Mood Management Skills

Basically, DBT maintains that some people, due to invalidating environments during upbringing and due to biological factors, react abnormally to emotional stimulation. Their level of emotions (arousal) goes up much more quickly, peaks at a higher level, and takes more time to return to baseline.

The results of this in the lives of sufferers are crises and extreme emotional instability. Because of past invalidation sufferers do not have any methods for coping with these sudden intense surges of emotion. The ability to control their behaviours and manage with the distress is unmanageable and this can lead to destructive behaviours patterns ie overeating, drinking, excessive shopping; loss in relationships; personal goals and other social behaviour.

DBT is a method for teaching skills to cope with the difficulties of life and to enjoy a quality of life.

How does Mood Management work?

1. Problem: Interpersonal chaos

Intense, unstable relationships, trouble maintaining relationships, panic, anxiety, dread over relationships ending, frantic attempts to avoid abandonment

Solution: Interpersonal Assertiveness Skills

Learning to deal with conflict situations, to get ones wants or needs and to say no to unwanted demands or requests in a manner that maintains self-respect and others' respect and liking.

2. Problem: Unstable emotional expression

Moods, emotions, extreme ups and downs and moodiness, intense emotional reactions, depression, problems with anger (over or under-controlled)

Solution: Emotional regulation skills

Focuses on enhancing control over emotions. We are who we are - emotionality is part of us but we can learn to modulate some emotions in order to be a bit more "mellow".

3. This the problem: Impulsiveness

Alcohol, drugs, eating, spending, sex, fast driving, Para suicidal behaviors and suicidal threats

Solution: Distress Tolerance skills

Learning to tolerate distress. There is a connection in between the inability to tolerate distress and impulsive behavior which very often functions to reduce intolerable distress

4. Problem: Confusion about self/cognitive dysregulation

Problems in identifying a self. pervasive sense of emptiness, problems in maintaining ones own opinions, feelings, and decisions when around others, also brief non-psychotic cognitive disturbances including de-personalization, dissociations and delusions

Solution: Mindfulness Skills