Check the Facts

When a feeling is big and you're not sure if it fits. It’s one of the DBT emotion regulation skills, and the skills picker can route a client here in the moment.

Not sure this is the right skill?

The free DBT skills picker asks what’s happening right now and routes to a skill to try.

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When to reach for Check the Facts

When a feeling is big and you're not sure if it fits.

How to practice Check the Facts

What's the prompting event? Just the facts, no interpretation.
What's my interpretation? List the assumptions I'm making.
What are the alternative interpretations? Is each one possible?
What's the actual threat? How likely is the worst-case I'm imagining?
Decide: emotion fits → solve or tolerate. Doesn't fit → Opposite Action.

If it doesn’t help: the DBT skills picker routes next to Opposite Action. Different skills land for different people and moments — trying the next-best fit is part of the method, not a failure.

Tracking Check the Facts on a diary card

Whether a client used Check the Facts — and whether it helped — is exactly what a DBT diary card captures. Recording skill use day by day is how you see, in session, whether emotion regulation skills are generalizing.

Track skill use for free

Build a custom diary card that tracks the skills you’re working on, or track it digitally in Theracharts.

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FAQ

What is Check the Facts in DBT?

Check the Facts is a DBT emotion regulation skill. When a feeling is big and you're not sure if it fits.

When should I use Check the Facts?

Reach for check the facts when a feeling is big and you're not sure if it fits.

In crisis? Call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, US) — free, confidential, 24/7. This page is educational and is not therapy, diagnosis, or a substitute for professional care.