Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is a third wave form of behavioral therapy geared towards individuals with persistent emotion dysregulation, and/or mental health challenges.
DBT’s approach to therapy is helpful for those struggling with feelings of distress, difficulty in regulating everyday emotions, challenging relationships, and for some, urges to self-harm. DBT is comprised of four main sections: mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal skills. With the goal of learning to build a life worth living, DBT takes a practical, yet personal, approach to behavior change that empowers individuals to transform even the hardest of life’s circumstances.
Daily Homework (Diary Card)
Phone Coaching
Emotion Regulation Skills
Distress Tolerance Skills
Interpersonal Effectiveness Skills
Mindfulness Skills
DBT programs are typically comprised of 1-2x/week 50 minute individual sessions, and 1x/week 90 minute group sessions. Both elements can be done either in person or virtually.
DBT treatment focuses on building a life worth living, and can be helpful for those struggling with emotion dysregulation, depression, significant anxiety, OCD, neurodivergence, ADHD, or borderline personality. Individual sessions are “an inch wide and a mile deep,” diving into each client’s specific patterns of emotions, relationships, mental health struggles, and/or trauma. Group sessions are “a mile wide and inch deep,” covering the breadth of DBT skills that patients use between sessions to attain treatment related goals. Individual and group therapy goals are recorded on a diary card that is discussed weekly with an individual therapist in session; and phone coaching is used as needed to help each patient truly create the change they are striving for in their every day lives. Many participants of full DBT programs find it to be transformative.
DBT is a third-wave, evidence-based approach for individuals with significant life difficulties and/or emotion dysregulation, built around mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness.
People struggling with persistent distress, toxic relationships, suicidality, or other intense, hard-to-manage emotions.
Daily homework (diary cards), phone coaching, and skills training in emotion regulation, distress tolerance, interpersonal effectiveness, and mindfulness.
Both — DBT skills can be part of individual therapy, and the practice also runs a dedicated weekly DBT skills group.
It’s a daily tracking tool clients use between sessions to monitor emotions, urges, and skill use, which helps guide the focus of therapy sessions.
Yes, phone coaching is offered as part of the DBT approach to help clients apply skills in real time between sessions.
To help clients build “a life worth living” through practical, personal behavior change, even around the hardest life circumstances.
Call 646-494-2653, complete the contact form, or schedule a free consult call — you can pursue individual DBT-informed therapy or join the weekly DBT group.
To schedule with a member of our team, complete the following form and we will reach out within 24 business hours to schedule your first session.
If you’d like to book on your own, click the yellow box in the bottom left corner to schedule via ZocDoc.
