Episode 97: Diana Partington

Written By Susie Gurley

Join this informative and engaging conversation with Diana Partington, licensed professional counselor in Nashville, Tennessee, and author of DBT for Life. Diana shares the philosophy behind Dialectical Behavioral Therapy and how every person can benefit from DBT.

DBT was founded in 1993 by Dr. Marsha Linehan and became popular around 2010. Diana shares how DBT is a powerful treatment for suicidal thoughts and ideation, depression, borderline personality disorder, anxiety, bipolar disorder, substance abuse, and eating disorders. Diana talks about how her own life events and battle with suicidal thoughts led her to DBT as a client and the transformative power of the tool kit she took from it.

Diana wrote DBT For Life to be user-friendly; something that people could consume in bite-sized chunks and enter in the most helpful way for the reader. The book is full of illustrations and stories of applying DBT skills. Diana dives into the four tenets of DBT therapy and takes the listeners through an example. Diana also runs groups online
(https://dbtforlife.com/) and hosts a podcast called Suffering Optional (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/suffering-optional/id1767018426). DBT For Life can be purchased here: https://www.amazon.com/Dbt-Life-Skills-transform-Lotus/dp/B0CW2ZKB5S

Susie Gurley

Susie Stapp Gurley was born and raised in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. She married her college sweetheart, Dan Gurley, shortly after graduating from TCU with a degree in advertising and public relations. In her first career, Susie worked in college admissions and academic advising. Simultaneously she pursued a master’s degree from The University of Central Missouri in sociology and then worked for the Sedgwick County, KS Department of Aging as a case worker. Susie stepped away from the professional world in 1997 to become a stay-at-home mom. She spent the majority of the last 25 years as a wife, mother, and volunteer, primarily in her church and her three children’s schools and activities.

Susie became a mental health advocate after her youngest son became a teen spokesperson about his battle with depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation. In 2018, at the age of 15, Will founded the You Matter Festival, a music festival promoting mental health awareness and suicide prevention. Will shared his personal mental health struggles with the 1,000-person crowd, which started his role as a local KC teen advocate for mental health. Because of Will’s involvement, Susie recorded a video #Zeroreasonswhy (https://zeroreasonswhy.org), a Kansas City area organization working to end teen suicide in the Johnson County, Kansas area. This video was viewed over 10,000 times, which was the impetus of the Just A Mom podcast. Susie decided that she needed to follow the brave trail blazed by her son and became an outspoken advocate for parents of children who struggle with mental illness. The Just a Mom podcast launched in September of 2022 and encourages parents to know that they are not alone and there is hope.

Susie served as the Executive Director of the You Matter Festival and is currently on the Friends of Johnson County Mental Health Board. Susie has grown three children, two daughters-in-law, and a son-in-law.

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Episode 96: Laura Craciun