[gashly]

I think I'm about 8 months in and am pretty frustrated. I know that it's supposed to help you regulate your emotions, but I keep getting overwhelmed by them. I feel like none of the skills are working and I'm just falling back into "target" behavior to cope. It's really frustrating! I feel like quitting. Am trying to work things out with T and figure out some other things I can do.

Are there other forms of therapy that work better than dbt?

[capecodfish]

There are several different kinds of therapeutic approaches, but I wonder why DBT was recommended for you in the first place. It takes a very skilled therapist and group leader to guide one through DBT. There are a very support forums for DBT, particularly those that center around borderline personality disorder (since that is the primary diagnosis the approach is used for). I would encourage you to find another therapist if you feel like you're really struggling with the approach. Believe it or not, DBT takes a long, long time to master (years) and 8 months is barely scratching the surface. If you dig a bit deeper, you may discover that you actually ARE making progress, it's generally just done in baby steps.

[anilam]

They are no better forms of therapy.
It depends on the client. Some like DBT others prefer different forms of therapy.
I think the T is more important than the school they represent. They should be able to look behind the rigid rules and just be able to be there for their client.
Personally I like the "talk therapy" the best. Don't have experience with DBT (is it for ppl with BPD?) but absolutely hated CBT, which as I understand is widely used in DBT.

Hope someone who knows more about forms of therapy will answer you soon.

[Travelinglady]

I went through DBT twice. The first time I just sort of got the cognitive elements of it---it didn't really get to my emotional level. Then I went through it again. Both times were in group therapy. Lots of folks also have an individual therapist at the same time who is aware of the DBT and tries to support it, from what I hear. I did have a T, but she didn't do DBT stuff with me....

I was being treated for borderline tendencies, which was its original purpose. But it's now used for bipolar and maybe other disorders, too.

I suggest that you talk to the therapist about it and hear what he/she says. Does the T see you're making any progress?