DBT Skills for Adults: Inside Our Fall Groups

September 29, 2025
By Angela Van Berkel, PsyD If you often ride a roller-coaster of intense emotions—switching from frustration to shame to worry in minutes—you’re not alone. Many adults struggle to manage their emotional reactions at work, parenting children, and in relationships, even after years of trying traditional talk therapy. This fall, The Ross Center is launching new Adult Comprehensive Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Skills Group, an evidence-based approach that teaches concrete tools for calming the body, clarifying thoughts and feelings, tolerating distress, and building stronger connections with others.

What Makes DBT Different?

DBT blends mindfulness and cognitive-behavioral techniques with a belief in “both-and” thinking: you can accept yourself as you are and pursue meaningful change. Originally developed for individuals experience chronic self-harm and suicide ideation, DBT has demonstrated lasting benefits across a wide range of mental health concerns—anxiety, depression, binge eating, PTSD, and more. At its core, DBT consists of four skill modules learned across three eight-week segments:
  1. Mindfulness – observing thoughts and emotions without judging or reacting.
  2. Distress Tolerance – surviving crises without making them worse.
  3. Emotion Regulation – reducing emotional vulnerability and increasing positive experiences.
  4. Interpersonal Effectiveness – asking for what you need while respecting yourself and others.
Many participants describe these modules as “the owner’s manual I never got for my brain.”

Why Learn DBT Skills in a Group?

While individual therapy personalizes treatment, group therapy enhances learning. Watching peers apply techniques, role-play tricky conversations, and sharing real-life wins helps to make the material stick. Research finds adults practicing DBT in groups often results in mastery of skills more quickly. They also report having higher motivation to practice skills than those studying alone. “Hearing someone else use radical acceptance when her flight was cancelled helped me try it later that week—and it actually worked.” —Former group member

A Peek Inside Our Fall DBT Comprehensive Skills Group

  • Weekly 2-hour sessions over three eight-week modules (24 weeks total)—evening and lunchtime options to fit busy schedules.
  • Small cohorts (8–10 adults) led by licensed therapists certified in DBT.
  • Digital handouts so you can review exercises between meetings.
  • Real-time coaching on phone or secure messaging for crisis moments.
Each session opens with a brief mindfulness exercise, followed by homework review (“How did radical acceptance go during your dentist visit?”). Then the therapist teaches a new skill—maybe the DEAR MAN framework for interpersonal effectiveness—and guides structured practice so everyone leaves with a clear plan.

Who Can Benefit?

  • Professionals whose anger flares at minor setbacks.
  • Parents overwhelmed by guilt and self-criticism.
  • Adults with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) who feel stuck in spirals of “what-ifs.”
  • Anyone noticing that logic alone can’t tame emotion storms.
  • Those experiencing hopelessness and who have had thoughts of harming themselves.

How DBT Complements Other Care

Many participants attend DBT groups while continuing individual therapy with a DBT -trained therapist in addition to medication management. This combination speeds progress: individual sessions dive more deeply into personal issues while the group provides more structured skill-building and accountability.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will I have to share personal secrets? Only if you choose. You can practice skills using hypothetical examples until you feel comfortable sharing more. Is this the same as group support meetings? No. DBT skills groups are structured, curriculum-based classes led by clinicians, not unstructured peer check-ins. What if I miss a session? We provide make-up materials and brief catch-up calls to keep you on track. Fall Enrollment Is Open—Reserve Your Spot The Ross Center’s adult DBT skills groups begin the week of September 8. Spaces fill quickly, so call now to schedule a free 15 minute consultation.

Contact Us

Prefer virtual? We offer secure telehealth DBT groups for residents of DC, Virginia, Maryland, and additional PSYPACT states. Harness proven strategies to steady emotions, navigate conflicts, and reclaim the life you want. Join our Adult Comprehensive DBT Program Skills Group and start learning DBT skills you’ll use for years to come.