DBT skills group participants learn and practice skills alongside others. Groups are led by a trained therapist teaching skills and leading exercises. The group members are then assigned homework, such as practicing mindfulness exercises. Each group session lasts approximately two hours, and groups typically meet weekly for six months. Groups can be shorter or longer, depending on the needs of the group members.
Adult DBT Group: The Adult DBT skills training group focuses on teaching four core skills modules (Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Emotion Regulation, and Interpersonal Effectiveness). Groupmembers learn these skills and apply them to address problem behaviors on a weekly basis through practice assignments and individual psychotherapy. Groupmembers are encouraged to apply relevant skills to areas that are important to them with the ultimate goal of increasing mastery and efficacy in the skills while working on making life worth living. Group is constructed by therapists and group members in such a way to provide a supportive and nurturing environment for changing behaviors. The groups typically consist of 2-8 members and meets weekly for 2 hours.
Teen DBT Group: The Teen DBT skills training group focuses on teaching adolescents and their caregivers four core skills modules (Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Emotion Regulation, and Interpersonal Effectiveness). Caregivers and teens learn these skills side-by-side and are able to apply them to address problem behaviors on a weekly basis through practice assignments. Teens and caregivers are encouraged to apply relevant skills to areas that are important to them with the ultimate goal of increasing mastery and efficacy in the skills. By having caregivers learn these skills alongside their teen, caregivers can encourage teens to use more effective strategies to cope with difficult experiences and provide a more supportive environment for changing behaviors. The groups typically consist of 2-8 families and meet for 2 hours once a week.
Family Connections Group: The Family Connections skills training group provides supplemental teaching for loved ones of individuals in DBT. Group members learn the same four core skills modules (Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Emotion Regulation, and Interpersonal Effectiveness) as their loved one in individual therapy. A goal of Family Connections is to provide a “common language” for the group members and their loved ones in order to provide a supportive and effective environment for growth and change. The groups typically consist of 2-8 families and meet for 2 hours once a week.
Social Anxiety Group: The social anxiety group meets weekly for a period of two hours. Twice a month, the group meets via tele-health and discusses the biological, psychological, and social components of social anxiety. In these meetings, a cognitive behavioral approach is utilized to provide clients with knowledge and skills to help them overcome challenges they have faced with their anxiety. In these group sessions, clients are encouraged to develop an understanding of the personal situations which cause them anxiety and become willing to face these situations with the guidance of their therapist. The remaining two sessions a month are spent in social environments, wherein clients and the therapist participate in exposure therapy, which gently and gradually over time, expose the clients to the situations that cause the greatest anxiety. Together with the help of the group and the therapist, clients will learn to utilize the coping strategies and skills they have learned in group therapy and overcome the situations which were once paralyzing for them.
Latency Age DBT Group: The Latency Age DBT skills training group focuses on teaching children (7-12 yrs old) and their caregivers four core skills modules (Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Emotion Regulation, and Interpersonal Effectiveness). Caregivers and children learn these skills side-by-side and are able to apply them to address problem behaviors on a weekly basis through practice assignments. Children and caregivers are encouraged to apply relevant skills to areas that are important to them with the ultimate goal of increasing mastery and efficacy in the skills. By having caregivers learn these skills alongside their child, caregivers can encourage them to use more effective strategies to cope with difficult experiences and provide a more supportive environment for changing behaviors. The groups typically consist of 2-8 families and meet for 2 hours once a week.
Are you having a difficult time handling the struggles in your life?
Could you use a non-judgemental ear to listen, somebody who really understands what you’re going through?
Do you really need to talk to somebody, but you don’t know who would be willing to listen?
Do you wish you had more of a sense of community in your life, instead of feeling alone?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then dialectical behavior therapy could be the solution you’ve been seeking. DBT therapy differs from many alternative therapy methods in that it is goal oriented and teaches you specific skills and techniques to help manage stress and improve your life.
If you’ve been feeling hopeless or alone lately, or struggling with a problem in your life that feels unsurmountable, group therapy as part of DBT therapy could help you improve your everyday life.
Group therapy helps you find a sense of community with others who are going through similar things as you while giving you access to valuable therapy that can truly help you feel better.
So if any of these sound like you…
- You keep worrying about the same problem over and over
- You want to stop feeling so alone in what you’re going through
- You wish you felt more understood by others
- You’re looking for expert help improving your life
…Then group therapy within the DBT structure could be right for you
Group therapy’s effectiveness lies in its ability to help you find connections with other people and their experiences. These therapist-guided sessions will help you learn more about yourself and how to improve the way you feel while feeling support from others who understand your experience.
If you’re looking for help in improving your everyday life – you may be a great fit for our dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) program. Please reach out to us today for an assessment for DBT therapy or to schedule your first appointment.
