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Living Through Distress: A Skills Training Group for Reducing Deliberate Self-Harm

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 December 2012

Richard Booth ,
Karen Keogh ,
Jillian Doyle  and
Tara Owens
Richard Booth*
Affiliation:
St. Patrick's University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
Karen Keogh
Affiliation:
St. Patrick's University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
Jillian Doyle
Affiliation:
St. Patrick's University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
Tara Owens
Affiliation:
St. Patrick's University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
*
Reprint requests to Richard Booth, Department of Psychology, St. Patrick's University Hospital, James's Street, Dublin 8, Ireland. E-mail: rbooth@stpatsmail.com
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Abstract

Background: Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) is an evidence-based treatment effective in reducing deliberate self-harm. However, DBT is resource and time intensive, and few services are able to sustain a programme faithful to all aspects. Thus, modified or adapted versions of DBT have been developed, particularly for delivery in inpatient hospital settings. Aims: This study presents a description of the “Living Through Distress” (LTD) Group, which is based on the group skills training component of DBT. Method: Participants (n = 114) were patients of a psychiatric hospital who attended the LTD group. The main inclusion criterion for the LTD group was a history of deliberate self-harm. The outcome measures were frequency of incidents of deliberate self-harm, levels of distress tolerance, and mean numbers of bed days per year. Results: Upon completion of the group, there were significant reductions in participants’ reports of deliberate self-harm and significant increases in their distress tolerance levels, which were maintained at 3-month follow-up. There was also a reduction in participants’ mean number of inpatient days at 1-year and 2-year follow-up. Over 50% of participants had no admissions in the year subsequent to completing the group. Conclusions: As this study was not a randomized controlled trial, results must be interpreted with caution. However, the findings presented here are promising, and suggest that a briefer, less resource intense version of the group skills training component of DBT may be effective in reducing deliberate self-harm.

Keywords

Clinical psychologyDBTself harmborderline personality disordergroup psychotherapy
Type
Research Article
Information
Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy , Volume 42 , Issue 2 , March 2014 , pp. 156 - 165
Copyright
Copyright © British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies 2012 

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