DBT for Everyone

by Michelle Henderson, Kate Sherman

DBT skills can be a fantastic way to approach life's challenges. But where do you start?
This down-to-earth guide walks you through the four DBT modules, mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness. Each chapter explains how to practice the key skills and dives into the authors' own experiences to explore what works, what doesn't, and which skills work best for particular challenges. Journaling prompts help you work out how to fit the skills into your own day-to-day life, so you can make changes that work for you.
DBT works by helping you to understand difficult emotions and develop skills to regulate them in a healthy way. Whether you struggle with mental health difficulties, or just want to improve the way you handle everyday stress and challenges, this book will filter out the jargon and show you how to use DBT skills in real life.

Genres: Psychology, Mental Health, Nonfiction

208 pages, Paperback

Published November 21, 2023

Reviews

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks Michelle and Kate. This was a great supplement read to my therapy.

[Kathleen Garber · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was very interested to read this as I am familiar with DBT, having taken it as a teen. DBT was originally a therapy for a specific set of symptoms or certain conditions but has since been recognized to be helpful for lots of people with mental health problems or those who are neurodivergent. The authors show us that DBT can be helpful for EVERYONE.

DBT has a LOT of acronyms (words that each letter stands for something.) TIPP, STOP, DEAR MAN and so much more. Each one is designed to help make it easier to remember the tools they teach.

The book is laid out in the same way for each chapter:

About This Skill
Kate’s Tips
Michelle’s Tips
Pitfalls
Benefits
Exercise
I like that not only do they teach the skill but they do it by giving tips on it’s use and including the pitfalls as well as the benefits. Most teaching books only tell you why you should do it that way, not what might make it difficult. This is helpful.

DBT teaches the skills of Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Emotion Regulation and Interpersonal Effectiveness. You’ll find prompts for your toolbox for each of these skills.

I love that the book is from two authors with very different backgrounds. I appreciate that their tips are separated so you can see how someone with a life similar to yours uses the skills.

If you’re having trouble with wild emotions, socializing effectively, dealing with distress or your thoughts are running you ragged, this book may help.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

*I received a free ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion*

I came into this with very little background knowledge or experience with DBT but wanted to learn more about as it is something that has come up in my job recently. Although I didn't come out of this with a mastery of the practice of DBT I definitely know more than when I started. I can see myself referring back to this book in the future as I continue to expand my knowledge. I liked the way the book was laid out - the explanation of the concept followed by how each author uses it in their own practice helped me to understand more about what was being discussed. The pros and cons section was helpful in further understanding advantages and limitations of each concept. This book was an easy read in that it never felt like the ideas were too technical or over my head. I would recommend this to people just starting out with DBT as well as those who may be more experienced with it because it provides a different lens through which to consider the elements of DBT and helps to explain why DBT is structured the way it is.

[Janette Fuller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dialectical behavior therapy is an evidence-based psychotherapy that began with efforts to treat personality disorders and interpersonal conflicts. DBT skills training is made up of four modules;

Mindfulness
Distress tolerance
Emotion regulation
Interpersonal effectiveness

The authors share their knowledge and experiences using DBT therapy in their mental health counseling practices.

This is the first book I have read on dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) and I think it is a wonderful resource for anyone seeking information on the subject. I took my time and read small sections at a time and highlighted segments that I wanted to remember.

The authors explained all the skills that are involved in the four modules that I named above. They shared the pitfalls and benefits of the skills and provided tips from their personal experiences. Many times, Kate and Michelle would emphasize different things that they considered important about a skill.

I found it very interesting that the DBT skills can be used by anyone who wants to improve their emotional intelligence and create a life worth living. I have read many books on mindfulness, but the other three modules contained skills that I will definitely use in my efforts to improve my relationships.

[MsV · Rating 4 out of 5]

"DBT for Everyone: A Guide to the Perks, Pitfalls, and Possibilities of DBT for Better Mental Health" by Michelle Henderson and Kate Sherman is a comprehensive and accessible resource for individuals seeking to improve their mental health using Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). Through clear and empathetic prose, the authors demystify the principles of DBT and provide practical strategies for applying its techniques in everyday life. From managing difficult emotions to improving interpersonal relationships, this book covers a wide range of topics relevant to mental well-being. Henderson and Sherman skillfully navigate the complexities of DBT, offering insights into its benefits while also acknowledging the challenges that may arise during the therapeutic process. Whether you're new to DBT or seeking to deepen your understanding, "DBT for Everyone" is an invaluable guide that empowers readers to cultivate greater self-awareness, resilience, and overall mental health.

[Dee Hancocks · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great introduction to DBT concepts for all. I enjoyed the initial information about the authors as you then get a sense of who they are and later this really helps. This book definitely employs the therapeutic use of the self. Both authors give their stories and tips helping to make ideas more concrete and accessible. I loved some of the rephrasing, such as swapping the word exercise for body movement. The book reads easy, flowing like a conversation with equals. Each chapter has an exercise at the end to help reflections. They only thing missing for me is use of images and diagrams - although a lot is readily available online, I think this would have helped for people who use images to learn.
A good book to refer back to and I recommend for anyone interested or looking to work on their emotional intelligence.

[Lori Burgess · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a special education teacher in a behavioral self-contained classroom. We have social workers who are using DBT with our students as an intervention. The district and director of our program wants us to all be using DBT methods with students. We have had some training; however, it wasn't until I read this book that I understood the rationale behind using therapy with the population of students I teach. I will absolutely use and refer back to this book for input on how to deliver instruction and improve my interactions with students. This book has also assisted me in working with my colleagues to better assist our students.

[Tasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Once you have read Marsha Linehan's seminal books on Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, it takes something special to bring something new to the DBT bookshelf. Michelle Henderson and Kate Sherman may have done this by bringing their varied backgrounds, perspectives, personalities, and approaches to the page. The content is nothing new, but the delivery is. That said, it took me forever to read this on a Kindle, hence the three stars. I think this would make for an excellent audiobook or a hard copy to flip through.

I received an advanced reading copy from NetGalley in exchange for this review.

[Susanne Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

This seemed like a really interesting book, but for me I felt it jumped around too much and repeated itself quite a bit when each author was giving their view point. All the different ‘minds’ mentioned confused me. I think as a therapy it would be much more beneficial if given face to face with the book being used as a back up and reinforcement tool. For someone already with a basic knowledge of DBT this book would probably be very helpful.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone should read this!

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

seems to be pretty superficial coverage and a bit too much centered on the author