DBT Emotion Model: How Emotions Work
The DBT emotion model is one of the most important tools for understanding and regulating emotions. Before you can change how you feel, you need to understand what is actually happening inside your emotional system. Most people experience emotions as overwhelming or confusing. In reality, emotions follow a pattern. When you understand that pattern, emotions become more predictable, more manageable, [read more]
Emotion Encyclopedia: Identify and Describe Your Emotions
The DBT emotion model is one of the most important tools for understanding and regulating emotions. Before you can change how you feel, you need to know what is actually happening inside your emotional system. This skill helps you answer a more basic question: What am I actually feeling? Most people don’t struggle because they “have too many emotions.” They [read more]
Check the Facts with Dialectical Behavior Therapy
If you’ve ever spiraled after a text wasn’t answered, assumed the worst, or felt your emotions escalate quickly, you’re not alone. DBT has a skill specifically for this: Check the Facts. Check the Facts: A Complete Guide to One of Dialectical Behavior Therapy's Most Important Skills If you only learn one emotion regulation skill in DBT, this is one of [read more]
Living with Borderline Personality Disorder
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is one of the most misunderstood (and most stigmatized) mental health conditions. It’s often reduced to stereotypes: “dramatic,” “manipulative,” “too much.” But those labels miss the truth. At its core, BPD is about intense emotional sensitivity, deep pain, and a nervous system that struggles to regulate overwhelming internal experiences. And perhaps most importantly: BPD is treatable. [read more]
Emotions 101
Why We Even Have Emotions Most people come into therapy wanting fewer emotions.Or at least quieter ones. But in DBT, emotions are not the problem.They are doing a job. Emotions evolved to help us survive, connect, and make decisions quickly. When we understand their function, they start to feel a lot less chaotic...and a lot more predictable! What Emotions Actually [read more]
Traumatic Invalidation, Part II
Why It Hurts So Much and How to Start Healing When It Keeps Happening If you read my original post on traumatic invalidation, you’re probably already familiar with how deeply painful it can feel when your emotional experience is dismissed, especially during or after trauma. Many people told me they felt seen by that language. Others said, “This explains so [read more]
Mother’s Day Grief
For some of us, Mother's Day is not a celebration. It's a tender bruise we carry into brunch invitations and Instagram tributes. It aches in the grocery store card aisle and pulses when we scroll past smiling photos of mothers and daughters who still call each other every Sunday. It's complicated grief. It's guilt and longing and rage and deep, [read more]
What Depression Really Feels Like
Depression doesn’t always look how people expect. It’s not just feeling sad. It’s not always crying in bed or dramatic movie scenes. Sometimes it looks like going through the motions with a smile no one questions. Other times, it feels like everything has stopped: your energy, your interest, your hope. What It Feels Like to Be Depressed Depression drains you. [read more]
Depression
Feeling Stuck? Let’s Talk About Depression Everyone feels down sometimes. But depression is more than sadness. It’s a heavy fog that makes it hard to function, connect, or even get out of bed. If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone, and you don’t have to keep feeling this way. What Depression Can Look Like Depression doesn’t always look like tears. [read more]
Protest Safety
Our community is standing up for what’s right. If you are new to protesting, knowing how to stay safe and prepared is essential. Follow these protest safety guidelines to ensure a meaningful and secure experience. Before the Protest Know Your Rights – You have the right to peaceful assembly. Read up on local laws and what to do if you're [read more]
Untangling Emotions and Family Ties
Your emotions feel overwhelming. Maybe they hit like a tidal wave, or maybe they simmer under the surface until they explode. Either way, they feel like too much. Emotions and family are intricately intertwined. Growing up, your parents may have dismissed your feelings, made you feel guilty for having them, or taught you that certain emotions were “bad.” Now, you [read more]
How to Talk to Your Doctor About Psychiatric Medication
Talking to a doctor about psychiatric medication can feel exhausting. You’ve done your research. You know your symptoms. But instead of getting help, you hear: “It’s just stress.” “You don’t need medication.” “Let’s wait and see.” It’s frustrating when doctors don’t take you seriously. But you don’t have to accept being dismissed. Here’s how to advocate for yourself and get [read more]
