DBT House / DBH-A04-2
Walls of Boundaries — Practice worksheet
Identify one useful boundary, one flexible opening, and a situation where safety needs outside support.
15 minutes · Worksheet · Adults; supported use as appropriate
Fictional example: Riley wants privacy around messages while remaining connected to friends.
Use an ordinary or fictional example, with a clinician when appropriate. Walls can represent chosen limits rather than total isolation.
1. Choose a workable example
Use the fictional example below or an ordinary situation of your choosing. Keep identifying details out of shared copies.
2. Try the practice
Identify one useful boundary, one flexible opening, and a situation where safety needs outside support.
3. Compare possibilities
Generate at least two interpretations or options. Mark what you know, what you are guessing, and what remains outside your control.
4. Decide together
What should this boundary protect, and how can it remain realistic? Choose one small action, a support request, or no action. Review the fit with your clinician when relevant.
Prompts for this resource
- My chosen or fictional situation, and what I know about it:
- My response to the practice task above:
- What should this boundary protect, and how can it remain realistic?
- An optional next step, support, adaptation, or reason to stop:
Conceptual background
Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Training: Fundamentals — Behavioral Tech Institute
Background on the approach only. Original exercises and wording are by More Than Therapy with AI assistance; the source does not validate or endorse these materials.