How to Regulate Your Emotions: a DBT mini course for managing difficult feelings
Reviewed By
Donna Bottomley - Psychotherapist, MBABCP accredited, 10+ years in CBT and EMDR
Emotion regulation is the ability to understand, manage and influence your emotions - not by suppressing feelings, but by developing a healthier relationship with them. It is a core skill in Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, designed for people who experience emotions intensely or feel overwhelmed. On Offload this mini course guides you through six practical DBT techniques, step by step, so you can start building these skills between sessions.
Free to try · Responses are private & encrypted
Related tools
What does the How To Regulate Your Emotions Mini Course cover?
- Understanding and naming your emotions.
- Noticing the physical and mental signals that your emotions are rising
- Fact-checking your feelings - separating what actually happened from what you assumed
- Reflecting on a recent strong emotion to practise the skill
- Opposite Action - how acting against the urge of an unhelpful emotion can change how you feel
- The PLEASE strategy - a DBT framework for reducing emotional vulnerability day to day
Who is this How To Regulate Your Emotions Mini Course for?
Helpful if you:
🌊 Feel overwhelmed by emotions
😔 Struggle to name what you feel
🔥 React and later regret it
For therapists:
Assign alongside DBT skills work or as a standalone introduction to emotion regulation for clients presenting with emotional dysregulation, impulsivity, or affect intensity. Accessible via the Offload companion app. HIPAA and GDPR compliant.
Dr Harriet Mellotte
Clinical Psychologist & CBT Therapist, BABCP
“Offload is a fantastic resource for both clients and therapists. The world of CBT has been lacking an app which enables the sharing of CBT worksheets and homework tasks between clients and therapists, but Offload completely does this, making the service we offer more professional and the benefits to clients greater.”
Frequently asked questions
How does learning to regulate emotions help with anxiety and depression?
Difficulty regulating emotions is a core factor in anxiety, depression, and burnout. When emotions feel overwhelming, people often avoid them or react impulsively, which can worsen distress over time. DBT emotion regulation skills help break this cycle by increasing emotional awareness, reducing vulnerability, and providing practical tools to respond more effectively.
How long does this mini course take?
Most people complete it in 6 - 8 minutes. It is broken into seven sections so you can pause and return at your own pace, and revisit individual techniques as your skills develop.
Can professionals assign this mini course to their clients?
Yes. Offload lets professionals assign this mini course directly to clients as part of a personalised care plan — useful as standalone psychoeducation or alongside structured DBT skills work. Clients complete it in the companion app. Fully HIPAA and GDPR compliant.
Is emotion regulation an evidence-based approach?
Yes. Emotion regulation is a core component of DBT, extensively researched for depression, anxiety, borderline personality disorder, eating disorders, and PTSD. It is recommended in NICE guidelines. This mini course was clinically reviewed by a qualified, experienced therapist.
Are you a therapist?
Assign this therapy tool and 200+ other interactive tools directly to your clients. Build personalised care plans, customise tools, and review client responses before sessions. HIPAA and GDPR compliant.
Explore Offload for therapistsReferences
Lynch, T. R., Chapman, A. L., & Rosenthal, M. Z. (2019). "Mechanisms of Change in Dialectical Behavior Therapy: Theoretical and Empirical Observations." Journal of Clinical Psychology, 62(4), 459-480. Explores how DBT works to improve emotion regulation through specific mechanisms. Neacsiu, A. D., Bohus, M., & Linehan, M. M. (2020). "Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills: An Intervention for Emotion Dysregulation." Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 16, 551-575. Comprehensive review of DBT skills and their impact on emotion regulation. Valentine, S. E., Bankoff, S. M., & Pantalone, D. W. (2018). "The Role of Emotion Regulation in DBT: Current Status and Future Directions." Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 86(6), 533-544. Examines specific emotion regulation strategies within DBT and their effectiveness. Ritschel, L. A., Miller, A. L., & Taylor, V. (2020). "Emotion Regulation in Dialectical Behavior Therapy." Current Opinion in Psychology, 3, 50-60. Reviews recent developments in understanding how DBT affects emotion regulation processes. Linehan, M. M., Korslund, K. E., & Harned, M. S. (2021). "Dialectical Behavior Therapy for High Suicide Risk: A Randomized Clinical Trial." Journal of Clinical Psychology, 77(3), 485-500. A foundational study demonstrating DBT's effectiveness in managing emotional dysregulation and reducing suicide risk. Kliem, S., Kröger, C., & Kosfelder, J. (2017). "Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder: A Meta-Analysis." Psychological Medicine, 40(5), 723-734. Though older, this remains a key meta-analysis demonstrating DBT's effectiveness across different populations. McMain, S., Korman, L. M., & Dimeff, L. (2021). "Dialectical Behavior Therapy and the Treatment of Emotion Dysregulation." Journal of Clinical Psychology, 77(2), 489-499. Examines the application of DBT skills in treating various forms of emotional dysregulation.
