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5 DBT Skills That Sound Fake But Actually Work
- Kat Schultz
- Jul 18
- 2 min read
Not all DBT skills sound like your basic mental health coping skills that will be effective. Some are a little more...unexpected. Yet they work for most folks and are part of this well-researched, evidence-based treatment.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is a synthesis of Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Zen Buddhism. It incorporates mindfulness skills into the foundation of CBT. It's used to treat emotion dysregulation and self-destructive behaviors, among other mental health struggles.
Here are 5 DBT skills that sound like fake coping skills but are actually truly legit Dialectical Behavior Therapy skills that can help you.
Accumulate Positives (Short Term)
The short term version of accumulating positives is all about doing one (or more!) pleasant activity a day and being mindful while doing it. You're saying that doing fun things is a DBT skill? Sounds fake! Yet, it's true. DBT is not just about ceasing behaviors that are harming you, it's also about increasing behaviors that bring you pleasure and building your Life Worth Living.
TIP(P)
This acronym skill is a "body hack" - a skill that helps us calm down by intervening with our body. Apply cold temperature; perform brief, intense exercise like jumping jacks; or perform paced breathing paired with muscle relaxation (squeeze muscles on inhale, release on exhale). It seems a little wishy-washy that doing these things with our body can improve our mood but trust us, it works!
Self-Soothe
This skill is about soothing the senses to soothe your emotions. Apply lotion to your hands and observe how it feels and smells. Put some chapstick on and be mindful of its texture and scent. Pop a mint in your mouth, chew gum, or eat a sour candy and once again, mindfully observe the sensations and taste. Some folks feel like they don't "deserve" to treat themselves this kindly, making this skill seem like it won't work. Yet it's important to treat ourselves with tenderness. You DO deserve it.
Contribute (Wise Mind ACCEPTS)
The DBT distress tolerance skill Wise Mind ACCEPTS is an acronym consisting of many, many ways you can distract from your distress (not avoid it!). The first C in the acronym stands for Contribute - the idea is that focusing on someone else helps you reduce your own distress. Even just asking a friend how they are can distract you from your problems for a while. Seems too small, right? Small skills can make a big difference.
Half-Smile
I didn't trust in the power of Half-smile when I first learned about this DBT skill; it seemed too simple. The idea is to turn up just the outer corners of your lips into a hint of a smile. Not only does this signal to your brain to produce neurotransmitters that improve your mood, it can also facilitate acceptance and willingness, which is why it's in the reality acceptance category of distress tolerance skills. Plus, having a pleasantly neutral expression on your face conveys to others that you're okay. Now, after using it, I'm a believer!
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