DBT For Addiction Treatment in California

Dialectical Behavior Therapy in Ventura County, CA

Recovering from addiction requires more than just physical detox. It requires learning how to live a sober life no matter what gets thrown at you. To do so means building emotional resilience, navigating relationships more effectively, and gaining tools to help you handle distress without turning to substances.

Woman embracing another woman in a DBT for addiction support group

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, also known as DBT, is commonly utilized in addiction treatment to teach these exact skills. DBT is an evidence-based therapy that works to help those in treatment and recovery regulate their emotions, tolerate distress, and improve their ability to cope without turning to self-destructive behaviors.

Whether it’s your first day of treatment or your 10th anniversary of sobriety, DBT for addiction offers structured support. It equips individuals with the skills to manage triggers, tolerate distress, improve relationships, and ultimately, build a life worth living, without needing to escape through substances.

At centers like Paradiso Recovery, DBT is a cornerstone of treatment. But the impact of DBT can extend far beyond any single program. It’s a flexible, potentially life-changing approach to healing that can benefit anyone struggling with addiction.

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What is Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)?

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy is a structured form of psychotherapy developed in the late 1980s by Dr. Marsha Linehan. It was initially designed to help individuals with borderline personality disorder, a condition characterized by mood swings and unstable relationships. However, many have found DBT to also be highly effective in helping those facing other mental health challenges, including substance use disorder.

What sets DBT apart from traditional therapy is its dual emphasis on acceptance and change. The term “dialectical” refers to the idea that two seemingly opposite things can be true at the same time. For example, it’s possible to accept yourself as you are while also working to change behaviors that are harming you.

DBT accomplishes this by focusing on four core modules:

  • Mindfulness: Developing present-moment awareness and a nonjudgmental outlook.
  • Distress Tolerance: Building resilience during crises without turning to substances.
  • Emotional Regulation: Understanding and managing overwhelming emotions.
  • Interpersonal Effectiveness: Navigating relationships with assertiveness, boundaries, and respect.

DBT teaches those in treatment how to practice these modules in daily life, with specific tools and real-time application so that they can properly manage cravings, cope with triggers, and avoid relapse.

What is DBT Used For?

As we touched on, while DBT was originally developed to treat those suffering from borderline personality disorder, it has been proven to be highly effective in treating a number of mental health conditions, such as:

Since many people suffering from addiction also suffer from a co-occurring mental health condition, either diagnosed or undiagnosed, DBT can be utilized to help address and treat both conditions simultaneously by helping them understand the emotional or mental struggles that may have led them to using drugs and/or drinking alcohol in the first place.

Being able to address both mental health struggles and addiction simultaneously is just one of the many benefits of Dialectical Behavioral Therapy. Some of the other key benefits of DBT include:

  • Helps to reduce impulsive behavior: DBT teaches clients how to pause, reflect, and choose healthier responses, rather than reacting on impulse.
  • Improves emotional regulation: For many people, drug or alcohol use is a way to escape painful emotions. DBT helps individuals identify and manage emotions more effectively.
  • Increases distress tolerance: Learning how to sit with discomfort, whether it’s emotional or physical, is essential in early recovery. DBT equips individuals with skills to tolerate cravings, anxiety, and stress.
  • Support to strengthen relationships: Addiction often harms relationships. DBT enhances communication and boundary-setting skills, helping clients repair strained connections.
  • Reduced relapse risk: By developing coping strategies and self-awareness, individuals are better prepared to handle triggers and avoid relapse.

Some of the skills taught during DBT include:

  • Distress Tolerance: Teaches those in treatment how to endure difficult emotions, including emotional crises, without turning to destructive behaviors such as using substances, self-harm, or shutting down.
  • Resilience Through Emotional Regulation: This is done by identifying and naming emotions accurately, understanding the function of those emotions, reducing vulnerability to emotional extremes, and cultivating positive emotional experiences to counterbalance negative ones.
  • Mindfulness: Helps with providing greater self-awareness, improved focus and attention, nonjudgmental acceptance of thoughts and feelings, and the ability to pause before reacting.
  • Interpersonal Effectiveness: Focuses on conflict resolution, clear communication, self-respect, and assertiveness without aggression.

