DBT worksheets for teens

DBT Worksheets for Teens: Therapist-Approved Activities

DBT Worksheets for Teens: Engaging, Evidence-Based Tools That Teens Will Actually Use

Working with teens often means balancing two realities:

Teens usually need structure and skills — but they don’t always engage with traditional worksheets.

DBT works especially well with teens because it’s practical, skills-focused, and immediately usable in real life. But the format matters. Worksheets that feel clinical or overly text-heavy often get ignored. Worksheets that are visual, practical, and relatable are far more likely to be used — both in session and between sessions.

Below are therapist-approved DBT worksheets and activities that tend to work well with teen clients in real-world therapy settings.

What Makes a DBT Worksheet Work for Teens?

In practice, DBT worksheets are more likely to work with teens when they:

  • Use clear, simple language
  • Feel practical rather than academic
  • Include real-life examples
  • Allow space for personalisation
  • Focus on one skill at a time
  • Can be completed in under 10 minutes (especially early in therapy)

Therapist-Approved DBT Worksheets for Teens

1️⃣ Emotion Identification & Body Signals Worksheet

Best for:
Teens who say “I don’t know what I feel” or experience fast emotional escalation.

This worksheet helps teens connect:

  • Situations → Emotions → Body sensations → Urges → Behaviours

Many teens experience emotions physically before they can name them. Body-signal mapping helps build emotional awareness without forcing abstract emotional language too early.

Use in session when:

  • Emotional outbursts feel “out of nowhere”
  • Teens struggle to name feelings
  • Early therapy / foundation work

2️⃣ Distress Tolerance Crisis Plan (DBT Survival Skills)

Best for:
Meltdowns, panic spikes, shutdown, self-harm risk moments

This worksheet helps teens build a personalised plan for:

  • What helps before distress spikes
  • What helps during crisis moments
  • Who to contact
  • What usually makes things worse

Strong worksheets include space for sensory strategies, distraction tools, and safe coping options.

Use in session when:

  • Teens feel overwhelmed quickly
  • Crisis behaviour happens fast
  • You’re building safety and stabilisation first

Get Distress Tolerance Worksheets.

3️⃣ Trigger to Treasure Game: Learn to Reframe Triggers

Best for:
Pattern awareness and early intervention

Helps teens identify:

  • Common emotional triggers
  • Warning signs
  • Early coping options
  • Support options

This builds predictability, which often reduces emotional shame.

Use in session when:

  • Emotional spikes feel random to the teen
  • You’re building insight + prevention skills

Our original Therapy Courses game get teens to practice reframing triggers in an engaging fun way. Trigger to Treasure

4️⃣ Opposite Action for Teens (Free)

Best for:
Avoidance, social anxiety, anger reactions, shutdown patterns

This worksheet helps teens:

  • Identify emotion
  • Identify urge linked to emotion
  • Choose opposite action
  • Predict outcome

Teen-friendly versions use real examples:

  • Avoiding school
  • Avoiding friends
  • Social media triggers
  • Family conflict

Use in session when:

  • Teens avoid situations that maintain anxiety or depression
  • Emotional reactions drive behaviour automatically

5️⃣ Interpersonal Effectiveness Conversation Planner (Teen Version)

Best for:
Conflict with parents, friends, teachers, or partners

A teen-adapted interpersonal worksheet helps teens:

  • Clarify what they want from a conversation
  • Plan how to say it
  • Prepare for emotional reactions
  • Practice assertive communication

DEAR MAN, simplified.

Use in session when:

  • Teens struggle with boundaries
  • Conflict escalates quickly
  • Communication shuts down under stress

6️⃣ Urge Surfing & Impulse Pause Worksheets

Best for:
Self-harm urges, impulsive behaviour, emotional decision-making

This activity helps teens visualise urges as waves that rise, peak, and pass. It introduces time-based coping (e.g., waiting 10 minutes before acting).

Often includes:

  • Urge intensity tracking
  • Time delay strategies
  • “If urge stays high, then…” planning

Use in session when:

  • Teens say “I just act before I think”
  • High-risk impulsive behaviours
  • Emotional overwhelm leading to fast decisions

6-page done-for-you urge surfing worksheets

7️⃣ Values + “Life Worth Living” Goal Worksheet (Teen Adapted)

Best for:
Hopelessness, disengagement, low motivation

Teen versions focus on:

  • What matters to them (not adults)
  • Short-term meaningful goals
  • Identity exploration
  • Future self thinking

Use in session when:

  • Teens feel directionless
  • Motivation is very low
  • Therapy is shifting from crisis → growth

How to Introduce DBT Worksheets to Teens (So They Actually Use Them)

In practice, worksheets work better when:

✔ You complete the first example together
✔ You link it to a real situation from their week
✔ You position it as a tool, not homework
✔ You keep first worksheets short and achievable

Common Therapist Questions

Do teens actually complete DBT worksheets?
They’re more likely to when worksheets are brief, relatable, and introduced collaboratively.

Should DBT worksheets be done in session or between sessions?
Many therapists model once in session, then offer optional between-session use.

Are DBT worksheets enough on their own?
No — they work best when integrated into relational, skills-based therapy.

Final Thoughts

The best DBT worksheets for teens don’t feel like schoolwork.

They feel like:

  • Tools teens can use when emotions spike
  • Maps that help them understand reactions
  • Practical supports they can return to outside therapy

Having a small set of reliable DBT worksheets can make sessions easier to structure and help teens build real-world emotional skills faster.

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