Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Eating Disorders (DBT-ED)

The DBT-ED (Eating Disorder) skills group is open to MCP DBT clients currently struggling with disordered eating. The group combines the concepts of standard DBT and DBT as adapted for eating disorders. Clients learn additional skills within the standard DBT modules (mindfulness, emotion regulation, interpersonal effectiveness and distress tolerance) to stop problematic eating behaviors.

What we know about eating disorders from the affect regulation model is that there is a direct link between negative affect and disordered eating. Meaning, individuals with eating disorders tend to experience difficulties in regulating emotions. The disordered eating functions as a behavioral attempt to influence, change or control painful emotional states. This dysfunction results in both emotional vulnerability and inadequate skills for adaptive emotion regulation leading to frequent reliance on the disordered eating behaviors (restricting, binge eating and/or purging, etc.).

Therefore a main goal of DBT-ED skills training is to learn and practice adaptive emotion regulation skills to replace the eating disorder behavior. The treatment targets include a path to mindful eating and increasing skillful emotion regulation behaviors by learning and applying mindfulness skills, emotion regulation skills, interpersonal effectiveness skills, and distress tolerance skills.  

MCP currently offers one DBT-ED group via telehealth on Wednesdays from 5:00-7:30 pm. For more information on DBT skills groups at MCP, click here.

An initial assessment is completed with each individual interested in receiving DBT services to discuss reason/s for seeking services, identify problems, strengths, goals, and recommendations, and determine diagnosis/es (if applicable).

For more information, to make a referral, or to request an assessment for our DBT program, contact us at 651-644-4100.