Everything you need to know about

BPD

Borderline Personality Disorder

What is Borderline Personality?

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a mental health condition that is characterized by severe emotional instability, unstable relationships, distorted self-image, and impulsive behaviors. Individuals with BPD experience life in a very intense way, characterized by extremes of love and hate, idealization and devaluation, and involvement of risky behaviors.

What does Borderline Personality Disorder look like?

Borderline Personality Disorder can present as extremes in day to day living. Some key features of BPD are:

Emotional Dysregulation: Difficulty managing emotions, leading to intense anger, sadness, anxiety, or emptiness. These episodes can last for hours or days and can be triggered by seemingly minor events.

Unstable Relationships: BPD can make it challenging to maintain healthy relationships. People with BPD may fear abandonment intensely and may engage in dramatic behaviors to avoid it. They may idealize people at first, then quickly switch to anger or disappointment.

Distorted Self-Image: People with BPD often struggle with a shaky sense of self-identity. Their self-worth may depend heavily on how others perceive them.

Impulsive Behavior: BPD can lead to impulsive actions in various areas of life, including spending sprees, substance abuse, risky sexual behavior, reckless driving, or self-harm.

Effective treatments for BPD. 

Dialectical Behavior Therapy

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is an evidenced-based approach that has been shown to be the most effective when treating individuals with BPD.

Dialectical thinking is a term the ability to view and hold truths from multiple perspectives. DBT’s main component involves developing this core principle to allow individuals with BPD to observe different truths, thoughts, emotions, and bodily sensations without judgement. DBT overall is rooted in the concept of mindfulness to help individuals become aware of their emotional triggers and reactions.

DBT is a structured therapy system that teaches a person to improve their ability to tolerate distress, attain skills to better emotionally regulate, and increase their capacity to maintain interpersonal relationships.

Medication Management

Pharmacotherapy such as mood stabilizers and second-generation anti-psychotics have also been shown to be effective in treating the core associated with Borderline Personality Disorder.

In a meta-analysis, it showed that medications such as topiramate, lamotrigine and valproate semisodium, and the second-generation antipsychotics aripiprazole and olanzapine were shown to be effective in decreasing symptoms associated with BPD.

However, what is important to note here is that BPD is a complex condition in which it involves a person’s social situation, identity, previous adverse history like trauma, and overall well-being. Although medications may be useful for managing the symptoms, it is very important that BPD is treated holistically by also improving things such a person’s livelihood, social support systems, and integrating healthy lifestyle behaviors to promote the best situation for an individual.

Learn more about your BPD with a free call with an ADHOC Therapist

Meet our BPD expert

 
 

Andrea
Ronell

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Hey! Andrea here, your guide through the confusing world of teen & young adult mental health. Truth be told, you are the main character of your story – maybe you’re just a little afraid to shine. I'm here to equip you with practical tools and strategies to navigate those challenges and crush those negative vibes.

 

 

How Does Adhoc Therapy Treat Borderline Personality Disorder?

Adhoc Therapy treats Borderline Personality Disorder without judgement and with an unconditional positive regard. It is important for you to understand that we understand your struggles and facilitate a safe space for you to explore these challenges.

Our approach is also evidenced-based, in that we implement a structured DBT-based therapy approach empowering you with tools to help you better tolerate distressing events, collaborate with you to find realistic skills to emotionally regulate. and improve your ability to enhance your social situations. We want to help you gain an identity you can be proud of.

  • While BPD is classified as personality traits, there are aspects within those traits that are changeable. Such as improving our ability to manage and de-escalate strong emotions, learning how to look at multiple perspectives, and becoming good at non-reaction behaviors can help improve symptoms associated with BPD.

  • The exact cause is unknown but it is likely that it is a combination of upbringing, environmental, and genetic factors. There is a growing body of evidence to note that adverse childhood events and childhood trauma increases the risk of developing BPD.

  • While they may seem similar, such as with severe emotional swings and relationship challenges that the condition pose, they are different. Bipolar disorder primarily affects mood, in which one can swing from mania and depression. While BPD is characterized with feeling intense emotionality and inability to self-regulate.

  • Understandably, there is a stigma surrounding BPD. However, there is a growing awareness around BPD. Here at Adhoc Therapy, we welcome you with open arms and work through your challenges that will hopefully reflect in your day to day .

FAQS

  • There is no cure for BPD but medication can come in helpful to decrease symptoms associated with BPD such as anxiety and mood related disorders. While helpful in managing symptoms, working towards having healthier coping systems and lifestyle behaviors is ultimately the key towards recovery.

  • Unfortunately yes, BPD has been shown to have a high percentage of other mental health conditions. Research suggests that folks with BPD also generally may have mood-related disorders like Bipolar or Depression, Anxiety disorders, and substance use.

  • Ultimately, this is a personal decision you will have to make based on your life circumstances. Understandably, being with an individual with BPD can often be tough due to the emotional intensity, fear of abandonment, and other behaviors they exhibit. However, it's also important to understand that folks with BPD has a higher likelihood of changing when they are with people whom they trust. There is help for partners with BPD.

  • This can be challenging but there are plenty of ways to be supportive. Validate their feelings and avoid minimizing their feelings; practice a lot of patience and being non-reactive to certain behaviors; set and maintain clear boundaries to establish healthy relationship and allow for healthy modeling; and ultimately, take care of yourself through your own set of self-care activities.

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