Continuing Education

DBT-Informed Bereavement Care: Holding Grief Through Music Therapy

A continuing education course for music therapists and helping professionals, exploring how Dialectical Behavior Therapy–informed principles can support compassionate bereavement care through music therapy.

6 weeks [X] CMTE credits Online & self-paced Taught by Christina Zayas, MT-BC, MBA

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The Course

Grief asks something different of us

Working with the bereaved asks clinicians to hold intense emotion without rushing to fix it. DBT gives us a framework for exactly that: distress tolerance, emotion regulation, mindfulness, and the practice of holding two truths at once.

This course brings those principles into the music therapy room. Over six weeks you'll build practical, evidence-informed tools for supporting grieving clients, and for sustaining yourself while you do it.

What we cover

Week One

Foundations of Grief & Loss

Contemporary grief theory, disenfranchised grief, and how loss presents across the lifespan.

Week Two

DBT Core Principles for Grief Work

Dialectics, validation, and the balance of acceptance and change in bereavement care.

Week Three

Mindfulness & Music

Using music to anchor attention, regulate the nervous system, and create present-moment safety.

Week Four

Distress Tolerance Through Music

Interventions that help clients stay with painful emotion without becoming overwhelmed.

Week Five

Emotion Regulation & Meaning Making

Songwriting, lyric analysis, and legacy work that support continuing bonds.

Week Six

Clinician Sustainability

Vicarious grief, boundaries, and building a practice you can carry for the long term.

Learning objectives

Describe core DBT principles and their application to bereavement care.
Identify at least five music therapy interventions that support distress tolerance.
Apply mindfulness-based music techniques with grieving clients.
Adapt interventions across age groups and cultural contexts.
Recognize signs of complicated grief and know when to refer.
Develop a personal plan for sustainable clinical practice.

$[PRICE]One-time payment · lifetime access

Six recorded modules, self-paced
[X] CMTE credits on completion
Downloadable handouts & intervention guides
Reflection prompts and clinical examples
Certificate of completion
Lifetime access, including updates

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Questions first? Get in touch

Who It's For

Designed for clinicians who sit with grief

Music Therapists

Board-certified professionals seeking CMTE credit and practical grief tools.

Students & Interns

Those preparing to work in hospice, palliative, or bereavement settings.

Allied Professionals

Counselors, chaplains, social workers, and nurses who support the bereaved.

Questions

Course FAQ

No. The course introduces DBT principles from the ground up and focuses on how they apply within music therapy practice.

Credits are awarded on completion of all six modules and the final reflection. You'll receive a certificate for your CBMT recertification records.

The course is self-paced with lifetime access, so you can move through it on your own schedule and revisit the material any time.

Materials are currently offered in English. Reach out if you'd like to be notified when Spanish resources become available.

Yes. Group and facility rates are available for care teams. Get in touch to discuss what your organization needs.

Enrollment

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