Description
Binge eating disorder (BED), characterized by binge eating without compensatory behaviors and bulimia nervosa (BN), characterized by binge eating with compensatory behaviors, affect approximately 5% of individuals world-wide.  Emotional eating, the tendency to eat in response to affect, occurs in BED and BN but in non-eating disordered individuals as well.   Dialectical Behavior Therapy is an evidence-based treatment for BED, BN and emotional eating.  Unfortunately, many therapists do not have adequate training in this model to be able to effectively offer this treatment.  Moreover, outside of large metropolitan centers, access to evidence-based treatments for BED, BN or emotional eating are limited.  

The current workshop will present two researched models of using DBT to treat emotional eating, binge eating and bulimia.  The first model (Safer, Telch & Chen, 2009) proposes using a 20-week, two-hour outpatient group therapy format for clients with binge eating disorder (BED) or bulimia nervosa (BN). The second model (Safer, Adler & Masson, 2018), which will be reviewed more briefly, proposes the use of a Guided Self Manual which may be offered in person or via teletherapy.  

During this 8-hour workshop participants will receive the theoretical and practical information necessary to incorporate these models into clinical practice.  

Through a combination of didactic presentations, experiential exercises, and clinical vignettes, participants will learn: 

• The theoretical foundation and treatment rationale for using DBT with clients presenting with BED and BN
• Participants will be made aware of specific DBT skills that have been adapted to address binge eating behaviors. 
• Mindfulness: cultivating nonjudgmental awareness to interrupt reactive eating patterns 
• Emotion Regulation: reducing vulnerability to negative emotional states and building emotional resilience 
• Distress Tolerance: surviving intense emotional experiences without using eating disorder behaviors
• Strategies for behavioral chain analysis, diary card use, and promoting generalization of skills outside of session
• Approaches to enhance treatment engagement, including motivational strategies, commitment building 
• Discuss the affect regulation model of binge eating

This training is ideal for clinicians seeking to enhance their ability to apply DBT principles and interventions in the treatment of adult clients with binge eating and bulimia symptoms. Emphasis will be placed on practical skill development, clinical decision-making, and tailoring DBT to real-world practice settings.