DBT House / DBH-A12-1
The Roof of Protection — Concept brief
Understand the idea behind the roof of protection and consider whether it fits your context.
8 minutes · Handout · Adults; supported use as appropriate
Fictional example: Riley needs a workplace accommodation as well as a coping plan.
Use an ordinary or fictional example, with a clinician when appropriate. Protection can include services and environmental changes, not only coping skills.
The idea
Protection can include services and environmental changes, not only coping skills.
An ordinary example
Riley needs a workplace accommodation as well as a coping plan.
What this can look like
Identify supports that reduce exposure to stress or harm and note what requires professional or community help.
Check the fit
Which protective change belongs outside the individual? You may disagree with the framing, use fiction, or decide that this approach is not useful today.
A useful distinction
A house metaphor is an organizing option, not a diagnostic test, safety determination, or required way to represent experience.
Prompts for this resource
- What part of this idea makes sense to me?
- Which protective change belongs outside the individual?
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.