DBT Skills List

Learning to be mindful will help you calm yourself down and apply the skills more effectively. It is paramount to your success in reducing stress and in returning to a more compassionate, wise state of mind. Remember: Sometimes the skills are not about change and more about, managing the situation in the moment. This is when you need to apply a Distress Tolerance skill, which might include practicing radical acceptance, taking a "brief" vacation from the situation that you are in, doing self-soothing skills, and/or applying distraction activities. Other times, we do want to change our emotional reactions by implementing emotional regulation skills such as acting opposite to the urges. Or using interpersonal effectiveness skills to ask others to better support you. The key to success is to practice DBT skills daily. Overview of DBT skills (4 basic modules)

DBT Skills Modules

Core Mindfulness - being present and non-judgmentally aware in the moment
Distress Tolerance - managing difficult feelings without acting impulsively
Emotion Regulation - learning to skillfully use or change emotions
Interpersonal Effectiveness - relating skillfully with others

1. MINDFULNESS (Wise Mind)

Using the What Skills:

Observe

Describe

Participate

Using the How Skills:

Non-judgmentally

One-mindfully

Effectively

2. INTERPERSONAL EFFECTIVENESS

Using Objectiveness effectiveness: (Dear Man)

D Describe

E Express

A Assert

R Reinforce

M Mindful

A Appear Confident

N Negotiate

Using Relationship Effectiveness: (Give)

G Gentle

I Interested

V Validate

E Easy Manner

Self-respect effectiveness: (Fast)

F Fair

A Apologies (no Apologies)

S Stick to value

T Truthful

3. EMOTION REGULATION

Reducing Vulnerability to "Emotion Mind": (Please Master)

P & L treat Physical Illness

E balanced Eating

A Avoid mood-altering drugs

S balanced Sleep

E get Exercise

Do it with Mastery daily

Identifying and labeling emotions, understanding the function of emotions, increasing positive emotional events, increasing mindfulness to current emotions, taking opposite action, and applying distress tolerance techniques

4. DISTRESS TOLERANCE

Using Crisis Survival skills: Distraction with Wise Mind Accepts

A Activities

C Contributing

C Comparisons

E Emotions - use opposite

P Pushing Away

T Thoughts

S Sensations

Using Self-Soothe skills with the five senses:

Taste

Smell

See

Hear

Touch

Using Improve the moment:

I Imagery

M Meaning

P Prayer

R Relaxation

O One thing at a time

V Vacation

E Encouragement

Using Pros and Cons, Using Accepting Reality, Willingness/Willfulness, Turning your mind, Radical Acceptance

Adapted from Marsha Linehan's (1993) Skills Training Manual for Treating Borderline Personality Disorder. Resources from BehavioralTech