Too soon for me to tell... have second clsss this afternoon...we are starting with core mindfullness...

I'm just about to go buy the book by Marsha Linehan, suppose to be very helpful.

What is the name of the book? I can't find a group to join that is covered by my insurance?
Thanks for bringing up the topic. Whay don't you tell what your experience is with it? If you don't mind?

I'm curious to know about it too, mostly about other's experiences with it. I've heard it is extremely hard, but well worth it...very helpful for BPD. Unfortunately, it isn't available anywhere near where I live. Maybe someday.

Why can't this be done on your own?

Why do you need classes?

I was Dx'ed with BPD and I can tell you that I have it mostly licked... I never did the classes and I am not sure what all of this is about.

I truly find Talk and group unhelpful but self hypnosis and meditation and breathe think then speak to be most helpful... if it is past that point the conversation I don't speak and move forward.

I do the same thing with all actions. is this what this is all about???

first of all, to not2sure, every single person isn't the same, and this goes just as much with borderline recovery, some people need to talk about things and they need as much support as they can get to get through it. so, not everyone can fix their BPD by self hypnosis and meditation. and i'm not trying to be mean or rude or anything with this, i just wanted to point that out.
anyways, i did DBT about 2 years ago. it was somewhat helpful, but i do have to say that it probably would have helped more if i was older and at a different point in my recovery, for me it was too soon, so you need to make sure you are ready for it. The format is a group setting, most of the time, and it's more of a learning experience than a talk therapy group. i mean, you talk about how you're feeling, but pretty much only pertaining to what you are studying. there are 3 different modules, they are: emotion regulation, interpersonal effectiveness, and distress tolerance. you also learn to use mindfulness which is basically just being very aware of your surroundings and drinking them in.
i personally like the distress tolerance module the best because that was something i needed. and i honestly didn't like the mindfulness exercises.
like i said, i think if i was older and ready for this program it would have helped a ton, but i was just recently dxed at the time that i started DBT. i hope this helps.

Hello, Basically the book is what your therapist would use to treat it. It's called Cognitive Behavioral Treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder. By Marsha M. Linehan. You can get it at borders, maybe the others, you can check on line. We could start our own group session or book club.

I just posted a DBT rant on another channel, so here I go again. I HATE!! DBT. I've gone through the program several times and dropping out as many times. I even have what I call DBT PSTD as even the terms and lingo cause me to convulse. DBT is a band-aid on your problems. It focuses on soothing yourself in the here and now, it doesn't help you with what is going on in the background that got you to where you are. I don't get really passionate about much, but DBT is really just a waste of time.

Did 3 years of it and also have the book "Skills Training Manual for Treating Borderline Personality Disorder" by Marsha M. Linehan. She is considered to be one of the foremost authorities on treating BPD.

DBT differs for each person because of their background and any issues that need to be addressed.

Oh....and I did it one on one with my psychologist. that way i got the full benefits rather than having to wait my turn in some group session and beside which....I don't agree with group therapy

Had my first group session a half a week ago. We started with mindfullness and got given prep. We have to sit anywere for minimum 2 mins and listen to your surroundings and try not to let your mind wander...I think its good...so far xx

grrljock,

I read all the replies here, but yours really intrigued me, because, well, I tend to be a bit of a rebel, often going against the crowd, just to be individual and different.

Could you please share more about your personal experience with DBT and why you don't feel it worked for you? I only recently heard about Linehan and her studies but have not heard from anyone who has gone through this personally.

You said she doesn't really deal with the past. As a pastor/counselor, I feel that looking at the past is EXTREMELY important in almost all cases if not all of them.

Have you found something that works for you better? Are you dealing with past issues currently?

Please share what you can :)

~

The current psychological paradigm appears to be that we don't need to go through regressive therapies and spend unlimited amounts of time trying to work through the past.

DBT addresses the symptoms or manifestations of what's happened to create our maladaptive responses. It doesn't attempt to unravel the whys and wherefores of how we got here.

I feel very strongly that it is the externalised behaviours of BPD that cause problems in our daily lives and that need to be mitigated.

I find it refreshing that instead of spending an inordinate amount of time indulging in introspection about our less than perfect upbringing, this approach equips us with the tools and resourcefulness we need to manage our cognitive behaviour effectively.

After all, I'm sure each of us has a highly unique and individual back catalogue of abuse and dysfunction in our lives, but as BPD sufferers, our behaviour tends to show almost "textbook" conformity to a defined series of traits and behaviours.

Casey8156: In regards to your comment I don't take things personally :-) I was just trying to find out what all this DBT stuff was.

Mindfullness is the same as my meditation that clarified somethings for me...

I was trying to see if there were things I could do at home and not need a group. I love meditation and breathing and contemplating.

As for me being fixed the issues I have still have more to do with PTSD then BPD and i was trying to see if there was anything that could help with the other issues that was all.

sorry if you were offended.

I LOVE DBT and it has made a huge difference in my life. It's all about getting skills that you can use day to day to get you through without making things worse - which is something that us BPD folks often do. It's not a process group (I do my processing with my individual therapist) but instead it is a skills training class. My fave module is Distress Tolerance because it teaches you what to do to get yourself through your worst periods without resorting to harming yourself or doing any of your other maladaptive coping strategies. Great stuff!

I think I just started this with my therapist. It is really to soon to tell if it is working. Currentlly, I am monitoring my emotions. It looks sort of promising. It is better than not doing anything!