Do I need a borderline personality diagnosis to benefit from DBT?

No. DBT was developed for that population but the skills work for anyone whose emotions feel hard to regulate. Many of our patients without a personality disorder diagnosis find DBT extremely useful.

How is DBT different from CBT?

CBT focuses on changing thoughts to change feelings and behavior. DBT adds explicit acceptance and validation strategies, an emphasis on dialectics (holding two truths at once), and structured skills modules — designed for people whose emotions are too intense for CBT alone to manage.

Will I have to journal every day?

You will use a diary card to track urges, emotions, and skill use. It takes about 5 minutes a day and is one of the most useful parts of the therapy — it shows you the patterns you cannot see in the moment.

What if I have a history of self-harm?

DBT was specifically designed for that. Self-harm and suicidal thinking are addressed openly, safely, and skillfully — not avoided. Our clinical team is trained to handle these issues.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy Las Vegas

What DBT Is

DBT was originally created by psychologist Marsha Linehan to treat people with chronic suicidality and borderline personality disorder — populations that conventional therapy often failed. It has since become one of the most evidence-based treatments for emotional dysregulation across many conditions, including substance use.

DBT combines two ideas that sound contradictory but work together:

Acceptance of yourself, your emotions, and your present reality exactly as they are
Change of the behaviors that are hurting you

Holding both at the same time — the dialectic — is what makes the work move.

Why DBT for Addiction

For many patients, substance use is the only effective way they have ever found to turn down emotions that feel intolerable. Asking them to stop using without giving them other tools is asking them to give up the one thing that has worked. DBT provides those tools:

Distress tolerance — getting through a crisis without making it worse
Emotion regulation — reducing the intensity and duration of painful emotions
Mindfulness — staying present instead of being hijacked by thoughts and urges
Interpersonal effectiveness — getting your needs met and protecting your boundaries without burning relationships

How DBT Is Delivered at BetterChoice

DBT skills group — multiple times per week, working through the four core skill modules
Individual therapy that integrates DBT principles with CBT, trauma work, and addiction-focused content
In-the-moment skills coaching during the rest of the day from clinical staff trained in DBT
Diary cards that track urges, emotions, and skills used between sessions

Who DBT Is Especially Helpful For

People whose substance use is tied to emotional crashes, anger, or self-harm
Patients with co-occurring borderline personality features
Patients with chronic suicidal thinking or a history of self-injury
People who feel emotions more intensely or for longer than seems "normal"
Patients with unstable, high-conflict relationships
Anyone who has tried CBT and found it useful but incomplete

What to Expect

DBT is structured and skill-heavy. You will not spend most of your time exploring childhood — you will spend most of your time learning specific techniques (TIPP, ACCEPTS, DEAR MAN, PLEASE, opposite action, radical acceptance) and practicing them in real situations. The skills are concrete enough to remember, and the practice happens both in session and in your everyday life.

Ready to Start?

Call (725) 550-5655 to ask whether DBT is appropriate for your situation. DBT skills work is included in our residential and detox programs and is covered by most major insurance plans.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)