Learn About DBT For a Loved One

Learn about Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and find resources for yourself if you have a loved one who might benefit from practicing DBT.

Service/Advocacy Organizations

• NAMI Family-to-Family
• BPD Family Connections

Suggested Readings

• "Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain and Illness" by Jon Kabot Zinn
• "The Mindfulness Solution for Intense Emotions" by Cedar Koons
• Helping Teens Who Cut: Using DBT® Skills to End Self-Injury by Michael Hollander
• Loving Someone with Borderline Personality Disorder: How to Keep Out-of-Control Emotions from Destroying Your Relationship by Shari Manning
• The High-Conflict Couple: A Dialectical Behavior Therapy Guide to Finding Peace, Intimacy & Validation by Allen Fruzzetti
• Don't Shoot the Dog! By Karen Pryor
• "Parenting a Teen Who Has Intense Emotions" by Pat Harvey, LCSW-C, and Britt Rathbone, LCSW-C
• Parenting a Child Who Has Intense Emotions: Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills to Help Your Child Regulate Emotional Outbursts & Aggressive Behavior by Pat Harvey & Jeanine Penzo

To hear recorded skills coaching by phone for all of these skills, please call the Mann’s Life Worth Living Line at 410-938-5060.

DBT Testimonials

“The reason I choose to use my DBT skills is because I find it helpful in life. I believe I improved because if I was still at home, I would take my anger out on my family and punch holes in the wall. Now, I just use my DBT skills to have a better outcome.” – Paul E.

“In the past six months, I have completed one session of DBT skills class. The skill that has helped me the most would be interpersonal effectiveness, because when I first got here, I had no idea how to tell my parents how upset I was so I would just lash out. Now I can use these skills to tell them how I am feeling, why, and properly cope with the situation.” – Sarah S. 

"Mindfulness and Wise Mind, being in the moment, focusing on it right then and there, using interpersonal effectiveness to handle things appropriately." – Desiree N.

"Mindfulness - thinking of something calming and soothing even though you have other worries to think of.  It's a lot easier to think of one thing at a time." – Mia V.