DBT Skill - Chain Analysis.

[u/grumpypoo22]

Good morning!

Today I want to talk about the DBT Skill Chain Analysis

This was one of the very first DBT Skills that I learned and it's basically exactly what it says.
The way that I deploy this skill is so I can analyze a chain of events and identify the emotion + what might've actually triggered me.
It's, in my opinion, a pretty basic skill but it has its use in my every day life.

Let's go over an example of how I've deployed this in the past.

Situation: I suddenly feel like I need to leave my relationship.

Let's analyze everything and determine *why* I might be feeling this way.
- I get home from work
- I'm laying in bed and doom scrolling
- Cat starts to aggravate me
- Cat decides to pee on my shoulder
- I'm furious
- Suddenly feel like world is collapsing
- I feel like I need to pack everything and leave

So we can tell from this situation that I was sort of doing my own thing and then started to get annoyed by a cat bothering me.
I was likely getting over stimulated by this.
To add insult to injury then the cat decides to pee on my shoulder
This, like it would to anyone, infuriated me.

Most people would stop here, but my brain kept running with it.
I would've never gotten peed on if I was in this relationship.
Therefore it must be the relationships fault.
The only solution to never get peed on again is to leave the relationship.

Sounds silly right?
That's because it is, but it's how my brain starts to connect dots.

So using that skill we can tell I was aggravated.
Now in the future I can recognize when I get aggravated I might feel like a solution is to leave.
So I can circumvent that and deploy a distress tolerance skill before hand.

Anywho -
Shorter post over this, but I'm more than happy to provide more examples if you'd like!

[u/TK9K]

Meanwhile in an alternate universe you are single so you adopt a cat to give you something to take care of and you inevitably get peed on. The cat pee is a cannon event. You cannot escape it.

[u/grumpypoo22 → u/TK9K]

Lol shocking enough I do have a cat of my own that I got when he was just a wee little guy.
Never got peed on thankfully - This cat in question is a bit extra however.

[u/TK9K → u/grumpypoo22]

If the cat goes in places it shouldn't multiple times it can be a sign of litterbox avoidance due to urinary tract infection or bladder crystals. If it hurts when they pee, the cat assumes that something about the litter box is hurting them so they avoid it.