NEW BOOK | August 2026

What if treatment for BPD wasn’t one-size-fits-all?

Who it's for: People diagnosed with BPD, or who suspect they have it. Also therapists using it with clients.

Finally, a personalized, science-backed roadmap for managing intense emotions, improving relationships, and making values-aligned choices.

A Treatment Plan That Fits You – Not Your Diagnosis

Who is this for?

If you’re struggling with ups and downs in your emotions or relationships, or find yourself behaving in ways that pull you away from your values

This is for you.

Download a FREE sample chapter

And bonus materials

For Therapists

If you’re a therapist, BPD Compass offers a practical, targeted approach to treating borderline personality disorder, whether you’re already a specialist for this condition or looking for a place to start.

What You’ll Walk Away With

  • Identify Patterns

    Understand the patterns pulling you off course

  • Respond Differently

    Pause & Choose—even in the moments that usually derail you

  • Values Aligned

    Build a life that aligns with your values & the thriving identity you’re building

Praise

How It’s Structured

  • Your Custom Plan

    Take a research-backed assessement to develop your custom treatment plan

  • Become a Values PRO

    Clarify your values so the changes you're making fit the life you’re trying to build

  • Skills for Thinking

    Learn to think flexibly about emotions, relationships, & triggers for impulsivity

  • Skills for Doing

    Get off autopilot and prioritize behaviors that move you toward your values in the long run

  • Skills for Being

    Develop the capacity to watch emotions, conflicts, and urges without reacting automatically

  • The New Normal

    Practice applying new skills across contexts until they feel comfortable & automatic

Book’s Argument

Real change comes from identifying and targeting the patterns that actually drive your symptoms.

What makes BPD Compass different?

  • 🧭 Personalized treatment plan just for you

    No two people experience BPD the same way—and this workbook doesn’t treat you like they do. You’ll begin with a brief assessment to identify your primary patterns, then follow a plan tailored to your needs - so you’re not wasting time.

  • 🎯 Targets the Root Patterns–Not Just Symptoms

    Instead of playing whack-a-mole with every symptom, BPD Compass focuses on the personality vulnerabilities that drive their expression. It's more potent and efficient this way – helping you improve fast.

  • 🌱 Simultaneously handles co-occurring conditions:

    The core patterns that drive BPD symptoms are also important for other difficulties—like anxiety, depression, PTSD, and more—so the skills you build here lead to meaningful change in all the ways that count.

  • 🏆 Proven CBT tools, tested in clinical trials

    Grounded in cognitive-behavioral science, the Compass approach will teach you effective skills for thinking, doing, and being.

What Clients Are Saying...

  • I just want to say that this treatment has changed many relationships in my life and I am grateful to have been a part of it. I think everyone should know and practice these skills and I so pleasantly surprised at the course of therapy  as a whole and at myself. Thank you to Shannon. What you do here changes lives and I want you to know it means something.

    Former Client

  • Shannon was wonderful. I felt seen, heard and understood.   I love that this option came open. For someone who doesn't qualify for inpatient/intensive outpatient or is unable to go for, this treatment was great. It gave all the tools I was lacking and I am so grateful. 

    Former Client

  • Thank you! This could help those with BPD who have gone through a topsy-turvy life. Shannon has been the best therapist I've had. I knew I could always be honest with her when talking about my internal struggles.

    Former Client

  • Working with Shannon  was powerful and made BPD less scary.  My anxiety has decreased tremendously by giving me tools to address the thoughts that had been running wild convincing me I was terrible.

    Former Client

  • Shannon helped me realize I can shape who I am and what I value and also to stop running from emotional distress by doing things that are outside of the life I am shaping.

    Former Client

Hello!

Science-Backed Personality Change

BPD Compass comes from 15+ years of research on personality change.  We’ve run the clinical trials, we’ve refined the treatment, we know it works!

It also comes from recognizing that the most effective treatments for this condition  weren’t reaching all the people who needed them.

So BPD Compass  is designed to bridge that gap—turning cutting edge research into something accessible that you can actually use to create meaningful change for yourself or your clients.

Why now?

Awareness of borderline personality disorder has grown. But access to effective treatment hasn’t kept up. BPD Compass offers a more focused, accessible way forward.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • The BPD Compass Workbook is a personalized, science-backed workbook that helps people with borderline personality disorder, a condition marked by intense emotions, unstable relationships, and impulsive behavior, identify their specific patterns and build the skills to change them.

  • The BPD Compass Workbook was created to solve the most common reason BPD treatment fails: one-size-fits-all programs. It starts with a brief assessment that identifies which patterns are driving your specific struggles, so you only work on what actually applies to you.

  • No. The BPD Compass Workbook is designed for anyone who recognizes patterns of intense emotions, difficult relationships, or impulsivity in their life. No diagnosis required to start.

  • The BPD Compass Workbook is the only workbook built around a personalized assessment that identifies your unique patterns first. You skip what doesn't apply and focus only on the skills that match your specific struggles.

  • No. The BPD Compass Workbook is designed to be used completely on your own, or alongside a therapist if you have one.

For Therapists

Frequently Asked Questions

  • The BPD Compass Workbook is based on the COMPASS program, a short-term cognitive behavioral intervention developed by Dr. Shannon Sauer-Zavala and tested in NIMH-funded clinical trials. It targets the specific patterns driving each client's difficulties rather than applying the same protocol to everyone.

  • The BPD Compass Workbook was developed by Dr. Shannon Sauer-Zavala, a licensed clinical psychologist and Associate Professor at the University of Kentucky who has trained clinicians across six continents in this evidence-based approach.

  • Yes. The BPD Compass Workbook is modular and customizable, built specifically for clinical use and designed to integrate into existing treatment workflows without disrupting your current approach.

  • Yes. The COMPASS program behind the BPD Compass Workbook has been tested in rigorous NIMH-funded clinical trials, making it one of the most evidence-backed personalized approaches to BPD treatment available.

  • We offer flexible pricing based on project type and complexity. After an initial conversation, we’ll provide a transparent quote with no hidden costs.

Launching August 2026

What if treatment for BPD wasn’t one-size-fits-all?

Who it's for: People diagnosed with BPD, or who suspect they have it. Also therapists using it with clients.