An illustrated guide aims to bring skills from dialectical behavior therapy into everyday life, helping readers navigate stress, emotions and relationships.
“Real Skills for Real Life: A DBT Guide to Navigating Stress, Emotions, and Relationships” offers step-by-step guidance on coping strategies used in the therapy, commonly known as DBT. Co-author Shireen Rizvi, a licensed clinical psychologist and director of DBT services at Montefiore Einstein, said the goal is to make those skills accessible to a broader audience.
“What we wanted to do with this book was take these skills that we know are effective and helpful for people and put it out there in a way that we think is accessible, user friendly, and that anyone can pick up the book and learn some new methods of coping with distress,” Rizvi said.
Psychologist Marsha Linehan developed DBT at the University of Washington in Seattle. Rizvi studied under Linehan.
Initially developed to treat borderline personality disorder, DBT has been adapted for other mental health conditions involving difficulty managing emotions.
“The underlying connection between all the different populations and disorders for which DBT has been adapted is what we refer to as problems with emotion regulation,” Rizvi said.
Rizvi co-wrote the book with psychologist Jesse Finkelstein, combining psychology with graphic design to explain the skills.
One technique the book explores is “opposite action,” which involves acting against an urge associated with an emotion.
“Opposite action is a skill to use when you're experiencing an emotion that you want to change,” Rizvi said.
The book also covers mindfulness of emotions — observing feelings without immediately reacting to them. Rizvi said emotions change, and the skills emphasize both accepting feelings and changing how people respond.
Guest
- Shireen Rizvi, psychologist and author