Unlike therapies that focus purely on abstinence or motivation, DBT emphasizes skill development. Those in treatment don’t just talk about their problems, but learn actionable techniques to handle life differently. As they master DBT skills, they become more equipped to handle triggers, cravings, and conflicts. This can make relapse less likely overall.

Additionally, DBT can be used across both group and individual therapy settings. This can provide the person constant opportunities to learn and apply these skills in real time.

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Other Forms of Therapy Used For Addiction Treatment

While Dialectical Behavioral Therapy can be highly effective on its own, it can also be used as one form of treatment in a larger, all-encompassing treatment plan. DBT is often combined with other types of therapies in addiction treatment, including:

CBT treatment is one of the most widely used and researched forms of psychotherapy. Much like DBT, it helps those in treatment examine how their thoughts influence their behaviors. It’s particularly useful in addiction treatment for:

  • Identifying negative thought patterns
  • Reframing irrational beliefs
  • Creating healthier behavioral responses
  • Preventing relapse through cognitive restructuring

As the name implies, Trauma-Focused CBT is designed to help those with a history of trauma. Trauma-Focused CBT allows the person to process trauma in a safe, structured way while minimizing emotional overload.

Trauma-Focused CBT acknowledges that trauma and addiction are deeply interconnected. By helping individuals process trauma without becoming overwhelmed, this therapy significantly reduces the risk of relapse.

Unlike traditional talk therapy, experiential therapy encourages emotional expression through creative or physical activities. This can help unlock emotions and unconscious issues that may be hard to express verbally.

These may include:

  • Art or music therapy
  • Role-playing
  • Equine-assisted therapy
  • Outdoor adventure therapy

Experiential therapy helps those in treatment reconnect with themselves on an emotional level, often allowing them to work through issues they didn’t even realize were holding them back.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a specialized form of psychotherapy designed to help individuals reprocess traumatic memories so that they lose their emotional charge. It’s particularly effective for people whose addiction is intertwined with PTSD or complex trauma.

During EMDR therapy, the person recalls a traumatic memory while focusing on bilateral stimulation, such as eye movements, tapping, or auditory tones. This process helps the brain reprocess the memory, allowing the person to retain the facts of the experience without being emotionally overwhelmed by it. Over time, the memory becomes less triggering, and the emotional distress attached to it diminishes.

Yoga therapy offers a gentle yet powerful way to heal the mind and body in unison. This holistic approach blends movement, mindfulness, breathwork, and meditation to promote physical health. It can also promote emotional regulation and even inner peace.

Benefits of yoga therapy include:

  • Reduced stress and anxiety
  • Improved emotional regulation
  • Greater body awareness
  • Enhanced mind-body connection

Yoga therapy can complement DBT’s emphasis on mindfulness and distress tolerance. It can provide those in treatment with additional tools for managing cravings and emotions through somatic awareness.

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Is DBT Right For Me?

If you meet one or more of the following conditions, then Dialectical Behavioral Therapy may be ideal for you. DBT may provide benefits to your life if you:

  • Struggle with intense emotions or mood swings
  • Have a dual diagnosis of addiction and a mental health condition
  • Find themselves repeating harmful patterns in relationships
  • Use substances to manage emotional pain or trauma
  • Have had difficulty with traditional talk therapy in the past

Heal at Paradiso Recovery with DBT for Addiction Treatment in Ventura County

Addiction recovery is about more than abstinence. It’s about building a life that makes sense without substances. Dialectical Behavioral Therapy helps make that life possible by giving individuals the skills they need to manage emotions, face challenges, and build healthier relationships.

At Paradiso Recovery, our Dialectical Behavioral Therapy programs include:

If you’re ready to break free from addiction and find a more grounded, fulfilling way to live, Paradiso Recovery is here to help. Contact us today to learn more about how DBT can be part of your personalized treatment plan.

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