title: Living through distress: a skills training group for reducing deliberate self-harm.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) is an evidence-based treatment effective in reducing deliberate self-harm. However, DBT is resource and time intensive, and few services are able to sustain a programme faithful to all aspects. Thus, modified or adapted versions of DBT have been developed, particularly for delivery in inpatient hospital settings.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study presents a description of the "Living Through Distress" (LTD) Group, which is based on the group skills training component of DBT.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants (n = 114) were patients of a psychiatric hospital who attended the LTD group. The main inclusion criterion for the LTD group was a history of deliberate self-harm. The outcome measures were frequency of incidents of deliberate self-harm, levels of distress tolerance, and mean numbers of bed days per year.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Upon completion of the group, there were significant reductions in participants' reports of deliberate self-harm and significant increases in their distress tolerance levels, which were maintained at 3-month follow-up. There was also a reduction in participants' mean number of inpatient days at 1-year and 2-year follow-up. Over 50% of participants had no admissions in the year subsequent to completing the group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  As this study was not a randomized controlled trial, results must be interpreted with caution. However, the findings presented here are promising, and suggest that a briefer, less resource intense version of the group skills training component of DBT may be effective in reducing deliberate self-harm.
authors.affiliation: St. Patrick's University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Booth
authors.affiliation: St. Patrick's University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Keogh
authors.affiliation: St. Patrick's University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
authors.forename: Jillian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Doyle
authors.affiliation: St. Patrick's University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
authors.forename: Tara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Owens
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D001521:Behavior Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006778:Hospitals, Psychiatric; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010359:Patient Readmission / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group / Q000379:methods*; D016728:Self-Injurious Behavior / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*