DBT Overview

What is Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) ?

• DBT helps people who have difficulty controlling their emotions and behaviors

• DBT aims to replace problem behaviors with skillful behaviors

• DBT helps people experience a range of emotions without necessarily acting on those emotions

• DBT skills help teens navigate relationships in their environment (family, school, peers)

• DBT helps people develop and work towards short and long term goals

What does "dialectical" mean?

Dialectical= two opposite ideas can be true at the same time, and when considered together, can create a new truth and a new way of viewing the situation. There is always more than one way to view a situation.

Example: I care about and love my brother AND when he ignores me in school it makes me really upset.

This is a dialectical situation. These two, seemingly opposing facts about the way I feel about my brother, are both true at the same time.

DBT acknowledges the many dialectics in our lives.

Example: I’m doing the best I can AND I want to be doing better.

Reference: From DBT® Skills Manual for Adolescents, by Jill H. Rathus and Alec L. Miller. Copyright 2015 by The Guilford Press.