DIALECTICAL BEHAVIOURAL THERAPY – DBT
DIALECTICAL BEHAVIOURAL THERAPY – DBT

What is Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT)?

Dialectical Behavioural Therapy is the gold standard treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder. It is also used to help distressed people who regularly self- harm and make repeated suicide attempts or engage in risky behaviours.

It was developed in the 1990’s and became established as an evidenced based and effective long-term intervention. It is also highly effective when used to treat mood disorders and recovery from sexual abuse.

DBT teaches patients lifelong skills which enable them to manage their overwhelming emotions better and improves their quality of life and relationships with others.

Who benefits from DBT?

Individuals who :

  • Experience their emotions as overwhelming and as a result use negative ways to ‘dull’ the pain
  • Feel out of control
  • Find it hard to trust others
  • Feel rejected, alone, or experience devasting grief when a relationship ends
  • Are diagnosed with emotionally unstable personality disorder/borderline personality disorder

  • Self-Harm when distressed

  • Feel suicidal or make suicidal attempts.

How does it work?

DBT is a specialised intervention only delivered by a specialist clinician. It is made up of individual therapy and group skills training.

Meet with your Therapist

You are likely to meet with your therapist once or twice a week. One session is for individual therapy the second session is in a the small group where you will learn and practice necessary skills.

Telephone Contact

You will also have telephone contact with your therapist between sessions. This will help you utilise the new skills and help with everyday situations while you are still learning.

Learning to Manage

You are going to learn to manage your relationships and emotions easier. This will lead to less conflict in your personal and professional life

The skills learnt have four components and are divided into 4 modules:

  • Mindfulness

  • Emotion regulation

  • Distress Tolerance

  • Interpersonal effectiveness skills

Key Points on The Modules

DBT is not merely a psychological therapy but a life programme. Patients usually enter DBT as a treatment to prevent serious self-harm, suicide or distressing emotions. As the programme progresses, they are able to build a long-lasting effective structure to support an enriching well-being. It is without doubt that DBT has saved many lives.

Mindfulness Skills

Mindfulness means being in the present moment. When learnt it is skill that teaches us to observe oneself and the environment. When practiced effectively it allows us tolerate unpleasant emotions and sensations more easily. Mindfulness underpins all future DBT learning.

Distress Tolerance

Distress tolerance teaches the patient survival skills to use when they feel under immense emotional distress and feel the urge to act out destructively. In this module you will learn how to tolerate unpleasant emotions and situations through distraction, increased awareness and radical acceptance.

Emotional Regulation

Emotional regulation skills teach patients new ways to moderate distressed states through alternative means. These include assertiveness, cognitive restructuring, action plans, etc.. When learnt these skills greatly reduce personal and interpersonal conflict.

Interpersonal skills

This module teaches effective communication that can be used to enhance relationships and reduces stress.The active skills are introduced in the group, practiced during the week, recorded on work sheets and discussed in individual therapy.

DBT is a long-term therapy and is provided on a 12-month contract comprising of individual and group weekly sessions plus between session telephone contact. Admission to the program is following Lighthouse Psychology clinical assessment.

Treatment takes place at Waterford Lighthouse Psychology clinic.

Please contact us for further details, fees and starting dates.