Workshop Description:

Borderline Personality Disorder requires a specific approach with targeted treatment interventions. To date, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, or DBT, is the most evidence-based and effective treatment model for this personality disorder. In this continuing education workshop, understand the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for Borderline Personality Disorder. Discover the history of how DBT came to be developed. Explore the four core tenets of this model: mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotional regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness. Learn how concepts such as radical acceptance and skills of validation are essential to working with this population. Identify the primary DBT treatment targets and explore the application of the four skills to case studies. Choose methods of intervention for clients by observing best practices in clinician work.

Workshop Objectives:

1. Explain the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for Borderline Personality Disorder.
2. Identify the theoretical foundations of DBT and the four core skills application to BPD populations.
3. Articulate the key components of DBT treatment hierarchy according to the biosocial model.
4. Describe at least three individual skills within each of the four core DBT skills.
5. Construct methods of evaluating clients with BPD to design appropriate DBT treatment strategies.
6. Demonstrate an ability to formulate culturally sensitive interventions with a vulnerable population who have a highly stigmatized personality disorder.