Tag Archive for: Radical Acceptance

This All-Inclusive Moment (Mindfulness, DBT)

When you are emotionally sensitive or have Borderline Personality Disorder, sitting with uncomfortable emotions or situations can be very difficult — excruciating, even.  But, there is a way to reduce our suffering and better cope.  Stick with me here… A concept in Dialectical Behavior Therapy and in Mindfulness practices that are thousands of years old, […]

There Will Be An Answer, Let it Be

There is a recurring theme that I have picked up in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) over the years: If you can reduce your worrying, you can reduce your suffering.  It’s a very appealing concept to me, and I have to say, it works. Whether you have borderline personality disorder, are an emotionally sensitive person, suffer from anxiety, or you […]

Do You Deserve To Be Happy?

When good thing happen to you, are you afraid that the other shoe is going to fall? When you hear of upcoming good things in your life, are you certain that something will get in the way of it manifesting — that it’s too good to be true? A lot of us with Borderline Personality […]

Does Suffering Destroy You or Make You Grow? (Borderline Personality Disorder)

Those who have been following my blog for some time know who Dr. Marsha Linehan is, but for those of you who are new (welcome!), Dr. Linehan founded DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy), the treatment of choice for people diagnosed with BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder).She conducted a search out of curiosity as to why some people seemed to […]

Forgiveness and Radical Acceptance: Letting go of the hope that the past can be any different

Iyanla Vanzant, one of my favorite life coaches and teachers on the planet, has explained that forgiveness is letting go of the hope that the past can be any different than it is.I remember when I first heard her say this on Oprah’s Lifeclass and how heavy and real it felt. It came into my consciousness today […]

Radically Accepting Uncomfortable Emotions (DBT)

Today’s Distress Tolerance DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) class focused on the Acceptance skill.  When our therapist began describing how we would practice this skill, it felt very counter-intuitive to me.  What? You want me to ACCEPT the intense anxiety I’ve been experiencing? Heck no! I want to kick at it and scream at it and push it […]

When The Pain Won’t Go Away (Tolerating Distress & Not Making Things Worse)

Sometimes when we are in great emotional pain or distress, it seems as if the way we are feeling will never end.  We may feel like we can’t tolerate the pain, stress, anxiety, loneliness, or other difficult emotion for much longer and don’t know what to do. In a desperate attempt to “feel better now,” we […]

DBT Pivotal Moment – Radical Acceptance

A pivotal moment in my recovery occurred about a year ago during a Distress Tolerance (a module of Dialectical Behavior Therapy, also known as “DBT” group.) Each person in the group was talking about ways that they had been victimized and were becoming emotional about past traumas – most of them abuse that they endured as children. […]

Practicing the “Radical Acceptance” DBT Skill in Baby Steps

There is an enormous relief that comes with practicing the “Radical Acceptance” DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) skill.  When you embrace a situation, emotion, or feeling without trying to change it — when you accept it with 100% of your body, mind, and spirit, you can gain a sense of peace that isn’t otherwise possible. Before […]

Practicing Radical Acceptance & Non Judgment (DBT Skills) With the Weather

Lately I’ve been wanting to apply the DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) skills of Radical Acceptance  and Non-Judgment to the moodiness that I often experience at night.  It’s been challenging. Today, Life gave me the opportunity to see how to put the skill into practice.  I love warm weather and sunny skies. I also enjoy an […]