DBT basics
What Is a DBT Diary Card?
A DBT diary card is a short daily record that helps turn a week of experiences into something you and your therapist can look at together.
In Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), a diary card is usually completed between sessions. It gives a therapist and client a shared snapshot of the week: what emotions or urges showed up, which behaviors mattered, and which skills were tried. The exact card is personal. Your program or therapist may use different categories, scales, and priorities.
A diary card is a conversation tool. It can make it easier to remember patterns and choose what to discuss in session.
What does a DBT diary card commonly track?
Many cards use a row for each day and a small number scale. A card may include:
- Emotions or emotional intensity, such as sadness, anger, fear, shame, or joy.
- Urges and target behaviors chosen with a therapist.
- DBT skills practice, often grouped around mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness.
- Notes or context that will help make sense of a difficult moment later.
The University of Washington’s Behavioral Research & Therapy Clinics publishes examples of diary cards and instructions; they illustrate how cards can combine daily ratings, target information, and skill-use tracking. A person should use the format their own treatment team recommends rather than copying a generic card blindly.
Why bring one to therapy?
A week can blur together. A brief daily record can help you notice what happened closer to when it happened, rather than relying only on memory at the start of a session. It also gives the session a shared starting point: which event, urge, behavior, or skill deserves attention first?
A diary card is not a scorecard and it is not proof that someone “did DBT correctly.” Blank days and hard weeks are useful information too. If completing a card feels confusing, overwhelming, or unsafe, bring that to your therapist rather than trying to solve it alone.
Paper or digital?
Paper cards work well for many people. Others prefer a digital card because their phone is already nearby, entries can be kept private, and a week can be shared as a PDF. The useful choice is the one that fits your treatment plan and makes daily completion more realistic.
DBT Diary Daily is an iPhone and iPad app that lets users record diary-card information privately on-device and export a PDF they choose to share. It is a tracking tool, not therapy or crisis support.
A simple way to start
- Ask your therapist which fields belong on your card and what each scale means.
- Pick a consistent moment to complete it, even if the entry is brief.
- Record what you can without trying to reconstruct every detail.
- Bring the card to session and use it to choose one useful conversation.
Sources
- University of Washington Behavioral Research & Therapy Clinics: assessment instruments and diary cards
- University of Washington: DBT Skills Diary Card with instructions (PDF)
Important: This article is general education, not medical or mental-health advice. A DBT diary card should be tailored with a qualified clinician when you are in treatment. If you are in immediate danger or may harm yourself, call local emergency services or a crisis line right away.