Intensive outpatient treatment (IOP) with a focus on dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), also known as an intensive outpatient DBT program, revolves around four main facets: mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness. The DBT model teaches practical skills for managing intense emotions while allowing clients to maintain their daily responsibilities.
If you find your emotions controlling your life, leading to turbulent relationships, impulsive actions, and a constant sense of crisis, you may feel trapped in a cycle that traditional therapy hasn’t been able to break. This can be a huge problem: you need more support than weekly therapy offers, but entering a residential program isn’t feasible due to work, school, or family commitments.
At Steps RC, we understand the problem, and we know what it can feel like. Our solution is a structured, evidence-based approach that provides intensive care while allowing you to live at home: an intensive outpatient DBT program designed to combine flexibility with transformative treatment.
This program is designed to equip you with real-world skills to manage emotions, reduce harmful behaviors, and build a life worth living, all within a supportive community.
Understanding DBT and the IOP Model
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is a highly effective, evidence-based treatment specifically designed to help individuals regulate powerful emotions and develop healthy coping mechanisms. It is particularly effective for challenges like borderline personality disorder, chronic suicidal thoughts, self-harm, and substance use.
The term “dialectical” refers to the core concept of balancing two seemingly opposite ideas: acceptance (accepting yourself and your experiences as they are) and change (making positive changes to build a better future).
An Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) provides a level of care that falls between standard outpatient therapy and residential treatment, offering structure and consistency while allowing you to return home at night.
At Steps RC, our intensive outpatient DBT program offers a significant amount of therapeutic support, typically 3-4 days per week for several hours each day, while allowing you to return home each evening. This model is crucial because it enables you to immediately practice the skills you learn in therapy within your everyday environment, turning abstract concepts into tangible behaviors and reinforcing your progress in real-time.
A Multi-Faceted Approach to Healing
Our intensive outpatient DBT program is a comprehensive package of interconnected services designed to support you from every angle. Skills training is the heart of our program, giving clients the chance to practice real-world coping skills in a supportive environment.
In our therapist-led groups, you will learn and practice concrete skills across four basic modules: Mindfulness (staying present and aware), Distress Tolerance (surviving crises without making things worse), Emotion Regulation (understanding and managing intense emotions), and Interpersonal Effectiveness (navigating relationships assertively and respectfully).
We also provide individual therapy. This consists of a one-on-one setting each week. Here, your primary therapist helps you apply the skills you’re learning in group to your specific personal challenges and life circumstances. This is where you’ll address your most pressing issues, track your progress, and develop a personalized plan for growth.
A Typical Day in the Program
Your time in our intensive outpatient DBT program is highly structured to maximize learning and integration. A typical day might begin with a mindfulness exercise to help the group center itself and focus on the work ahead.
This would be followed by a skills training session, where a therapist teaches a new concept, for example, the “STOP” skill for impulse control, and the group engages in exercises and discussions to understand it deeply.
The latter part of the day might involve processing groups or other complementary therapies, such as art therapy or psychoeducation, which help you explore the underlying causes of your emotional pain and reinforce the DBT skills from a different perspective.
Each day ends with a clear takeaway – a specific skill to practice before the next session. You will also have homework assignments, which are essential for translating what you learn in the clinic into your daily routine, solidifying your new capabilities.
Your Role in the Process
Enrolling in an intensive outpatient DBT program is a commitment to yourself, and its success is a collaborative effort. We ask for an initial commitment, typically between 8 and 16 weeks, to help you fully immerse yourself in the skills and create lasting change.
Active participation is required; this means attending all sessions, completing homework, and being willing to engage openly and honestly in both group and individual settings.
Your journey at Steps RC is not always linear. You can expect to experience breakthroughs and challenges as you confront old patterns and experiment with new, healthier ways of coping. Our therapists and your peers in the group provide a validating and accountable environment where stumbling is seen as a learning opportunity, not a failure. Over time, you will move from simply learning skills to mastering them, building confidence in your ability to handle whatever life brings.
Our Intensive Outpatient DBT Program
What sets our intensive outpatient DBT program apart is the depth of our commitment and the integration of our care. Our therapists are extensively trained and certified in DBT, ensuring you receive treatment that is faithful to the evidence-based model.
More than that, we foster a genuine therapeutic community where you are understood, not judged. Our program coordinators work to ensure a seamless experience, and our small group sizes guarantee you receive individual attention.
We believe in treating the whole person, which is why our program also addresses co-occurring issues like trauma, anxiety, and depression through our integrated approach. Our goal is not just to teach skills but to help you build a life that feels meaningful and manageable, long after you graduate from the program.
Take The First Step Towards Recovery
The intensive outpatient DBT program at Steps Recovery Centers offers a powerful pathway out of emotional chaos and toward a future of stability and purpose. It provides the structure, skills, and support you need to create lasting change without requiring you to put your life on hold. If you are ready to break the cycle and build a life worth living, we are here to provide the map and guide you every step of the way.
Contact Steps Recovery Centers in Utah today to speak with our admissions team and learn if our DBT IOP is the right fit for your journey to emotional wellness.
