Set Your Facility Apart with

DBT Informed Music Therapy Training

This page gives you everything you need to evaluate the DBT Informed Music Therapy Training and decide how best to support your therapist’s participation.

👉 [Download Program Overview PDF ]

Why Facilities Invest in DBT-Informed Music Therapy

Facilities value DBT-Informed Music Therapy because it equips therapists with a clear, skills-based framework for supporting clients who struggle with emotional regulation, impulsive behavior, or relationship challenges - while strengthening collaboration across your clinical team.

Therapists trained in DBT skills are better able to:

support emotional regulation and coping
improve client engagement and follow-through
reduce escalation risk through consistent skills language
collaborate more effectively across disciplines
grow in confidence and clinical competence

You’ll find DBT-informed music therapy being used successfully in mental health programs as well as healthcare, education, residential care, neuro-rehab, and community settings.

DBT: The Evidence-Based Framework Behind This Training

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is a highly respected, evidence‑based therapeutic model. While it was originally developed for high‑risk populations, its practical life skills are now used in diverse care environments to help people:

Replace maladaptive behaviors with effective coping strategies
Respond to challenges thoughtfully instead of reacting impulsively
Improve communication and relationship skills
Regulate emotions to maintain stability and minimize setbacks

In this program, your music therapist doesn’t just learn DBT skills. They learn how to integrate those skills meaningfully into music therapy practice.

This allows clients to:

Engage more fully
Remember the skills longer
Integrate skills into their daily lives

The result is a therapist who is better equipped to support clients in building more stable, skill-based lives ... while enhancing your facility’s treatment outcomes in measurable ways.

This training grows the therapist’s skills, strategies, and confidence,

so they can help clients navigate challenges and move toward what DBT calls “a life worth living.”

Your Therapists Will Be Able to:

Confidently integrate DBT into sessions
Collaborate with your clinical team using common DBT language
Support emotion regulation and client stability
Lead or co-lead DBT-informed groups
Support measurable client progress
Earn 100 CMTE credits and a professional DBT-Informed Music Therapist designation

By supporting your music therapist’s enrollment, you’re bringing these proven skills, and their impact, into your own program.

What Clinical Leaders Are Saying

Leaders who supervise and support music therapists share how DBT-Informed Music Therapy training has strengthened their programs and client care:

Peggy Tileston MT-BC, Clinical Training Coordinator

Temple University

Increased therapist professionalism — staff gains personal and professional integrity by applying DBT themselves

Higher‑quality implementation — high‑level supervision supports successful integration of DBT into everyday practice

Stronger team collaboration — peer learning creates a network of professionals resourcing each other

Staff meets CE requirements while gaining specialty skills — therapists earn required CMTEs and bring back new, in‑demand expertise

Your therapist will return with an advanced credential and versatile skills

they can apply across diverse client populations.

Stephen King MT-BC

Your therapist will integrate seamlessly into your interdisciplinary team using shared DBT language for improved collaboration.

Diana Gross MT-BC

Your therapist can expand your service offerings and support research‑based program development.

Lindsey Landeck MT-BC

Your facility will be on the leading edge of evidence‑based, integrative therapeutic practice.

Kirsten Sorensen, MT-BC

Some organizations are initially unsure how DBT could possibly integrate into music therapy.

Here’s how one therapist’s experience changed that perspective.

Caitlin Carter MT-BC

Director of Activity Therapy - Inpatient Psych

Shares her experience with that:

Initially, Caitlin’s workplace did not send her to DBT therapist training along with the rest of her treatment team because leadership wasn’t sure how DBT skills would apply to music therapy.
Caitlin completed the DBT Informed Music Therapy Training through The Spiegel Academy.
Caitlin reports that the Spiegel Academy training gave her a clear, usable understanding of DBT skills in day-to-day practice.
She is frequently asked by colleagues to help clarify DBT concepts because this training helped her internalize and communicate the skills so effectively.
Once leadership observed the positive impact of her DBT-informed music therapy work with clients, they later chose to send her to the full Behavioral Tech DBT Intensive Training as well.
She finds DBT-informed music therapy highly valuable ... even in high-acuity inpatient care.

When a Team Realized How Powerfully DBT Could Integrate Into Music Therapy

“It’s a great program - and music therapists can benefit from it no matter what population you work with.”

These voices reflect what many facilities experience when therapists receive this DBT Informed Music Therapy structured, skills-based professional training.

