Decider Skills
I'm wondering if anyone has completed the decider skills course? I completed it today and I love it. It made so much sense to me. Would love to chat to others about it too.
@Krayonthistle There are several courses with similar names. I guess you mean this one: The Decider Skills
Unfortunately that looks like a scam to me. This is because the actual skills seem to be secret, and I can't find any independent research showing that the training has any benefits. Of course, it might not be a scam! The skills might be secret for some good reason, and the research might be about to be published real soon. But right now, with the information I can find, it looks like a scam.
I was able to find one screenshot from the training:
The punchline is "Don't believe everything you think!" I don't find that very helpful. I don't think you can go through life being suspicious of your own thoughts about other people. I once knew a guy who was suspicious of his own thoughts about other people. He was diagnosed as having schizophrenia, and he was helped a lot by medication. I think being suspicious of your own thoughts about other people is a disability, not a skill.
I agree with you that it would be interesting to hear from others who have taken this course.
Charlie
@RarelyCharlie
Hi Charlie--I did some digging and I was able to find a full list of the skills:
https://www.thedecider.org.uk/resources-downloads/the-32-decider-skills/
It looks like a slightly reorganized/rephrased presentation of DBT and CBT skills. Both of the creators of the program are licensed CBT therapists.
https://www.thedecider.org.uk/news-studies/news-studies/studies/the-decider-skills-the-evidence/
https://www.thedecider.org.uk/media/z5jca530/evidencebase-deciderskills.pdf
Re: the specific screenshot, I can kind of see how it's trying to apply the ABC model from CBT to a social situation. I'm personally not a fan of telling people that they should doubt/distrust themselves, or at least not unless if it's narrowly targeted and padded with a lot of epistemic humility and sensitivity to contraindications. Some presentations of challenging negative beliefs are so general/critical/confident that I start to feel like *they* are the ones engaging in irrational thinking by assuming that anybody who is suffering is always necessarily misperceiving reality. 
@QuietMagic Hi Josh! Thank you for researching this further 
Yes, you're right, these are like DBT skills repackaged.
In the UK there's no such thing as being licensed as a CBT therapist, and I still don't see any evidence for The Decider Skills in particular, only a reading list of the sources that inspired them. But yes, some ideas from CBT and DBT in a nice package.
Charlie
Hi It is being rolled out throughout Scotland just now. I have found it so helpful using the 32 different skills. It's stuff I'm doing daily anyway but by identifying it as a tool it helps you to realise you are trying to keep yourself well and not giving up at the first hurdle. It definitely isn't a scam as nhs scotland ayrshire and arran are using it with their cpns, occupational therapists, nurses etc.
@Krayonthistle
Thanks for sharing! I hadn't seen this before. Was there anything that jumped out that you especially liked or found helpful?
I enjoy using the skills. Some more than others such as the 54321 skill for distress tolerance and iv just been taught the "end or mend" skill which for me as a person with BPD is such a lifeline when holding onto negative people around you and learning to let them go if they are toxic.
@Krayonthistle
I like 54321 too, enough that I added a picture for it to my profile today. "End or mend" sounds great--the idea that there are some relationships that might be unhealthy/harmful to the point that it isn't worth the pain of trying to maintain or save them.