Healing Trauma: DBT for PTSD
70% of adults in the U.S. have experienced some type of traumatic event at least once in their lives. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition. It can develop after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event. Symptoms of PTSD typically include:
intrusive memories
flashbacks
nightmares
hyperarousal
avoidance of triggers related to the trauma
Trauma can negatively impact every aspect of your life- your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. This is where Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) comes in. DBT is an evidenced-based therapy developed by Dr. Marsha M. Linehan. DBT therapy helps you develop practical tools and strategies to navigate your emotions and cope with distress. Plus it can improve your overall well-being and has been proven effective to treat trauma and PTSD. Continue reading to learn more about DBT for PTSD and how it can help treat trauma.
How does DBT help with PTSD?
Dialectics. DBT acknowledges that you can hold seemingly opposite perspectives. For example, instead of either feeling sad or happy, you can feel both sad and happy at the same time. It focuses on balancing acceptance and change. Thus validating your experience while also encouraging growth. DBT therapy seeks to find the union (the “and”) between these views. When you have trauma, you may easily have all-or-nothing thinking, and can be really hard to “live in the ‘and’”.
Validation. Validation involves acknowledging and accepting your experiences and emotions as valid and understandable. Through validation, DBT PTD Specialists communicate empathy, understanding, and non-judgment. One of the primary goals of validation is to create a safe and supportive therapeutic environment. In order to heal from trauma, you must feel safe!
Biosocial Theory. According to this theory, emotional dysregulation develops due to an increased sensitivity to emotions. This is due to biological vulnerabilities and invalidating environments. Many traumatic experiences stem from invalidating home, work, or other environments.
Behavior change. DBT helps you replace unhealthy behaviors with more effective and helpful responses. DBT incorporates many different behavior change strategies, such as:
skills training
exposure therapy
cognitive restructuring
problem-solving.
By learning and practicing these skills, you develop new ways of coping with stress, regulating emotions, and engaging in healthy relationships. Which are all impacted by trauma.
DBT for PTSD: It really works!
Although DBT was first created to help people with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), research has shown that it also works well for treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The modified version of the DBT for PTSD workbook is designed to target the symptoms and root causes of trauma. It teaches you specific techniques to help you handle things that remind you of the trauma. As well as how to handle tolerating unpleasant emotions and developing healthier ways to cope.
Core Skills in DBT for PTSD
Mindfulness skills
Mindfullness is a foundational skill in DBT that helps you develop present-moment awareness without judgment. When you have PTSD, mindfulness techniques offer a powerful tool for managing symptoms and improving your overall well-being. Mindfulness techniques for PTSD may include guided meditation, body scans, and breathing exercises. By practicing mindfulness, you can learn how to observe your thoughts and emotions without getting swept up by distressing memories or flashbacks.
Emotion regulation skills
Emotion regulation is particularly important for treating PTSD due to how intense trauma responses can feel. Understanding why you are experiencing a feeling and learning how to manage emotions is important for improving emotional stability and reducing the impact of PTSD symptoms. Through learning DBT skills, you will be able to identify, label and understand your emotions. You will gain skills to regulate your emotions and how you respond to events.
Distress tolerance skills
Distress tolerance is essential for treatment of PTSD because it provides tools to build resilience and manage stressful situations. Coping skills specifically tailored for managing PTSD help you develop healthy and effective ways to handle overwhelming emotions, triggers, and trauma memories. These DBT skills may include grounding, self-soothing exercises, distraction strategies, and self-care practices.
Interpersonal Effectiveness:
PTSD can negatively impact your ability to create and maintain healthy relationships both personally and professionally. Interpersonal effectiveness skills taught in DBT focus on improving communication, setting boundaries, and nurturing healthy relationships. If you have PTSD, enhancing communication skills an important part of expressing needs, addressing conflicts, and seeking support. DBT provides you with concrete ways to improve active listening, effective communication, and problem-solving with anyone in your life!
DBT and other Trauma Treatments
In pursuit of finding the most effective PTSD treatment, we have found great benefit from combining DBT with other evidenced-based trauma therapies. At Embodied Wellness, PLLC, we offer these other trauma treatments that are frequently used with DBT.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) can be integrated with DBT to target traumatic memories and associated distress.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) can be used to challenge and modify negative beliefs and thoughts related to the trauma.
Somatic therapy or Somatic Experiencing (SE) can be added to increase the development of body awareness and recognize signs of fight, flight, and freeze.
Internal Family Systems (IFS) can be added to DBT online therapy to help you identify and work with different parts and “Self.”
Start DBT for PTSD in Detroit
Ready to take the first step towards healing from trauma and reclaiming your life? Discover the transformative power of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) in treating PTSD. DBT PTSD Specialists offer practical tools and strategies to navigate your emotions, cope with distress, and improve your overall well-being. With a focus on dialectics, validation, biosocial theory, and behavior change, DBT therapy provides a comprehensive approach to addressing the root causes of trauma. Explore core skills like mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. Then witness the positive impact they can have on your healing journey. Follow these steps to start combining DBT with other evidence-based trauma therapies for a holistic approach to recovery.
Start your healing at Embodied Wellness, PLLC with DBT for PTSD today.
Embrace the possibility of a brighter future.
Other Online Therapy Services We Offer Throughout Detroit & Michigan
At Embodied Wellness, PLLC we also specialize in therapy for anxiety, OCD, and depression. As well as counseling for empaths. Our online therapy services are available throughout Michigan for teenagers 12+ and adults.
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About the Author:
Sarah Rollins, LMSW, SEP is the founder of Embodied Wellness, PLLC, a group therapy practice providing online therapy in Michigan. She is passionate about expanding awareness of somatic therapy as way to treat and heal trauma. She incorporates other holistic treatments into her practice including EMDR and IFS.