This feature by Laurence Y. Katz, MD is Part 2 of a two-part series about therapists’ need to stay balanced when treating patients at risk for suicide and how the framework of DBT facilitates this balance. In part 1 (read it here), we examined the need for balance and the first two principles of how DBT fosters that balance. In this part, we will explore two more principles: therapist mindfulness practice and the application of radical acceptance.
This feature by Laurence Y. Katz, MD is Part 1 of a two-part series about therapists’ need to stay balanced when treating patients at risk for suicide and how the framework of DBT facilitates this balance. In part 1, we start by examining the need for balance and the first two principles of how DBT fosters that balance
Mental health professionals play an important role in efforts to prevent suicide, as about one-third of individuals who die by suicide had contact with mental health services in the year before their death (Luoma, Martin, & Pearson, 2002). The U.S. National Strategy for Suicide Prevention emphasizes the importance of providing evidence-based psychotherapies (EBPs) that directly address suicide risk to high-risk clients, particularly those with a history of attempting suicide.
