Creative, practical psychotherapy that promotes resilience
and helps you build the life you imagine
Lauren Gonzalez, MA, MFA, LMFT
Licensed in New York, California, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania
DBT Skills Classes
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) can help you better manage your emotions and relationships to live the life you want.
DBT involves four distinct "modules," or groups of thematically-related classes, to complete the program: Core Mindfulness, Emotion Regulation, Distress Tolerance, and Interpersonal Effectiveness. My program adheres to Dr. Marsha Linehan's DBT structure, an evidence-based treatment created at the University of Washington.
DBT is effective for moderate to severe emotion dysregulation and symptoms associated with Borderline Personality Disorder, although you do not need to have a diagnosis to benefit from DBT. Many with anxiety and depression and other mood disorders have gained emotional confidence from learning the DBT skills as a means of coping.
**DBT Skills Groups
**I am not offering DBT skills classes for teens or adults in New Jersey at this time. I highly recommend Dena Tartaro, LSW, for DBT skills classes in South Jersey. Dena has Foundational training in DBT, and runs an Adult DBT program Tuesday nights from 6:00-7:30pm in her Somers Point office.
Please contact her directly, via the blue link above, regarding dates, times, and setting up your initial conversation so that you may begin your healing journey through DBT.
Below, please find a description of the four modules you will study in DBT:
Core Mindfulness
Learn the core skills that teach you to observe your emotions so as to better manage them, rather than getting caught up and reacting from an emotional mindset.
Book: You will use Dr. Marsha Linehan's Second Edition of the DBT Skills Training Manual (Handouts and Worksheets, spiral bound). We use the same book for all four modules.
Distress Tolerance
This experiential module focuses on DBT skills you can use to manage difficult emotions without making them worse. I commonly hear people say, I know I'm sad (angry, scared, etc) I just don't know what to do about it! This module is about helping you learn and practice the things you can do to regain balance and a sense of control. We also look at techniques for managing difficult emotions around situations you can't change or control.
In this module you will learn to create a "self care kit" you can use for years to come.
Emotion Regulation, Part I
This is the core of DBT, where we focus on decreasing the frequency of your unwanted emotions, while also helping you understand why they are there (and, which emotion you're actually feeling), and what they are telling you. We will also work on decreasing your emotional vulnerability and reducing the amount of time you spend thinking about and managing extreme emotions.
Part II, to follow, continues the module for a final five weeks (Note: Part I is required to take Part II unless you have taken prior DBT skills classes elsewhere).
Book: You will use Dr. Marsha Linehan's Second Edition of the DBT Skills Training Manual (Handouts and Worksheets, spiral bound). We use the same book for all four modules.
Emotion Regulation, Part II
This is a continuation of the core of DBT, where we focus on decreasing the frequency of your unwanted emotions, while also helping you understand why they are there (and, which emotion you're actually feeling), and what they are telling you. We will also work on decreasing your emotional vulnerability and reducing the amount of time you spend thinking about and managing extreme emotions.
Note: Part I is required to take Part II unless you have taken prior DBT skills classes elsewhere.
Book: You will use Dr. Marsha Linehan's Second Edition of the DBT Skills Training Manual (Handouts and Worksheets, spiral bound). We use the same book for all four modules.
Interpersonal Effectiveness
Managing emotions is difficult enough, then add family, relationships, spouses, friends, co-workers into the mix and life can get pretty challenging. This module is where you take all you've learned into DBT (if you have taken prior modules) out into the world to more effectively communicate with the people in your life and to skillfully influence change in all relationships.
We will practice specific techniques that can help you ask for difficult things, and draw limits when you tend to give too much of yourself away. This module also focuses on self-talk, and treating yourself with more respect and kindness.
Book: You will use Dr. Marsha Linehan's Second Edition of the DBT Skills Training Manual (Handouts and Worksheets, spiral bound). We use the same book for all four modules.
