BPDRecovery.com: Forums

I was just writing a response to Bogit and it occurred to me that I never posted about my graduation. Last month I completed a one-year DBT program and got a certificate. This was a big DBT group and there were times that the year was harrowing; if you can imagine 8-16 borderlines in a room (it varied), most of them under the age of 25, you might get a sense of what I mean. It could be a real endurance event, and I thought about quitting more than once. But I really wanted to be able to say I'd done it.

So I know DBT now. I'm still finding it challenging to remember to apply the DBT tools to small events each day, but at least I understand it, because it was all one vast mystery before the group...I couldn't seem to learn it off the web or from a book. I think it's a fantastic tool and I encourage anyone who has access to a RL group to take advantage of the opportunity. Most groups aren't as big as mine was!

Ann

Congratulations Ann! I am in a small BPD Group and we are learning the DBT skills. It's not a "real" DBT class but we're modeled after one. And yes, our meetings get a bit hairy, so I can imagine what you've experienced! You have a lot to be proud of! Hope you can use those skills in daily living! :thumbsup

Thank you!

Well I can vouch for you that you learned a lot. Thank you for you very clear explanations today. For taking time to share some of your hard earned knowledge with me.

Congrats on your graduation!

Sharing it is a good way to get it fixed in my own mind, so I feel like I'm the one who benefits!

That's great news Ann. I'm so glad you posted about it. I hope you feel you've made a recovery achievement. A year's a long time eh!

Congratulations! :thumbsup

I've been taking part in an online DBT class for some time now and I noticed this Christmas how much calmer and more able to cope I felt than last year. Mindfulness is a godsend!

I'm relatively new to the board and was diagnosed with BPD around Thanksgiving. I didn't realize there were DBT groups. Heck, I still don't understand what the heck it even is, but I know it seems to be what I need. (From everything I read online.)

May I ask what online classes you are taking? Do you think they are really helping? What kind of time commitment is it?

Hi RescuedMess,

Here's the link to the online DBT class I mentioned:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/dbtclass/

DBT is a kind of therapy developed for people with BPD which involves one-on-one therapy sessions, group skills training (to learn coping skills) and telephone contact with a T. The online class above just aims to teach the skills part of DBT.

It's not a big time commitment at all. There's one lesson a week which involves reading a couple of pages (well, I guess it would be a couple of pages if you printed it out) and then doing a homework assignment. The homework generally involves practising the skills described in that lesson and then posting about your experiences, or sometimes it involves reflecting on past experiences. The lessons all stand alone and don't require you to have done previous lessons so you can join the class at any point, and they just cycle through all the DBT skills.

When I joined the class I already considered myself more or less recovered thanks to other forms of therapy and meds, but I still learned a lot from it which is helping me with one or two issues I'm still working on. In particular I get stressed out less easily and can cope with painful emotions better. I really recommend it wherever you are on your recovery journey - but bear in mind it's run by people with BPD rather than professionals, so it probably shouldn't be your only form of treatment.

Ann, sorry for hijacking your thread!

No problem Marga, and thanks to you and Sarah for the congrats!

Rescued, I found a therapist in my area who does DBT. The time commitment was one two-hour group per week, with homework, and one therapy session a week.

I actually found my therapist through this link:
http://www.behavioraltech.org/resources/crd.cfm

wow. I'm happy to hear that DBT has been helpful for so many people. I finished DBT about a year ago-was in treatment for nearly 6 months, dropped out, then started back up again, and finished. I am not doing so great now though. It's amazing actually how different I am now than when I graduated DBT. I actually have some resentment towards the clinic and my treatment team for determining that I no longer meet diagnostic critera-wondering if they just tell us that when we graduate just to get red of us for good. I would just like to hear about how you guys are doing now, some of the struggles, skills that have been difficult to apply, how you've been progressing. My problem is that I never had a lot of faith in the program (even though I stuck to it for a year and a half!), and I even doubted at times that I even have BPD, as I didn't identify with anyone in group. Funny how I never agreed with the diagnosis while in treatment, but now I feel more "borderline" than ever.