DBT is an evidence-based therapy that helps folks manage strong emotions, handle unhelpful behaviors, and develop more meaningful relationships.

As the winter holidays approach, many families are making time for their annual traditions. Families gather and dedicate time to beloved traditions, cultural practices, spiritual beliefs, and holiday activities… for some this includes passing around delicious dishes, spending quality time together, and giving thanks. While cooking a full holiday meal may not be practical all year round, why should the tradition of “giving thanks” and practicing gratitude be limited to particular holidays or events each year?

Welcome to your basic introduction to gender-inclusive language! Using gender-inclusive language is one way you can actively work toward gender equity and justice. Using this type of language means writing, texting, and speaking in a way that includes all genders and sexes.

It’s October… which means Halloween time!!! This beloved holiday is a time to be creative, have fun, and... eat way too many handfuls of candy corn! It’s also a time when cultural appropriation is very present. At Mind, we believe in honoring the backgrounds, cultures, races, religions, and other important factors of children and families. We know that our staff, clients, and community believe in respect and kindness, too.

Group therapy is a kind of psychotherapy where one or more therapists works with several people together. Whether online, in-person, or hybrid, receiving therapy alongside others can enhance your individual therapy, deepen your commitment to change, and reduce loneliness. At Mind, we recommend participating in a DBT skills group alongside DBT-focused individual therapy. When we think of groups at Mind Chicago, we often think of 4-8 people meeting weekly to develop new skills, practice skills with others, and/or manage barriers to living a meaningful life.

If you’ve ever explored options for therapy, you may have heard something about CBT (or its longer name - Cognitive Behavioral Therapy). The truth is, there is quite a bit of buzz about CBT these days. There is so much research to support CBT - some even consider it the current "gold standard" of psychotherapy - it’s no wonder people are talking about it. So, what exactly is CBT, and who might benefit from this type of therapy?

Everyone experiences pain. But sometimes that pain turns into suffering or even misery. For young people struggling with anxiety, depression, racial/oppression-based stress, or other challenges, it feels very difficult (and sometimes impossible) to tolerate pain. As a result, they may attempt to alleviate pain with strategies that ultimately transform that pain into suffering. When pain turns into suffering or misery, doing what is important to you, making connections, and caring for yourself becomes very, very difficult.

It’s hard to say something original about parenting. Every cliché you’ve heard about parenting you already know to be true:

“You’ve never felt such love.”

“You’ve never been so tired.”

“It’s an incredible, life-changing experience.”

“It’s brutal.”

Feeling stressed or overwhelmed can sometimes make it difficult to make helpful choices. When humans are under stress or in an emotional crisis, we often make emotionally-driven decisions and leave out our brilliant reasonable mind. This can lead to feelings of guilt and shame. One way to engage in more helpful decision-making is to step back and consider the reasonable/rational and emotional sides within us. Pausing to evaluate a situation can prevent us from making impulsive and potentially regrettable decisions.

Contrary to its name… IMPROVE is a skill that doesn’t necessarily “make things better.” It does, however, help you tolerate really difficult emotions and sometimes can shift your emotions in a more uplifting direction.

Polarized thinking is when we think in extremes such as having an “all-or-nothing” mindset, a “one or the other” mindset, or a “good or bad” mindset…. Starting to get the picture? Polarized thinking is what some therapists call a cognitive distortion (irrational or unhelpful thinking pattern). We call them this because these thoughts keep us from seeing the world as it really is: complex, intricate, and FULL of different shades and hues!

Have you ever been in a situation where you are so consumed with an emotion that you aren’t able to think clearly? In DBT, we teach distress tolerance skills that can be used to create short-term relief from painful situations and minimize the risk of impulsive behaviors. No, we don’t mean push away and avoid your emotions forever (because they will resurface). The intention is to tolerate them temporarily so you don’t make the problem worse or to survive a crisis. They can help you feel more relaxed and in control of your behaviors.

The other day, just before my therapy session (yes, therapists also go to therapy), I thought, “Things are going well. What am I going to talk about today? Maybe I should cancel my session…” I joined my session anyway. About halfway through this session, I stopped my therapist and said, “This has been bothering me, and I’m surprised I haven’t brought it up until now. I’m so glad I came to therapy today; this is really helpful!!! You will not believe this, but I was thinking about canceling session today!” – This is a 100% true story!

Many of us can recall a time when we’ve felt very intense emotions… one of those moments of emotional “crisis” where we had that terrible, sinking feeling that “this moment will never end.” And in these moments, it feels nearly impossible to do the things that need to be done.

Radical acceptance is a Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) skill designed to keep pain from turning into suffering. Radical Acceptance is tricky because it involves truly accepting reality for what it is. This doesn’t mean liking or approving of reality in certain moments. It does mean doing the opposite of denying reality, such as hyper-focusing on the way things “should” be and always wishing reality was different. By embracing reality rather than rejecting it, you can minimize unnecessary suffering. While pain is a natural and unavoidable occurrence for humans, radical acceptance allows us to keep that pain from becoming suffering.

Looking to increase joy and peace, decrease personal stress, and feel more fulfillment? In DBT, we move toward these valuable goals by using the WHAT and HOW skills. WHAT skills include observing, describing, and participating in the present moment intentionally and in a particular way. HOW skills tell us HOW to use the WHAT skills in a meaningful way. The One Mindfully Skill (a DBT HOW Skill) can support you on this journey.

We all make judgments from time to time. Yet, judgments can prompt lots of unhelpful emotions and distract you from dealing with a situation accurately or helpfully. But what exactly is a judgment. A judgment is a statement that takes facts of a situation and adds a personal preference, value, or opinion to it in an objective manner. For example, “The rain is terrible” is a judgment because it is your opinion, and others may feel differently about the situation. “It is raining today. I notice I feel sad when it rains” is a non-judgmental statement that clearly portrays what’s actually happening in the situation.

Have you ever thought about how our lives are FILLED with opposites? It snows during spring, someone you love hurts your feelings, or your favorite show makes you cry. Although opposites, both exist and both are true. A “dialectic” is just that - when two opposing things are true at once. Guess what? Our world is filled with them.

Have you ever experienced the flow state? Spoiler alert: You probably have without even realizing it! Allow me to describe it to you: The flow state is a sense of fluidity between your body and mind. You are totally absorbed and deeply focused on something to the point where distractions don’t phase you. Time feels as though it slowed down. You are fully immersed in what you are doing. Some people describe this feeling as being “in the zone.”

Self-soothing is a Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) skill that helps us manage difficult feelings and situations and tolerate things that we cannot change. Self-soothing is a set of techniques that use different senses of the body. And it is critical to wellness!