When a person is diagnosed with a mental disorder like borderline personality disorder (BPD), the diagnosis often affects more than just the person who received it. In most cases, it affects the loved ones in that person’s life as well.
Borderline personality disorder is characterized by difficulty with interpersonal relationships, a tendency toward explosiveness and unstable moods. Those with borderline personality disorder tend to have difficulty regulating moods and thoughts, exhibit impulsive behaviors and struggle to get along with others.
Personality disorders can improve with treatment. However, sometimes when people are extremely stressed they may fall back into former habits of thought and behavior. This sort of off-and-on pattern is not uncommon.
Carol M. became a mother in 1994. Her daughter was born in late July, when the weather liked to turn suddenly, from hot and sunny to thunderous and stormy on a dime. She laughed as she described her daughter, Shasta. “She was just like summertime,” she said. “Bright and happy one minute, dark and storming […]
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) shares some similarities with bipolar disorder. The two conditions are frequently confused, especially since they are identified by symptoms rather than by measures such as an MRI scan or a blood test. Differentiating between the two is tricky but critical because what may work for one may not work for the […]
There are many challenges associated with borderline personality disorder (BPD), but perhaps the hardest to accommodate is the sufferer’s emotional sensitivity. A person with BPD is emotionally vulnerable in a way that makes them unpredictable. Their feelings burst forth with incredible force and ferocity, triggered by what seems like a whisper.
In their 1997 book, Emotional Blackmail: When the People in Your Life Use Fear, Obligation and Guilt to Manipulate You, authors Susan Forward and Donna Frazier described the fear, obligation and guilt (aptly referred to as FOG) that the loved ones of emotional manipulators must contend with.
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a mental health condition that affects around two percent of Americans. The disorder affects women three times more often than men. It can be the cause of broken relationships, difficulty with employment and a higher than average risk for self-harm.
When Tim and Wendy first met, they hit it off incredibly well. Tim said looking at Wendy felt like looking at a female version of himself – she loved all the same things he loved, and even shared the same aversions. She was passionate and talented and had a rapier wit that Tim admired, and the […]
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) can be a lonely life. Friends and family may dismiss the relationship, rather than trying to understand the symptoms and behaviors. Even if a strong support system is in place, dealing with social stigma may increase the challenges of a debilitating mental disorder. One challenge in diagnosis is that the symptoms […]