I've struggled with mental illness since middle school. Treatment isn't as simple as medication or the universally-loathed "get over it." It takes skill, CBT and DBT skills to be exact. CBT, or cognitive behavior therapy, as described by Psychology Today, "is a form of psychotherapy that treats problems and boosts happiness by modifying dysfunctional emotions, behaviors, and thoughts. CBT focuses on solutions, encouraging patients to challenge distorted cognition and change destructive patterns of behavior." DBT, or dialectical behavioral therapy, as described by the National Alliance on Mental Illness, is "a modified form of cognitive behavioral therapy used for the treatment of chronically suicidal and self-injurious individuals with borderline personality disorder."
Both are said to be most effective in a group setting and taught hand-in-hand, and I completely agree. I discovered this in a mental health program at a local hospital considered "partial hospitalization." It is a two-week program, six hours a day on weekdays, of solely group therapy divided up into class-like sessions covering topics such as DBT and CBT skills, stress management and so on. I was nervous to hear that I would be the youngest of the group, most participants ranging between the ages of 30 and 50. I was pleasantly surprised that joining this group was the best decision I had ever made.
I had never been exposed to CBT in the past, but I had previously participated in a group for DBT a few years back. I can, without a doubt, say that I have never encountered a tool that has been as effective as CBT has been for me. I can't say however that it was the CBT alone that has helped me so much, it was also due to the incredible individuals that I encountered in this program.
I have never been in such an honest, open and safe environment to share my experiences and feelings; not only am I being heard, I am being completely understood. The members of my group, all at different stages in our lives, are united by a common struggle. That negative struggle brought all of these positive individuals into my life. They each inspire me in their own way with their strength. They make me laugh, cry and, above all, feel accepted in a way I have never felt before. They will continue to motivate me long after my journey in group with them and what they taught me will stay with me forever.
