Although dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) was originally created to treat borderline personality disorder, over the years research has demonstrated the efficacy of this treatment in managing emotion dysregulation more broadly, regardless of its cause. I myself have spent most of my career working toward the goal of making DBT more accessible for both clients and clinicians, teaching that these skills can be invaluable for a wide range of mental health problems, as well as for the more basic difficulties that arise for all of us in life: managing stress, grief, sadness, disappointment, anger, hurt, and so on. Many emotional difficulties are also rooted in trauma, and in recent years, many of us working in the trauma field have been using DBT alongside other tools and techniques to help people overcome the negative consequences of traumatic events they’ve experienced, including post-traumatic stress disorder.
Dr. Kirby Reutter’s clinical expertise, academic knowledge, and real-world experience in both DBT and trauma therapy has perfectly situated him to author this book, Healing with Trauma-Focused DBT, a valuable resource for trauma survivors as well as the clinicians who work with them.
Trauma is universal and yet deeply personal, leaving an imprint on the mind, influencing our thoughts and emotions and physiology; in fact, we now know that trauma can even influence how our genes are expressed. Despite these very real and widespread consequences, trauma remains somewhat elusive: difficult to define, understand, and heal from. Fortunately, the field of psychology continues to evolve, providing us with increasingly sophisticated frameworks for understanding trauma and its effects. Among these, trauma-focused dialectical behavior therapy (TF-DBT) stands out as an indispensable
approach.
In Healing with Trauma-Focused DBT, Dr. Reutter offers a groundbreaking synthesis of research, theory, and clinical wisdom, providing a guide that is both compassionate and highly practical. This book doesn’t just explain trauma—it equips individuals and clinicians with the tools they need to work through it. By integrating core components of DBT with cutting-edge insights from polyvagal theory, neurobiology, and an understanding of dissociative processes, Dr. Reutter has written a guide that simplifies trauma and offers a structured path toward healing in a way that makes it accessible to readers. Translating complex concepts into language that is understandable and also deeply validating, Dr. Reutter approaches trauma and its consequences not as a problem to be “fixed,” but as a lived experience— requiring empathy and curiosity, as well as, of course, evidence-based interventions. Dr. Reutter’s psychoeducational approach ensures that readers will develop greater clarity and concrete strategies to address the fallout of trauma.
A crucial element of this book is its exploration of the neurobiology of trauma. Science has increasingly demonstrated that trauma is not just an event that happens to us, but an experience that fundamentally impacts our nervous system; therefore, the integration of polyvagal theory provides a vital perspective on how trauma affects our ability to feel safe, connect with others, and regulate our emotions. By understanding the role of the autonomic nervous system in activating survival responses, readers will gain powerful insight into why trauma symptoms manifest the way they do and, more importantly, how they can be addressed.
At the heart of Healing with Trauma-Focused DBT is a message of hope. Trauma certainly shapes us, but it doesn’t have to define us. Through the principles of DBT, Dr. Reutter provides a road map for resilience and for moving toward posttraumatic growth and healing.
For clinicians, this book is a must-read, offering an integrative and structured approach to treating trauma with a balance of warmth and scientific rigor. For trauma survivors, it’s a source of validation and empowerment, enabling them to make sense of symptoms that may have previously been experienced as incomprehensible and even further traumatizing. And for anyone seeking to deepen their understanding of trauma, it’s an invitation to approach this work with compassion and courage.
In a world where trauma is often misunderstood or minimized or—even worse—stigmatized, Healing with Trauma-Focused DBT provides both the knowledge and compassion that will help readers find a greater understanding of themselves, of others, and of the capacity for healing that exists within us all.
—Sheri Van Dijk MSW
Author of The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook for CPTSD
