What is DBT?
Do your emotions go from 0 to 100 in seconds, leaving you and the people around you exhausted? Dialectical Behaviour Therapy was developed by Dr. Marsha Linehan for people who feel emotions very intensely. "Dialectical" means holding two truths together: accepting yourself as you are, and working to change.
How DBT works
DBT teaches four practical skill sets:
- Mindfulness — noticing thoughts and feelings without being swept away
- Distress tolerance — surviving a crisis without making it worse (e.g. the TIPP skills)
- Emotion regulation — understanding and calming intense emotions
- Interpersonal effectiveness — asking for what you need and saying no while keeping relationships healthy
How DBT is effective for mental health disorders
- Borderline personality disorder: DBT is the most researched treatment for BPD and consistently reduces self-harm, suicidal behaviour, anger and hospital visits.
- Self-harm and suicidal urges: strong evidence for reducing repeated self-harm in adults and adolescents.
- Emotion dysregulation with depression, eating disorders (binge eating, bulimia), substance use and PTSD: DBT skills reduce impulsive coping.
- Teenagers: DBT for adolescents (with parents) reduces self-harm and family conflict.
Who can benefit
People who feel emotions too strongly, act impulsively when upset, have stormy relationships or struggle with self-harm urges.
What to expect
Individual therapy plus skills practice, typically over 6–12 months, with a personal safety plan and diary cards to track emotions and urges.
How Mind Detox Centre delivers DBT
Dr. Rabya combines individual DBT sessions with structured skills teaching, crisis planning and family guidance, adapted to your age and needs.
Frequently asked questions
Is DBT only for borderline personality disorder?
No. It helps anyone with intense emotions, impulsivity or self-harm urges.
How is DBT different from CBT?
DBT adds acceptance, mindfulness and crisis skills to the change strategies of CBT.