Remisjon av selvskading hos ungdommer predikerte bedre emosjonsregulering i voksen alder

Emotion regulation capacity, which is critical for adult functioning and mental health, develops strongly during adolescence in healthy individuals, whereas deficits in emotion regulation is often referred to as emotion dysregulation [ED] and is associated with various mental health problems, including repeated deliberate self-harm [DSH], which peaks in adolescence. Dialectical behaviour therapy for adolescents [DBT-A] has previously been shown to effectively induce DSH remission in adolescents. The present study aimed to investigate whether such remission was associated with reduced ED in adulthood, and whether this effect was mediated by reductions in dysfunctional coping. The design was a prospective longterm follow-up study of an RCT comparing DBT-A with enhanced usual care [EUC] for adolescents with borderline personality features and repeated self-harm. The original sample consisted of 77 adolescents, of which 61 were assessed in adulthood, 12.4 years later. The results showed that there was a direct effect of DSH remission one year after treatment on adult ED, although this effect was not mediated by changes in coping. This is the first study to report that early DSH remission in adolescence predicted lower ED in adulthood, and highlights the importance of early DSH remission and provides new insight into the long-term relationship between DSH and ED.