DBT Skills Group for Teens & Families

currently accepting expressions of interest for a future group!

Are you and your teenage child having trouble getting along and communicating effectively with each other? 

Does your teen struggle with intense moods, anger, anxiety, or impulsive or risky behaviours? 

Does your teen have difficulty in their relationships with peers or adults? 

If you answered yes to any of these questions it is possible that you and your teen may benefit from our DBT skills group for teens and families.

DBT (short for Dialectical Behaviour Therapy) skills groups for teens and families will be facilitated by two HMC clinicians.  The facilitators will teach teens and their parents or caregivers five core DBT skills across four six-week modules:

·         Mindfulness skills: Mindfulness skills are important in helping teens to develop self-awareness (of emotions, thoughts, and urges) and attentional control.  Mindfulness skills can assist teens in reducing negative emotions and increasing pleasure.  Mindfulness skills are taught across all four modules below, as this skill will also assist teens in knowing when they need to use their other skills. 

·         Distress tolerance skills: Distress tolerance skills are tools to help cope with strong and intense emotions without acting on urges or impulses that may make the situation worse in the long term.  These skills are especially useful for teens who find themselves doing impulsive, risky, or otherwise unhelpful behaviours when they experience strong emotions.  Distress tolerance skills also include acceptance skills which can be important when we experience difficulties in life that we cannot change. We are currently taking registrations for this module - enquire now.

·         Emotion regulation skills: Emotion regulation skills are tools to help reduce negative emotions and to increase positive emotions.  They can be especially useful for teens who are experiencing difficulty with depression, anxiety, and anger. 

·         Interpersonal effectiveness skills: Interpersonal effectiveness skills aim to help teens and their caregivers to communicate more effectively with each other and to assist teens in developing healthier relationships with others.  Interpersonal effectiveness skills teach teens how to build their own self-respect whilst also communicating respectfully with others. 

·         Walking the middle path skills: Walking the middle path skills involve teaching ways for families to manage conflict by learning how to validate each other and see each other’s point of view in situations where disagreements occur.  This module also introduces behaviour change strategies to assist caregivers in supporting their teens by reinforcing desired healthier behaviours and not reinforcing ineffective behaviours that teens have developed in their attempts to cope with difficult thoughts and feelings. 

What happens during DBT Skills Group for Teens and Families?

DBT skills groups are focused on skills development in a structured and supportive peer group situation. The group-based format allows families to learn from and support each other as they learn new skills.

Each six-week module will focus on assisting teens and their caregivers to develop a set of skills in one of the core areas described above: distress tolerance, emotion regulation, interpersonal effectiveness, or walking the middle path.

Each teen will attend with one parent or caregiver and both the teen and their parent or caregiver will be asked to complete skills practice between group sessions. Each session will run for two hours and will include a brief mindfulness practice; review of skills practice from the prior session; and teaching and practicing new skills that families will then try out before the next session.

Who can attend DBT skills group for teens and families?

Teens aged between 13-17 years of age who would benefit from learning the skills outlined above.

Each teen must attend with one parent or caregiver.

All families (including those who are existing clients of HMC) will be required to attend a 15-minute phone consultation intake with a group facilitator prior to enrolment to determine suitability and to ensure any additional questions you have are answered.

Who can’t attend DBT skills groups for teens and families?

This group is not suitable for teens who are: outside the age range; experiencing acute psychotic symptoms; have significant developmental or cognitive delays (such as intellectual disability); homeless or do not have a stable home base; and currently admitted or have been admitted to hospital in the last 3 months for psychiatric reasons.

Do we have to attend every session? Or can we swap parents if we cannot make it?

It is important for the consistency of the group and to achieve the most benefit for yourselves, that you do attend each weekly session within the 6-week modules.

Similarly, we ask that the parent/carer attending does not change within a module, however, it may be possible for different parents/carers to attend across different modules.

Why does a parent/carer have to attend as well? Can my teen attend on their own?

No, it is important that each teen has the support of a parent or carer at all group sessions. Learning the skills at the same time as your teen will allow you to support your teen in developing and practicing these important skills. You will probably also find that these skills are helpful in your own life and when navigating parenting challenges.

The Walking the Middle Path skills module is also specifically targeted at improving the interactions between yourself and your teen, reducing conflict, and includes specific strategies for assisting you to support the behaviour change of your teen.

Do we have to attend all four modules?

Many families would benefit from attending all four modules as the skills are likely to be relevant across different life areas. However, there may be some instances where a specific module may be most relevant to a family and we do not require that families enrol in all four modules.

You can discuss which modules are relevant for your family in your phone intake with one of our facilitators.

What if our teenager is already seeing a psychologist or other mental health worker?

That is completely okay! This DBT skills group has not been designed as a replacement for 1-on-1, individual therapy but instead is focused on building overall skills capacity.  In fact, if your teen does not already see a psychologist or other mental health worker and the facilitators believe that they may also benefit from individual therapy or require additional support in applying skills to individual concerns it may be recommended that they attend individual therapy sessions in addition to the skills group.  This is especially likely to be the case for teens who are struggling with severe and complex mental health concerns.  

What if our teenager does not want, or is refusing to, attend?

There can be many different reasons why a teenager might be expressing reluctance to attend group-based sessions, and forced attendance is unlikely to result in positive engagement. Though as a parent/guardian you may feel they would benefit from participating, it may be more appropriate to seek individual therapy instead.

How much does DBT Skills Group for Teens and Families cost?

DBT Skills Groups for Teens and Families cost ($TBC) includes 6x 2-hour sessions for one teen and one parent/caregiver to attend. This is payable in full to secure your spot in the group and is non-refundable 7 days prior to the first group session. The cost accounts for two clinicians, to optimise the facilitation of the group, and for two participants attending per family. 

For a family to learn the same skills in an individual format, it would cost up to $510 per 2-hour session.

Is funding available for DBT Skills Group for Teens and Families?

·         Self-managed and plan managed NDIS participants can be fully funded if this group is appropriate and relevant to NDIS goals.

·         Agency-managed NDIS participants with funding under Improved Daily Living (Capacity-Building Supports).

·         Medicare – rebates of $32.60 may be issued with a valid group therapy referral from your GP, psychiatrist, or paediatrician.

Note: there must be 6-10 participants in the group for Medicare rebates. If there are only 5 participants or more than 10 in attendance on that day, no Medicare rebates can be issued. Medicare rebates can only be issued for each session once that session is completed.

·         Private Health Funds may offer a rebate – we recommend you check with your individual fund for further details.

So, how do I register?

Click the button below to email our friendly Admin team with your interest, or call us on 03 6388 9229 to book a free initial 15-minute phone consultation with one of the facilitators to determine suitability.