What is DBT individual therapy?

DBT individual therapy uses the principles, skills, and strategies of Dialectical Behavior Therapy within individual therapy sessions. Treatment is tailored to the individual, with an emphasis on understanding patterns, building practical skills, and applying those skills in everyday life.

Who can benefit from DBT individual therapy?

DBT can be helpful for people who want to better manage emotions, respond differently to difficult situations, improve relationships, or change patterns of behavior that are no longer working for them. A consultation can help determine whether DBT is an appropriate approach for your goals.

What happens in a DBT therapy session?

Sessions may include identifying patterns, learning or reviewing DBT skills, examining situations that occurred between sessions, and practicing ways to respond more effectively. The focus depends on what is currently happening and what will be most useful to address in treatment.

Is DBT only for borderline personality disorder?

No. Although DBT was originally developed to treat people with borderline personality disorder, its skills and strategies can be useful for a range of concerns involving emotional regulation, relationships, coping, and behavioral patterns.

What is the difference between individual DBT and comprehensive DBT?

Individual DBT therapy focuses on using DBT principles and skills within individual sessions. Comprehensive DBT is a full treatment program that includes individual therapy, weekly skills training, between-session phone coaching, and a therapist consultation team. The appropriate level of treatment depends on the individual's needs and circumstances.

How do I know whether DBT is right for me?

You don't have to determine that on your own. During a phone consultation, we can talk about what brings you to therapy, what you've tried before, and what you are hoping to change. From there, we can consider whether DBT — and what level or structure of DBT — makes sense for your situation.

DBT Individual Therapy

Understand the pattern. Change what isn't working.

DBT-informed therapy combines practical skills with a deeper understanding of the patterns that shape how you think, feel, and respond. We'll look at what is happening in your life now, identify what keeps getting in the way, and build skills for managing emotions, navigating relationships, and responding more effectively when things get difficult.

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The approach is tailored to what you need. We'll assess what's getting in the way, what has and hasn't worked in the past, and which level of support and structure is most likely to be effective for you. That may mean incorporating specific DBT skills into individual therapy, working more comprehensively with the DBT model, or drawing from other approaches when they better fit your goals.

What DBT Individual Therapy Is

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) was developed to help people understand and change patterns that create problems in their lives, particularly when emotions, relationships, or urges can feel difficult to manage. It pairs genuine acceptance — your reactions make sense given your history — with real change: specific skills, practiced deliberately.

In DBT Individual Therapy, those skills and strategies are used within our weekly sessions. You learn skills, apply them between appointments, and we examine what happened when you tried. We'll also assess what you need and determine which aspects of the DBT approach are most useful for your goals.

What It Is Not

This is not automatically comprehensive DBT. Comprehensive DBT is a structured treatment program that includes individual DBT therapy, a separate weekly skills training group, between-session phone coaching, and a therapist consultation team.

Individual DBT therapy may be appropriate for people who can benefit from DBT skills and strategies without needing the full comprehensive program. For others, particularly those experiencing frequent or significant life-threatening behaviors, comprehensive DBT may be the more appropriate level of care.

If a higher level of structure or a different treatment approach would better meet your needs, I'll say so plainly during the phone consultation and help you consider appropriate options.

What Changes When It Works

People often begin to notice more space between an emotion and their response. They may recognize patterns sooner, recover more quickly when things go off track, and have more choices in how they respond.

The goal isn't to stop having difficult emotions. It's to become more effective in responding to them.

Skills Practice Between Sessions

Practice is part of the treatment, not homework for its own sake. Applying skills in your actual life gives us something concrete to work with in our next session.

If you want additional structured skills practice on your own time, the self-paced courses and workbooks at Emotions University provide an opportunity for continued learning and practice outside of therapy.

You can also see the full range of therapy and services offered.

What the work looks like

A clear structure, at a pace that is workable

01
Assessment & targets
We map the behaviors and emotions you most want to change, and put them in order of priority.
02
Skills teaching
Skills from mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness — taught, practiced, and applied to your week.
03
Behavioral analysis
When something goes sideways, we trace the chain step by step and find where a skill can interrupt it.
04
Generalization
Practice moves outside the room until the skills are yours, then we plan how to maintain them.

Common questions

Questions people ask first

What is DBT individual therapy?: DBT individual therapy uses the principles, skills, and strategies of Dialectical Behavior Therapy within individual therapy sessions. Treatment is tailored to the individual, with an emphasis on understanding patterns, building practical skills, and applying those skills in everyday life.
Who can benefit from DBT individual therapy?: DBT can be helpful for people who want to better manage emotions, respond differently to difficult situations, improve relationships, or change patterns of behavior that are no longer working for them. A consultation can help determine whether DBT is an appropriate approach for your goals.
What happens in a DBT therapy session?: Sessions may include identifying patterns, learning or reviewing DBT skills, examining situations that occurred between sessions, and practicing ways to respond more effectively. The focus depends on what is currently happening and what will be most useful to address in treatment.
Is DBT only for borderline personality disorder?: No. Although DBT was originally developed to treat people with borderline personality disorder, its skills and strategies can be useful for a range of concerns involving emotional regulation, relationships, coping, and behavioral patterns.
What is the difference between individual DBT and comprehensive DBT?: Individual DBT therapy focuses on using DBT principles and skills within individual sessions. Comprehensive DBT is a full treatment program that includes individual therapy, weekly skills training, between-session phone coaching, and a therapist consultation team. The appropriate level of treatment depends on the individual's needs and circumstances.
How do I know whether DBT is right for me?: You don't have to determine that on your own. During a phone consultation, we can talk about what brings you to therapy, what you've tried before, and what you are hoping to change. From there, we can consider whether DBT — and what level or structure of DBT — makes sense for your situation.

Also offered

Other ways we might work together

Many people arrive with more than one concern. These areas often overlap in treatment.

Prolonged Exposure for PTSD

A structured, evidence-based trauma treatment that gradually reduces the grip of avoidance and fear.

Substance Use Disorders

Therapy for alcohol and drug use that starts with understanding, not judgment. Treatment can focus on abstinence, harm reduction, or making a change that is realistic and sustainable.

Teens, Young Adults & Families

Support for teens and young adults navigating emotional, behavioral, academic, or life transitions—and for parents who aren't sure what to do next.

Mindfulness-Informed Therapy

A mindfulness-informed approach that uses attention and awareness skills to help you notice what is happening in the present moment and respond with greater intention.