Learning Center - DBT Therapy Training

DBT Treatment - Getting Started

If you're new to Dialectical Behavior Therapy, commonly known as DBT, and interested in trying to learn it on your own, you will find a good deal of valuable resources here.  We've structured most of the material in the Learning Center section as lessons with discussions, tools, exercises and practice assignments to make self-learning as easy as possible.  Bear in mind, though, that none of this has been written by DBT professionals, only people who have been learning and using these skills in their own lives. If you already understand DBT, or are a DBT professional and are interested in contributing to the site, don't hesitate to contact us via out Contact Us link.

If you do choose to try the self-study approach, take your time.  I'd suggest reading through each section in the DBT Learning area of this site no faster than one or two sections per week.  Feel free to print out the material using the print button to the right of every section title on the site, or stop by as often as you'd like to reread the section.  Our Links section has additional resources to learn about these skills and tools.  I strongly recommend the dbtselfhelp.com web site, which has DBT lessons, worksheets and a wide array of supplemental information.. You might also want to consider buying a book on DBT from your local bookstore or through our truerecovery store. 

As you begin the lessons, please stop in to the Discussion Forum and introduce yourself by posting a little bit about yourself and what you hope to gain from this site. Don't underestimate the value of sharing your own thoughts or questions with others, we present a lot of difficult concepts here and we really do enjoy thinking through the challenges you're having and supporting you as you go.  Make use of the Discussion Forum to ask questions and share experiences with others.

We also have a Community set up for anyone who wants to connect with others learning about DBT.  So stop in, and see if anyone else it there. If not, try the discussion forum.

DBT through professionals is not simply a class or psychiatric approach.  If and when you feel you would like to learn DBT from a professional, you will benefit a great deal from the experience.  DBT professionals often require at least a one year commitment, which includes DBT training classes in a group setting supplemented by individual therapy (generally weekly) with a psychologist trained (and certified) in DBT.  Some psychiatric facilities do offer in-patient DBT training and recovery programs if that suits your needs. To most, this is not only a wonderfully enriching experience, but a very effective way to learn the skills.

At the outset of the skills training, DBT instructors lay a foundation, called "Mindfulness".  These are skills used to retrain your mind, unlearn bad habits and compulsions, replace them with the more constructive skills learned in the modules.  Mindfulness, basically, provides you the tools necessary to take back control of your own mind.  Mindfulness skills are also laced throughout each of the three DBT "modules":

• Distress Tolerance - Which teaches how to deal with stress while you're in it.  For example, when an Alcoholic feels compelled to drink, or a compulsive gambler has the "need" to gamble.  Distress Tolerance provides some fantastic tools to use to get you through the moment.


• Emotion Regulation - During this DBT module, instructors teach you how to keep your emotional state steady and "take care of yourself", which will reduce the likelihood of reaching distress.  How can that over eater avoid that uncontrollable urge to binge?


• Interpersonal Effectiveness - This module provides some very useful insight, skills and tools to use to improve the way you communicate with others.  This can include family members, co workers, and people on the street.

Unfortunately, many of the skills training courses focus on patients with a BPD diagnosis.  However, many psychiatric facilities and rehabilitation centers are beginning to use DBT skills training to address substance abuse, gambling, over eating, compulsive shopping, and many others.  The easiest way to find a DBT certified therapist is to check the Database at BehavioralTech.  Or, interview therapists in your area to see how familiar they are with DBT.  If they claim to understand DBT, ask a few pointed questions about DBT to probe a little deeper.

For the skills training, again, we recommend finding a DBT skills training group in your area.  There are some DBT-based programs focused on the "recovery" community.  For example, GamPro in New York offers a DBT skills program for the Compulsive Gambler.  In our web links section, we provide a list of web links to DBT-based recovery programs we know about.  If you are aware of another program, please let us know and we'll provide a link to the site.  If you are unable to find a DBT skills training program in your area, that will accept you there are several other ways to learn the DBT skills.  BehavioralTech provides an on-line DBT training program.  In addition there are several websites, including this one, which provide information about DBT.  We list many of these sites in our web links section.  You can try to learn the skills on your own by reading some of the books on our suggested reading list as well.

When you're ready to begin go to:  Section 1 - Interpersonal Communication Skills (EJECT model)