Holidays: Supporting a Loved One With an Eating Disorder

family at table

‘Tis the season when so many different holidays are being celebrated around the world. From Thanksgiving to Hanukkah, to Rosh Hashanah, to Christmas, there are so many holidays being celebrated. Most holidays have some elements in common—traditions being observed and celebrated with family and food. While this is a joyous time for many, those with … Read more

Self-Compassion

The words, "Love Yourself" on a grate surrounded by roses

Have you ever noticed the voice in your head? You know, the one that narrates everything that goes on around you? Have you ever noticed the way that voice sounds or how that voice speaks to you? A lot of people notice that their internal voice tends to be remarkably mean—the voice will say hurtful … Read more

What is DBT Skills Group?

People gathered around a table with pens and papers

A core element of dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is the DBT skills training group. Skills training groups are designed to teach individuals the DBT skills and increase their ability to solve day-to-day problems, particularly regarding emotion dysregulation. For individuals who can benefit from a comprehensive program, DBT skills group is combined with individual therapy, phone … Read more

DBT: Improve Stability and Satisfaction in Relationships

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is the “gold standard” treatment for borderline personality disorder (BPD), with accumulating evidence that DBT is also effective for a range of mental health difficulties with underlying emotion dysregulation. Although only one to two percent of the general population likely meets criteria for BPD, many individuals have difficulties regulating their emotions … Read more

The Multifamily Group Format and Why It Is Helpful

Dr. Desirae Allen, Cincinnati DBT therapist, sits in a chair

  Hey all. This is Desirae with CCDBT. I am one of the clinicians and also one of the skills trainers for our multifamily group. I wanted to take a few minutes to address a question that we often get here at CCDBT: “why is the multifamily group format helpful?” So, the goal is to … Read more

Suicide: Taking the Bull by the Horns

Bull

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is one of the relatively few evidence-based treatments that has been found to be effective at reducing suicidal ideation and behaviors. An added benefit is that the participation in DBT is associated with reducing the use of costly crisis services such as psychiatric hospitalizations and emergency room visits. In DBT, psychiatric hospitalization is avoided whenever possible. Yes, even when a client is experiencing a suicidal crisis! This is done as there is no evidence suggesting that acute inpatient hospitalization is effective at either reducing suicidal risk or treating suicidal thoughts and behaviors. In fact, there is substantial data indicating that people recently discharged from an inpatient psychiatric hospital are at an elevated risk for suicide (Chung, et al., 2017; Forte, et al., 2019).

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What to Expect If I Tell My Therapist I’m Suicidal

Signs along a fence reading "Don't give up", "You are not alone", "You matter"

If you’re reading this, it might be because you’re feeling suicidal and you’re afraid to say something to your therapist because you’re worried about how they will respond. Let me preface this blog post with this—how your therapist will respond depends on a lot of factors—everyone is different, every situation is different. With that in … Read more

Courageously Facing Fears Increases Positive Emotions

When therapeutic practices were first being developed, one of the major challenges that researchers faced was designing treatments that reliably succeeded in helping people with decreasing excessive fear and increasing positive emotional experiences. Although therapy has advanced considerably today, we recognize that evidence-based techniques to manage excessive fear and other uncomfortable emotional experiences, are sometimes … Read more

DBT for Addiction

One arm in handcuffs with the other arm breaking free from handcuffs; blue sky in the background

What is addiction? The term addiction is frequently linked to substance abuse. However, the brain doesn’t care what is causing the good feeling (chemicals, gambling, gaming, eating, sex, shopping, caffeine, etc.), it just wants more of it! Because these experiences are highly rewarding, there is a risk that they become addictive. Especially, if there is … Read more

DBT Can Strengthen Your Brain!

Plastic head with plastic brain inside

The human brain is an incredibly complex organ, and our knowledge regarding how the brain operates and functions is rapidly expanding. The more we learn about the brain, the more we realize how much influence we can have on the physical layout of our brain. The implications for this are incredibly vast—if we can treat … Read more