Mindfulness of Current Emotion – Additional DBT Tool

Mindfulness of Current Emotion

Definition

Mindfulness of Current Emotion is a DBT skill designed to help you notice, experience, and accept your emotions without judgment, suppression, or acting impulsively on them. The skill emphasizes staying present with your feelings rather than avoiding or escaping them.

Purpose

Used to:

  • Reduce emotional suffering by allowing emotions to pass naturally.
  • Decrease reactivity and impulsive behaviors.
  • Build tolerance for intense feelings.
  • Increase understanding of your emotional experience.

When to Use

Use Mindfulness of Current Emotion when:

  • You feel overwhelmed by intense emotion.
  • You notice a strong urge to avoid, suppress, or react impulsively.
  • You want to understand an emotion more fully.
  • You are practicing emotional acceptance.

When Not to Use

Avoid using this skill exclusively if:

  • You are in immediate crisis and safety is at risk (use distress tolerance first).
  • You are dissociating or feeling detached from reality.
  • You are using substances that significantly impair awareness.

How-To

1. Identify the Emotion

  • Name the emotion you are feeling.

2. Observe the Emotion

  • Notice where it shows up in your body.
  • Be curious about the sensations, urges, and thoughts.

3. Allow the Emotion

  • Breathe into the feeling.
  • Let it be there without trying to push it away.

4. Acknowledge You Can Survive It

  • Remind yourself that emotions are temporary.
  • Say: “I can ride this out.”

5. Don’t Judge

  • Avoid labeling the emotion as good or bad.
  • Just notice it as a passing experience.

6. Let Go When Ready

  • When it naturally shifts or subsides, let it go gently.

Tips & Variations

  • Use mindful breathing to anchor yourself as you observe.
  • Imagine the emotion as a wave that rises, crests, and falls.
  • Use imagery: visualize sitting beside the emotion, watching it.
  • Practice regularly with less intense emotions first.

Example

Scenario: Cam feels an overwhelming wave of sadness after an argument.

Steps Practiced:

  1. Identify: “This is sadness.”

  2. Observe: Heavy chest, tearfulness.

  3. Allow: Breathe deeply, soften resistance.

  4. Acknowledge: “I can feel this without acting.”

  5. Don’t Judge: Avoid thoughts like “I shouldn’t feel this way.”

  6. Let Go: After 15 minutes, the intensity decreases.

Inventor / Origin

Mindfulness of Current Emotion was developed by Marsha Linehan as part of DBT’s Emotion Regulation module. It draws on Eastern mindfulness practices and cognitive-behavioral principles.

Related Skills

  • Radical Acceptance
  • Observing
  • Describing
  • Opposite Action
  • Non-Judgmental Stance

Limitations

May not be effective if:

  • You have not practiced mindfulness regularly.
  • You are in active crisis or at risk of harm.
  • The emotion triggers dissociation or overwhelming distress.

Evidence Base

Research shows:

  • Practicing mindfulness reduces emotional avoidance.
  • Mindfulness of emotion improves emotion regulation and decreases impulsivity.
  • Mindfulness-based interventions are associated with reductions in depression and anxiety.

Further Reading

  • Linehan, M.M. (2015). DBT Skills Training Manual.
  • Kabat-Zinn, J. (1990). Full Catastrophe Living.
  • Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy resources.

References

  • Linehan, M.M. (1993). Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder. Guilford Press.
  • Baer, R.A. (2003). Mindfulness Training as a Clinical Intervention: A Conceptual and Empirical Review. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice.

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