skills in four key areas: mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness.
DBT is used successfully to treat clients experiencing borderline personality disorder, depression, bulimia, binge-eating, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic-stress disorder, and substance abuse. DBT has the capability of helping those who wish to improve their ability to regulate emotions, tolerate distress and negative emotion, be mindful and present in the given moment, and communicate and interact effectively with others.
How does DBT work?
At the center, DBT is about balancing opposite perspectives. This promotes emotional regulation, and encourages the client to avoid black and white thinking which often creates a distorted perspective. For example, a client may say, “This always happens to me.” But to balance an extreme thought like “always,” a counselor would help the client help challenge their own thought process in order to more accurately reflect reality. Such as, this may have happened more than once or even frequently, but this does not mean it “always” happens, and does not mean it will continue to happen. The main goal of DBT is to encourage the client with self-acceptance and thought process change, while balancing out opposing thought processes.
If you or a loved one is struggling, Pivot Counseling Services can help. Our licensed therapist uses DBT and other evidence-based theories to assist our clients in their path to wellness.
