Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, or (DBT), is a skills training therapy.
The focus of the therapy is to learn, and practice skills which teach us how to;
- get through the day
- tolerate distressing people, places, things
- step back from those things which trigger us until we have enough 'distance' from them to look at them accurately
- identify our boundaries and learn how to protect them
- learn how to increase our personal effectiveness with other people to build our support network while protecting our boundaries
You are presented with an idea, and several different skills that could be used to handle it. You get to choose which skills you think will work for you. Free choice there. You don't have to use any of them...but the people who are doing better are the ones who are practicing them.
The skills need practice, practice, practice, both when we are distressed and especially when we are not.
I'm finding I get about one 'nugget' I can use each session, but it is WORKING for me.
Just learning and now using a few decent skills I didn't have before is making such a difference in managing my PTSD fallout symptoms.
I've been in DBT for about 7 months (I *think*)...and am about 1/2 through.