Throughout every Holiday season that I can remember, I’ve referred to to myself as Clark W. Griswold (from the movie Christmas Vacation). I always thought that was because of my love of the holiday, and the relentless pursuit of the perfect “old fashioned family Christmas.” I realized something just this morning as I was coming […]| DBT Self Help
Most of us struggle to get and maintain healthy relationships. For someone with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), it can be even more challenging. People with BPD generally feel emotions quite intensely, and that can lead to overwhelming feelings in relationships. They might also struggle with fear of abandonment, which can lead to behaviours like clinginess […]| DBT Self Help
Throughout the parts of my 44 years that I can remember, I have always tried to race to the finish line. What do I mean exactly? Let’s begin with summarizing a book report to make it look like I read the book, whilst expecting to get an A. Doing the bare minimum and expecting praise, to […]| DBT Self Help
This year my wife and I celebrated 9 years of marriage. What’s the secret? How did you steer away from divorce? Short answer, Jesus! I’m not going to spend the next few paragraphs preaching, though I could. If you’re familiar with DBT, you’re probably familiar with the spiritual component, why is important? Because to […]| DBT Self Help
About 5 years ago I started to have daily struggles with my mind. The biggest one was unmitigated distaste for myself. I had lived 39 years to this point chasing after people and things that would validate that I was good (not great mind you, just basic good). Most of the time I came off […]| DBT Self Help
Do you struggle with the sense that your life is not meaningful enough? I recently read The Sunny Nihilist: A Declaration of the Pleasure of Pointlessness, by Wendy Syfret. As she states on page 16: Then it hit me….“Who cares, one day, I’ll be dead, and no one will remember me anyway.” The sense of […]| DBT Self Help
I remember my name being called. Dr. Cliff was ready to see me. He was on rotation in the mental health clinic. And I thought, how will I explain my feelings in 15 minutes? I’ve spent the last 28 years trying to figure out who I am, and I still don’t know. Not just that, […]| DBT Self Help
We recently added a new page we’d like to draw your attention to: DBT for Providers! We know providers as well as clients come to our site to learn DBT skills and we are happy to provide that free information to all. Now we have an additional feature for mental health providers: a page […]| DBT Self Help
Aging can be difficult on the mind as well as the body. Sometimes, as we settle into our golden years, we can experience severe depression or anxiety, a cloud that won’t go away and hangs over our day-to-day activities. Whatever the specific reasoning for this feeling, or even if the reasons change day by day, that cloud is still up there – and you probably feel like you’re going to struggle to get out from under it.| DBT Self Help
The facts of any given situation aren’t necessarily what causes us distress. It is more often our interpretation of the situation or thoughts or emotions related to it that cause the upsetting emotions we experience as distress. An event happens and we start having thoughts and feelings about it, which sometimes can warp our memory of the original facts of the situation. | DBT Self Help
Dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) is a form of psychotherapy designed to help you better manage your emotions and thoughts so you can lead a healthier, happier life. By blending modern Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) with Zen Buddhism, DBT practitioners can help you understand the source of your stress and empower you to make productive changes.| DBT Self Help
Distress Tolerance skills are a set of Dialectical Behavioral Therapy skills that are strategies to help you get though difficult feelings and situations, and tolerate (deal with, sit with, accept) the things that you can’t immediately change. Emotions can be extreme and lead to behaviors that are ineffective. You may not be able to change the stressful situation you’re in, but you can change the way you feel. Distress Tolerance skills are aimed to make your response to distress more...| DBT Self Help
There’s no question: the last few years have been challenging. We’ve experienced the worst global pandemic in modern history. We’ve seen empty store shelves and lived under the threat of a worldwide recession. We’ve faced soaring inflation at home and the outbreak of brutal warfare abroad.| DBT Self Help
