Customer Reviews

Dialectical Behavior Therapy: Volume 1 - The Clinician's Guidebook

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I would recommend these materials to clinicians and other individuals interested in learning about DBT. I have not only used the book and workbook but there is an excellent set of games to go with them as well. Dr. Moonshine's materials have completely updated my DBT groups. The clients are much more engaged and actually look forward to coming and doing their assignments. In my experience, these materials are not only applicable to clients with Borderline Personality Disorder, but also clients with trauma issues, substance abuse related disorders, anxiety disorders, and eating disorders. I have also used both Dr. Moonshine's and Dr. Linehan's materials. While I found Dr. Linehan's materials informative, in my opinion, Dr. Moonshine's series is more user-friendly and engaging. The bottom review was clearly not written by someone who had reviewed this book or knows the experience of the author. If you want to be certified in DBT, I would recommend getting a variety of texts, including this one.

While Dr. Moonshine may not have been certified by Dr. Linehan, I would say she is clearly an expert. Most Cognitive-Behavioral Therapists have not been trained by Dr. Aaron Beck but that does not make them any less qualified to provide CBT to clients or contribute to the knowledgebase. This book, and the companion workbook, is an EXCELLENT source of information regarding DBT and adds to the initially created DBT skills in a significant manner. Dr. Moonshine has created a book that will not only give you the basics but will guide you through using DBT with "real world" clients and give you a firm understanding of the important tenets of DBT. Dr. Moonshine has a wealth of experience and knowledge that she gladly shares in this book and all of her other endeavors (she has even created games! Clients love them!). I appreciate Dr. Moonshine's extensive efforts to further the use of DBT and make it accessible to everyone. This is a must-have for any therapist interested in using DBT!

I have both this book and the workbook and have found them to be very useful. While working with clients I have used both Dr. Moonshine's materials and Dr. Linehan's. I have found them both the be extremely useful and would definitely recommend that people who are interested in DBT to read Dr. Linehan's materials. I am however, currently facilitating a group in which I mostly use Dr. Moonshine's materials and it is extremely well received by all of the members. In my opinion Dr. Moonshine's materials are a great supplement for clinicians who wish to explore DBT, her workbook includes some different skills and twists on old skills that many of my clients have found useful. As a clinician who is mostly concerned with using what works for my clients, I have found Dr. Moonshine's materials to be very useful.

I found this book very user friendly and helpful.
I would respond to the DBT pureists by asking them to reflect on the following:
There is a wave of mindfulness -meditation based therapies coming out right now all of which have exploited and straight out stolen from Buddha without giving the least bit of credit to him. Meaning that thier are no references to suttas containing the information that is being used. THere is only what in academia would be called secondary sources, which is weak.
Most all the credit goes to Marsha Linehan or modern Buddhist teachers who did not invent these methods. When you take from a source without giving credit, to the original source, this amounts to poor scholarship and ethnocentric exploitation. But Americans are notorious for this. I find it interesting that any American would be shocked, surprised or even complain regarding the exploitation of Buddhist psychological teachings. So Linehan takes from Buddha and gives some minor acknowledgement that he helped her, even though her entire system is built from his theories. Even though she has made a ton of money with her publishers on methods that she probably learned for free or next to nothing. Then some one else does the same to her. Well that is the nature of American capitalism, to exploit natural resources, even if they are psychological. To take from other cultures resources and then say they were ours all along. HOw manhy times have we and the old Brits done this?
Truley, the structure upon which she built her theory does not belong to anyone, she was just the 1st one to find a way to integrate something she loved and believed in, Buddhism, to her psychological practice and work.
It is an insult to the intelligence of numerous people in the field to think she somehow owns the way that mindfulness and meditation can be presented. Its also an insult to the Buddha and the teachers cross-culturally to have financially exploited such teachings without giving a lot more credit to where it is due. Americans are so arrogant when it comes to these matters.
All in all, understanding this. its a nice book and worth buying. IT gives a nice overview of DBT in the beginning that is much easier to understand than most references on this system.

It's an easy read and offers practical help for treating BPD. Of course my client who this was intended for has since wandered away from therapy, but she'll be back and I'm sure there will be many more.

Dr. Moonshine has been to a few two day workshops on DBT. She has not trained by Dr. Linehan nor has she been supervised by any of the experts on DBT. I am worried that readers will believe that they are purchasing the actual evidence based treatment manual for DBT and THIS IS NOT IT. If you are a person who ultimately wants to be certified in DBT, I recommend that you get the book that was written by the treatment developer and study it while getting training and supervision in the treatment. The title of the actual text is Linehan, MM (1993).Cognitive Behavioral Treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder. New York: Guilford