Pocket Therapy for Emotional Balance: Quick DBT Skills to Manage Intense Emotions

by Matthew McKay PhD, Jeffrey C. Wood PsyD, Jeffrey Brantley MD

Overview

Bite-sized, evidence based tips and tools for managing intense emotions in the moment—from the authors of The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook!

Sometimes emotions can feel like a big, powerful tidal wave that will sweep you away. And the more you try to suppress or put a lid on these emotions, the more overwhelming they get. So, how can you feel better when difficult emotions threaten to wash over you?

In this take-anywhere pocket guide, clinical psychologists and authors Matt McKay, Jeffrey Wood, and Jeffrey Brantley offer quick and simple strategies based in dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) to help you take charge of your emotions and start living the life you want. Using this handy little book, you’ll find freedom from overwhelming thoughts and feelings, discover a sense of lasting calm, improve your relationships, and feel more at peace with the world and yourself.

If you’re looking for small, easy ways to manage your emotions on the go, put this compact guide in your coat pocket, your purse, on your nightstand, or anywhere for quick and soothing relief.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781684037674
Publisher:	New Harbinger Publications
Publication date:	11/01/2020
Series:	The New Harbinger Pocket Therapy Series
Pages:	176
Sales rank:	611,778
Product dimensions:	4.00(w) x 6.00(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Matthew McKay, PhD, is a professor at the Wright Institute in Berkeley, CA. He has authored and coauthored numerous books, including The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook, Self-Esteem, and Couple Skills, which have sold more than a million copies combined. He received his PhD in clinical psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology, and specializes in the cognitive behavioral treatment of anxiety and depression.


Jeffrey C. Wood, PsyD, lives and works in Las Vegas, NV. He specializes in brief therapy treatments for depression, anxiety, and trauma. He also provides coaching for spiritual development, communication skills development, and life skills. Wood is coauthor of The New Happiness, The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook, and The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Diary.

Jeffrey Brantley, MD, is professor emeritus in the department of psychiatry and human behavior at Duke University Medical Center. He is founder and former director of the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Program at Duke Integrative Medicine. He has represented the Duke MBSR program in numerous radio, television, and print interviews. He is author of Calming Your Anxious Mind, and coauthor of the Five Good Minutes series.
 

Interviews

McKay resides in The Greater San Francisco Bay Area; Wood resides in Las Vegas, NV; Brantley resides in Durham, NC.
 

Editorial Reviews

Pocket Therapy for Emotional Balance is a little gem. McKay, Wood, and Brantley have distilled some of the most potent skills from DBT in terms so clear and concise that anyone, including teenagers, can grasp how to use them. If you struggle with painful or out-of-control emotions, put this little book in your survival kit, or indeed, in your pocket, and remind yourself of how to stay in balance.”
—Cedar R. Koons, LCSW, DBT consultant and mindfulness teacher, and author of The Mindfulness Solution for Intense Emotions

Cedar R. Koons

The authors of Pocket Therapy for Emotional Balance have created a handy, readable guide that brings together simple yet powerful psychological tools for achieving and maintaining emotional well-being. Readers who are willing to seriously and consistently practice as directed will learn effective psychological coping skills, and will likely experience the kind of improved emotional resilience that often results from face-to-face therapy with a skilled dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) provider.”
—Britt H. Rathbone, MSSW, LCSW-C, expert adolescent therapist, trainer, and coauthor of What Works with Teens, Dialectical Behavior Therapy for At-Risk Adolescents, and Parenting a Teen Who Has Intense Emotions

Britt H. Rathbone

This petite book easily fits in your pocket or purse, and is designed as a quick resource for those struggling with overwhelming distress and emotions. Practical skills are explained in twelve easy-to-read chapters, each with a handy ‘explore’ section to facilitate bringing skills into everyday life. A great ‘go-to’ support that you can carry with you at all times.”
—Thomas R. Lynch, PhD, FBPsS, professor emeritus of clinical psychology in the school of psychology at the University of Southampton, and author of Radically Open Dialectical Behavior Therapy and The Skills Training Manual for Radically Open Dialectical Behavior Therapy

Thomas R. Lynch

As a fellow DBT therapist, author, and trainer, I am always on the lookout for simple, practical, and effective ways of making DBT skills usable for the lay reader. In this resource, you will find just that! I was especially impressed by the elegant simplicity with which the authors presented the difficult topics of radical acceptance, wise mind, and self-compassion, all while providing simple exercises to convert theory into immediate practice.”
—Kirby Reutter, PhD, bilingual clinical psychologist with Department of Homeland Security, and author of The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook for PTSD

Kirby Reutter