Published December 2024. Haven’s DBT program has moved on since this was written — group times, session fees and insurance participation now live on the service pages linked below, which are kept current. The account of DBT itself still stands.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is a highly effective, evidence-based treatment designed to help individuals manage intense emotions, improve relationships, and reduce harmful behaviors. Initially developed in the 1980s by Dr. Marsha Linehan to treat individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD), DBT has expanded its applications to treat a wide range of mental health challenges, including anxiety, depression, self-harm, and disordered eating. Haven Psychology Group offers a comprehensive DBT program combining individual therapy, DBT skills groups, phone coaching, and a weekly consultation team, with family involvement where it is clinically indicated.
What is DBT?
DBT integrates principles from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) with mindfulness and acceptance strategies to help individuals develop skills to manage emotions, improve interpersonal relationships, and live more balanced lives. Unlike traditional therapies, DBT focuses on balancing acceptance (mindfulness, validation) with change (behavioral strategies, problem-solving). It emphasizes the importance of finding a middle path between seemingly opposing forces—a dialectic—such as accepting oneself while striving for improvement. The therapy has proven effective in treating various mental health issues, including:
- Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)
- Emotion Dysregulation
- Suicidal Ideation and Self-Harm
- Anxiety and Depression
- Unstable Relationships
Core Components of DBT
DBT is composed of four primary components that work together to offer a comprehensive therapeutic approach:
1. Individual Therapy
Personalized sessions that focus on specific challenges, emotional regulation, and goal setting. These sessions complement the skills learned in DBT skills groups, focusing on issues like relationship conflicts or overwhelming emotions.
2. DBT Skills Groups
A structured 24-week class where participants learn essential DBT skills:
- Mindfulness: Staying present in the moment and non-judgmentally observing thoughts and feelings.
- Distress Tolerance: Coping with crises without making them worse.
- Emotion Regulation: Learning to understand and manage intense emotions.
- Interpersonal Effectiveness: Developing assertive communication and healthy relationships.
3. Phone Coaching
Between-session support that helps clients apply DBT skills to real-life situations. Phone coaching ensures that clients receive immediate guidance in moments of distress or crisis, promoting ongoing skill development and emotional mastery.
4. Consultation Team
Behind the scenes, DBT therapists meet weekly with a consultation team to ensure they adhere to DBT principles, providing the highest quality of care. This collaboration helps prevent burnout and ensures that clients are receiving the best possible treatment.
Why DBT Works
DBT’s success lies in its unique approach, which includes:
- Empowering clients to take control of their lives by providing practical skills for managing emotions and behaviors.
- Effectiveness for individuals who have not responded to traditional therapies, particularly those dealing with chronic emotional dysregulation or high-risk behaviors.
- A focus on both acceptance and change, helping individuals navigate their emotional experiences while striving for healthier behaviors.
Research has shown that DBT significantly improves symptoms of depression, anxiety, self-harm, and relational difficulties, providing clients with a path to stability and well-being.
DBT at Haven Psychology Group
Haven runs comprehensive DBT with separate teen and adult skills-group tracks, delivered by telehealth. Telehealth follows your location rather than ours, so whether Haven can see you depends on the state you will be physically in during sessions — check yours before you book.
Current group days and times are kept on the comprehensive DBT page rather than repeated here, so there is one place to look and one place to change them. That page also sets out what comprehensive DBT includes, and when a skills group on its own is the right fit — including for people who already have an individual therapist elsewhere.
Insurance and fees
Insurance participation at Haven belongs to the individual clinician rather than to the practice as a whole, and session rates vary by clinician and service. Both are kept current on the fees and insurance page, which sets out who participates with which plan and what each service costs. Superbills are available for out-of-network reimbursement.
Taking a first step
A free 15-minute consultation is available whenever you would like one, and is never required. If you already know which clinician you would like to see, Haven’s administrator can confirm the practical details and book you directly. Ask a question or request a consultation whenever you are ready.