Using DBT Skills and Principles
In Clinical Practice

DBT Introduction for Practitioners Part 1, covers the first two of the 4 DBT Modules as developed by Marsha Linehan. They are Mindfulness and Distress Tolerance.

However, clients and practitioners can get stuck in the repeated use of Distress Tolerance skills to manage emotions, rather than as the temporary safety valve they are intended to provide.

DBT for Practitioners Part 2 teaches the next essential step in a meaningful resolution of impulsive behaviour. The Modules of Emotion Regulation and Interpersonal Effectiveness are the skills that provide clients with a true sense of agency in the world, and with it improved self-esteem.

This Part 2 Training enables practitioners to convey effectively to their clients the importance of their emotions. Clients are often overwhelmed by intense emotions that might seem out of keeping with their current situations. They are accused by those around them, of being “over sensitive” or “over reactive.” How is it possible to effectively look at the mismatch between current events and intense emotional and behavioural responses without invalidating your client’s experiences?

Relationships are difficult both for the intense emotional arousal that is evoked, and for the impact of impulsive behaviour on others, whether in families, social or work settings. The interpersonal effectiveness module offers effective strategies in very practical frameworks that clients find both accessible and validating.