The Hulk, Psychology, and DBT

I watched the first episode of She Hulk: Attorney at Law the other night (I know, I am just an incurable intellectual). The Hulk did a surprisingly good job of, briefly, describing DBT to his cousin, the lawyer. I particularly liked how she dismissed it as a bunch of simplistic, ‘be in the moment’ mumbo jumbo, and how he got obviously annoyed, and said, “No. It isn’t.” Then he tried to explain what the therapy was about. The automatic rejection, and the assumption that DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) and other similar therapies are some sort of new age snake oil is realistic. It is how some people can react. In fact, it was not far off the initial reaction of many psychologists in New Zealand when it was first introduced here.

• The reality is of course very different.

The Hulk described DBT as developing the ability to hold two contradictory or seemingly contradictory ideas, or world views simultaneously. This is one of the key factors of DBT, and might show itself in different ways, such as: “my partner is a self-centred bastard and I love him”, or “I hate myself and I have nice hair.” This reflects a higher order sort of thinking/acceptance of reality that develops over time. In practice, DBT is a very practical therapy with a lot of evidence to support its effectiveness.

It was initially developed for use with people who experienced what some referred to as severe “emotional dysregulation.” That is, people who suffered a lot of emotional turmoil and were at significant risk of suicide and other self-harm. DBT helps people cope with such feelings and behaviours by assisting them to develop a broad range of skills. These include emotional regulation, distress tolerance, mindfulness, and interpersonal effectiveness. The approach also stresses clear validation of people’s feelings. If you feel strong negative emotions this does not mean something is wrong with you; you are reacting to the hand you were dealt, and you can find a way to deal differently with the situation, and your emotions.

DBT informed therapy is now used with a wide range of common problems. Some of these include anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. The Hulk as you may know, can have difficulty dealing with strong emotions like anger. He obviously found DBT helpful. Or, since he is fictional, someone connected with the programme may have.

At any rate, it was great to see some sensible, and accurate discussion of psychology in popular media. Especially regarding DBT. It has helped innumerable people over the years, and has saved some lives.