Thanks so much to everyone for the replies. There are some very interesting and helpful replies here.

Beth, I can relate re your mom. Mine too was at peace when she was gardening (the only time I remember her being calm) - and a lovely garden was my refuge in a rotten childhood.

Soupe, I'm not sure right now re a specific distress tolerance skill I'm interested in, thanks so much for the helpful explanations. If I think of something later (a specific skill I'm interested in I'll post here. I think I read something yesterday re Radical Acceptance I didn't find very helpful (somewhere else, not here) I would guess almost everyone (with almost any dx including bipolar) would find something helpful in DBT as it has so many skills.

Thanks to Soupe du jour, Beth, MuddyBoots, Mendingmysoul and all,

Much love and respect to all