About

Depressed and Anxious: The Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Workbook is written specifically for individuals who suffer from both mood (depression, sad, blue, unmotivated, loss of initiative) and anxiety (stress, panic, agoraphobia, PTSD, generalized anxiety) problems.

This book offers information, but it primarily is a workbook: it offers exercises, homework, and techniques that you can perform to change the symptoms you experience. It is therefore quite practical as well as informative.

Please see the links on this webpage for further information. You can order the book from New Harbinger Press, see both patient and psychotherapist workshop offerings, read reviews of research showing the promising effects of DBT, and examine the Table of Contents of the book before you order. Enjoy!

Thomas Marra, Ph.D.

Those of you who have both depression and anxiety, don’t be surprised. It is estimated that only 30% of the population with a mental health disorder have only one problem. 70% have more than one problem. This makes sense; people who suffer from anxiety for a long time get depressed that they are anxious. And people who are depressed for a long time get anxious about their condition.

This is the first self-help manual for people with the “double whammy” of mixed depression and anxiety symptoms.

Depressed & Anxious is a “new” approach in two other ways. First, it is based on a newer form of treatment called Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). DBT is designed to help you identify conflict that powers symptoms. Emotions are powerful processes. They can overwhelm you and tax your ability to cope. What most people do with high emotions is avoid or escape them. Unfortunately, emotions come back more furiously because avoidance of emotions actually increases them over time. You feel better for a short period of time, but then the old symptoms return with greater vigor. This book will show you how to avoid this negative process.

Second, Depressed & Anxious is new in that it teaches Mindfulness as a method of reducing both anxiety and depression. Mindfulness has been used for years to treat chronic physical pain, and as a meditative technique. Recent research shows that Mindfulness is effective with a wide variety of conditions. When emotions are high, our attention becomes so focused on our self that we are no longer keenly aware of the world around us. We close off experiences that could help to reduce our anxiety and depression. Mindfulness is the key to shifting our focus of attention to new experiences that can improve our mood.

This patient workbook contains over 70 worksheets and forms to allow you to better analyze your feelings and situations, better balance your short-term and long-term objectives, practice the psychological coping skills discussed, and increase the focus of your emotional and behavioral life.

For Therapists

Dialectical Behavior Therapy in Private Practice is the first major revision of DBT since Dr. Linehan's introduction of this treatment modality in 1993. This is a scholarly and practice-oriented text for therapists.

The book may be ordered directly from the publisher in the Order Books button on the right of this page, or in combination with distance (home) learning with accredited CE of up to 16 hours in California only (click the button Therapist Home Learning on this website).