What is Clarity Intensive?
Clarity Intensive is an evidence-based program designed to help those with severe emotional and behavioral disorders. At Clarity Intensive, clients will participate in group skills training to learn behavioral skills that can help them cope with challenges. Skills training for adolescents covers five modules: mindfulness (skills for focus, relaxation), distress tolerance (coping in times of crisis), interpersonal effectiveness (skills for interacting with others), walking the middle path (seeing things in multiple ways), and emotion regulation (skills for managing intense emotions). Clients will also participate in individual therapy with a focus on helping clients develop a life worth living. DBT therapists emphasize balancing acceptance and change and use validation to enhance client motivation. Finally, Clarity Intensive requires that parents attend one parent group per week. Parents will be taught the skills that their teens are learning, so that they can help reinforce skill-building outside of group.
Who would benefit from Clarity Intensive?
Clarity Intensive is designed to serve adolescents between the ages of 13 and 19 with emotional and behavioral disorders. The program is targeted at teens who have not had success in individual therapy and need a more intensive treatment option. It can also serve as a “step down” for teens who are discharged from inpatient or residential treatment or partial hospitalization programs but still need ongoing treatment. At Clarity Intensive, we treat teens with a variety of diagnoses, including but not limited to: depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder. We also work with teens with a dual diagnosis of mental illness and substance use disorder.
Why Clarity Intensive?
At Clarity Intensive, our warm and engaging providers utilize an evidence-based treatment in order to provide clients with the best possible care. DBT has been shown to be effective in treating a myriad of mental health concerns, including personality disorders, depression, and parasuicidal behaviors (e.g., cutting). It is particularly effective at reducing both parasuicidal behaviors and suicide risk. Additionally, the DBT model has been shown to reduce client attrition as well as burnout for treatment providers. DBT prioritizes treatment targets in a specific order to help the therapist organize treatment and maximize the client’s safety and adherence to treatment. In short, DBT works – and it works for people who have not been successful with other treatments.
When does the program meet?
Clarity Intensive groups will meet twice weekly, on Mondays and Fridays from 4:00-7:00, for 12 weeks. Individual sessions will be held on Wednesdays and will be scheduled with the individual therapist. Parent group will meet weekly on Wednesdays evenings from 6:00-7:30.