What This Training Provides

When you enroll your therapists in this program, they’ll get:

The DBT Informed Music Therapy Training Program is a year-long, cohort-based professional development experience designed primarily for music therapists. However, we also welcome Recreation Therapists, Art Therapists, and Dance/Movement Therapists who wish to integrate DBT skills within their own professional scope of practice.

Participants learn to integrate DBT skills into their work in a way that is clinically appropriate, ethical, and supportive of your existing services.

Your therapist receives:

Weekly guided training + skill development
Clinical application support & supervision
Case consultation
Structured DBT-informed interventions
CMTE credits awarded
DBT-Informed Music Therapist designation upon completion

Want a deeper look? View the full curriculum and schedule here.

Why This Matters

DBT-informed training provides music therapists with a clear language and structure for supporting coping skills and emotional regulation. This enhances the therapeutic work they are already doing by giving them a practical toolkit they can use alongside music-based interventions to help clients stay regulated, engaged, and successful across settings.

Through this program, therapists learn to apply DBT skills in music-centered, experiential ways that support emotional awareness, healthier coping, and stronger interpersonal functioning ... all while staying within their professional scope of practice.

About Certification
Graduates of this program receive the DBT-Informed Music Therapist designation. This reflects competency in integrating DBT skills within the scope of music therapy, including the ability to accurately identify, teach, and apply the appropriate DBT skill in real-time clinical situations..

DBT therapist certification itself is available through the DBT-Linehan Board of Certification and requires a separate, formal certification process.

Who is this training intended for?

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Who benefits from DBT-informed music therapy?

Clients who experience emotional dysregulation, anxiety, impulsivity, distress, or difficulty with relationships often benefit ... across diverse settings.

Does this program provide DBT therapist certification?

No. Graduates of this program receive the DBT-Informed Music Therapist designation, which reflects completion of the training and demonstration of competence in integrating DBT skills into practice - including the ability to accurately identify, teach, and apply the appropriate DBT skill in real-time clinical situations.

DBT therapist certification itself is available through the DBT-Linehan Board of Certification and requires a separate, formal certification process. This program does not replace that pathway.

What outcomes do facilities typically notice?

Many programs report:
• more regulated clients
• clearer therapeutic structure
• stronger team collaboration
• therapists feeling more confident

Results vary by setting..

How much time is required of the therapist for this training each week?

Participants engage in structured learning, consultation, and applied practice throughout the year. Skills are woven into day-to-day therapy work for natural integration.

Is supervision or consultation included?

Yes. Therapists are supported throughout the year so they’re not learning in isolation. They receive feedback, community connection, and structured guidance.

How do I know if my therapist is a good fit?

We look for clinicians who are thoughtful, collaborative, open to reflective practice, and eager to expand their skills. If you’re unsure, we’re happy to talk it through.

Is there any research on DBT and Music Therapy?

DBT-informed music therapy in collaboration with DBT skills training was studied at Kalamazoo Psychiatric Hospital and published in the Journal of Music Therapy. Early findings showed improvements in emotion regulation, decreased emotional symptoms, and fewer self-harm risk factors.

This training builds on that foundation.

Will my therapist be able to run DBT skills groups as a result of this training?

The multiple layers of this program give your therapist the ground work to learn, understand, and apply DBT skills in their practice. They will thoroughly know the skills and will be qualified to teach DBT skills. They will be able to lead skills training groups, or to co-lead skills training groups with a member of your team.

This training thoroughly equips your therapist to teach and apply DBT skills within the scope of music therapy and earn the DBT-Informed Music Therapist designation. It does not certify them as DBT therapists

What happens after I submit the enrollment interest form?

We’ll reach out with program details and next-step options so you can make an informed decision..

Your Investment

The professional tuition for the DBT Informed Music Therapy Training Program is $5,000 per therapist, covering a full year of structured training, supervision, consultation, and professional support.

Multi-Staff Enrollment Support: Facilities enrolling two or more therapists receive $500 off each enrollment.

If your organization requires invoicing or payment by check, please contact Deborah at [email protected].

This program is designed as a comprehensive professional development experience that supports therapist competence, client progress, and interdisciplinary alignment.

Enroll Your Music Therapist(s)

or Request More Information

Investing in DBT-Informed Music Therapy

is an investment in safer environments, more resilient clinicians, and more supported clients.

Schedule a Conversation

You may schedule a brief Zoom meeting with a member of our program team to discuss program details, tuition support, timelines, and enrollment options. If you would like additional insight into clinical impact or team integration, your advisor can also arrange a follow-up conversation with a DBT-Informed clinical leader.