Woodland Hills

Woodland Hills DBT provides mental health services and DBT treatment to teens, adults, couples, and families in the Woodland Hills area.  Our highly skilled therapists are intensively trained in a number of modalities including DBT, ACT, CBT, and family systems, EMDR and psychodynamic psychotherapy.

We also offer a comprehensive and high-fidelity DBT program where we follow the protocol of Dr. Marsha Linehan, DBT’s creator.  DBT, or Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, is an evidence-based treatment aimed at helping those struggling with emotion regulation, interpersonal effectiveness and distress tolerance issues.  This means is has been heavily researched and shows success in treating those who participate.

DBT is effective at treating borderline personality disorder, depression, anxiety, bipolar disorders, PTSD, eating disorders, substance use and a variety of other symptoms.  In fact, research shows that the skills taught in the group can be effective for almost any individual.

DBT adds mindfulness and validation practices to existing behavior and emotional modification strategies, balancing the need for both acceptance AND change, two opposing forces.  In DBT, clients are taught a number of skills that help reduce self-harming behaviors and allow clients to feel a better sense of emotional control and interpersonal effectiveness.  DBT also teaches communication skills.  This includes being able to ask for what you want in effective ways, as well as setting limits.

In order to participated in an adherent DBT program, clients must participate in weekly individual therapy, weekly group therapy. The client may also utilize what is called phone coaching; clients have the ability to reach out to their therapist before harmful behaviors occur. The therapist must be on a DBT team.  For teens, parents must also take part in weekly skills training.

Skills group only: Clients may also choose to join our DBT skills group while seeing an outside therapist. We do allow this when clinically appropriate.

While DBT is a big commitment of time and money, it is highly effective.  It is also time limited, though the skills acquired in DBT last a lifetime. Call now to inquire more about our high-fidelity DBT program.