Mindfulness is usually a good place to begin. It is foundational to DBT, so a client really needs to develop a basic grounding in mindfulness through simple exercises, in and out of session.
Body Scan
The body scan exercise involves learning to do a quick check-in with the physical body, just noticing what’s going on. Maria can do this in session and also on her own.
She noticed some tension in her neck and shoulders and tightness in her chest. She also felt a knot in her abdomen and a mild foot tremor. The aim is simply to notice such things, but it also provides good information to use when doing trauma processing later on.