What Exactly Do We Offer?
DBTeens is a Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) program. Dialectical Behavior Therapy is an evidence-based treatment created by Marsha Linehan, Ph.D., and supported by scientific research. It is a type of cognitive behavior therapy that combines acceptance and mindfulness with problem-solving strategies.
DBTeens is an adherent program, which means we offer all the components of a comprehensive DBT program. This includes individual therapy, group skills training, and a consultation group for staff members.
Our individual therapy sessions focus on targeting behaviors in this order: life-threatening behaviors, therapy-interfering behaviors, and quality of life-interfering behaviors. We also target avoidance behavior and post-traumatic stress behaviors. Individual therapy sessions are focused around the diary card, which is the behavioral tracking tool of DBT. We use behavioral chain analysis within each individual session to help clients identify patterns of behavior, better predict outcomes, and problem-solve ways to cope with emotions, thoughts, body sensations, and actions that lead to target behaviors.
Group skills sessions include clients and an adult partner, and are co-facilitated by a clinician and a skills coach. This model of skills class was developed by Drs. Miller and Rathus, and our staff have participated in an online training with these experts. Classes teach skills in the four original DBT sets: mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. We also teach “walking the middle path” skills, an additional unit created for adolescents by Drs. Miller and Rathus.
Team consult meetings are weekly staff-only meetings which ensure that our team is following DBT protocol and treating each client as effectively as possible. This team approach guarantees each client a well-developed, collaborative plan.
In addition to the core components of DBT, DBTeens offers additional support and structure to increase motivation, accountability, and compliance. We provide before-school meetings where clients electronically submit their daily plan to the program. Each plan lists obstacles which may require either skill usage or external help. We then participate in a group mindfulness exercise, and teens use guided imagery to predict skillful behavior in the areas where they may face stressors. We also offer an evening meeting, where we collect diary cards daily in order to increase compliance. Evening meetings provide further skills training, yoga, and offer self-soothing class content. The goal of evening meetings is to provide clients with both a sense of community and a way to wind down from the day. Family members of clients and all staff are welcome to attend both morning and evening meetings.
Planned skills coaching occurs twice a week. Clients talk to a skills coach about how their skill use is going, problem solving strategies, and focus on improving motivation to keep going with this difficult work.
Planned skills coaching for an adult partner occurs weekly. Skills coaches help the adult partner improve communication with their youth, problem-solve difficult situations, provide support, and offer case management around finding resources for youth.
Our program provides approximately 13 hours/week of service to a youth and adult partner. All components of the program have been developed in adherence to DBT treatment protocols. We strive for acceptance and change, and a balance between providing traditional service in an innovative way.