Dialectical Behavior Therapy in Texas:
for people who feel everything deeply and are ready to stop being overwhelmed by it.
You don't have to feel less. You just get to feel it differently.
all services are currently virtual
all services are currently virtual
You feel everything so deeply. And it's both a gift and a lot.
If you've ever been told you're "too sensitive" or "too much," we want to say clearly: you're not. But we also hear you that emotions at high intensity are genuinely exhausting to live with. The mood shifts that hit without warning. The relationships that feel electric one moment and devastating the next.
The moments where you act in ways you later regret, not because you wanted to, but because the feeling was so big there didn't seem to be another option. The shame that follows. The cycle that repeats.
DBT was developed specifically for people who experience emotions intensely. It has helped thousands of people build a more stable, fulfilling life without having to become someone they're not.
DBT at Heard Counseling gives you a concrete set of skills across four areas: mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness. These aren't abstract concepts. They're practical tools that help you navigate intense emotions, get through hard moments without making things worse, and build relationships that feel safe and sustaining.
Your therapist works with your specific emotional patterns, what triggers them, what maintains them, and what actually helps you, not a generic skills curriculum.
You can feel deeply and still feel stable. Both are possible.
Getting started doesn't have to be complicated.
1.Reach out
Share what emotional patterns you're dealing with. DBT applies to a wide range of presentations.
2.Map your emotional landscape
Your therapist develops a clear picture of your specific triggers, patterns, relationship dynamics, and goals.
3.Skills are introduced in context
DBT skills are woven into sessions in the context of your real-life situations, not abstract exercises.
4.Build on each other
Skills reinforce each other over time, creating genuine, lasting change in how you navigate emotional intensity.
DBT can help you:
✓ Navigate intense emotions without being swept away
✓ Get through crises without making things worse
✓ Understand what triggers your emotional responses
✓ Build and maintain healthier relationships
✓ Develop a more stable, grounded sense of self
✓ Find the balance between accepting yourself and making change
For When Life Feels Overwhelmingly Intense
Dialectical Behavior Therapy was originally developed for people who experience emotions with great intensity, those for whom ordinary distress can escalate quickly, and who sometimes respond in ways that make things harder. If that resonates, DBT was designed specifically with you in mind.
But DBT has grown far beyond its original application. Today it's used with a wide range of people who want more effective tools for managing difficult emotions, improving relationships, and making decisions they feel good about even when things are hard.
Feeling deeply doesn't have to mean suffering deeply. DBT can genuinely change how you experience your own emotional life, and we'd love to show you how.
Without skills for managing emotional intensity, the patterns compound. Relationships that could be repaired are damaged beyond recovery. Impulsive behaviors accumulate consequences. The shame deepens. DBT breaks these cycles with practical, learnable, repeatable tools.
Ready to meet our team? Browse our therapists to find your fit.
-
![]()
Robyn DePena, LPC
-
![]()
Leslie Dahl, LPC
-
![]()
Alex Calvillo, LPC Associate
Supervised by Kaitlyn Lewis, LPC-S
Meet Alex -
![]()
Kristen Patterson, LPC Associate
Supervised by Kaitlyn Lewis, LPC-S
-
![]()
Kaitlyn Lewis, LMHC, LPC-S
Frequently Asked Questions about DBT
-
DBT was developed for Borderline Personality Disorder but has proven effective for anyone who experiences emotional intensity: depression with mood swings, anxiety, trauma responses, eating concerns, self-harm, and relationship difficulties. If you feel emotions strongly and want better tools to work with them, DBT is likely worth exploring.
-
They share DNA but are distinct. CBT focuses primarily on changing thought patterns. DBT adds four specific skill areas: mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness, with a core emphasis on both accepting yourself and making change at the same time. The "dialectical" part is that balance between acceptance and change.
-
Traditional DBT includes individual therapy plus a skills group. Many people integrate DBT skills into individual therapy without the full program. We'll discuss what format makes most sense for your goals and situation.
✓ Emotional dysregulation
✓ Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)
✓ Self-harm & suicidal ideation (safety-focused)
✓ Eating disorders
DBT is effective for:
✓ Anxiety & trauma responses
✓ Relationship difficulties
✓ Impulsive behaviors
✓ Identity instability
✓ Depression with intense mood swings
Four skill areas that change everything.
DBT teaches four interconnected skill sets. Mindfulness: staying present with experience without immediately reacting to it. Distress tolerance: getting through crisis moments without making things worse. Emotion regulation: understanding the physiology of emotion and developing tools to work with intensity rather than be controlled by it. Interpersonal effectiveness: communicating what you need clearly while maintaining relationships and self-respect.
At Heard, these skills are introduced and practiced within the context of a real therapeutic relationship, with a therapist who understands your specific emotional patterns. The skills aren't delivered as a curriculum. They're woven into your actual life.
The word dialectical refers to the core tension that DBT holds: you are doing the best you can, and you also need to change. Both things are true. There is no contradiction between accepting yourself as you are and working to build a life that feels better. That balance, acceptance and change, is what distinguishes DBT from other approaches and what makes it so powerful for people who have felt like they've been failing at life for a long time.