Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a complex condition. It affects how a person feels about themselves and others. BPD is characterized by intense, unstable emotions and relationships equally well as insecurity and self-doubt.

BPD makes everything about a person experience unstable, ranging from moods, thinking, beliefs, relationships, and sometimes identity. People with this condition have described BPD as the feeling of having an exposed nerve ending, essentially leaving someone to be easily triggered by pocket-size things.

But there are effective treatments for it.

Keep Reading To Larn

  • The truth about borderline personality disorder
  • How to recognize BPD in yourself and other people
  • How borderline personality disorder is diagnosed and treated
  • Common myths and misconceptions about BPD

Agreement the Rollercoaster of BPD

People with deadline personality disorder oft experience a huge amount of emotional instability. It impacts a person'south self-image, likes and dislikes, and goals. This often makes them confused well-nigh their sense of cocky. The condition makes it difficult for a person to be comfortable in their peel.

Many people with BPD act impulsively, accept intense emotions, and experience dissociation and paranoia when most distressed. This emotional volatility can crusade relationship turmoil. Likewise, the inability to cocky-soothe can lead to impulsive, reckless behavior.

1.four% of American adults experience BPD

People with BPD are often on border. They have high distress and acrimony levels, so they may be hands offended. They struggle with beliefs and thoughts near themselves and others, which can cause distress in many areas of their lives.

People living with BPD often have an intense fear of instability and abandonment. As a upshot, they have bug being alone.

The condition is also known for acrimony, mood swings, and impulsiveness. These qualities tin dissuade people from being around someone with BPD. On top of this, many people with the condition struggle with self-awareness and how others perceive them. This makes them extremely sensitive.

BPD is a mind and body condition. Its symptoms begin to manifest during the early teenage years and gradually improve during adult life.

Watch Now

Dr. Lois Choi-Kain helps usa understand borderline personality disorder

What Causes Deadline Personality Disorder?

BPD may exist caused past genetics, encephalon abnormalities, and/or environmental factors. Due to the wide multifariousness of suspected adventure factors, information technology's difficult to determine who will develop it.

Ecology Factors

Early on childhood adversity, such as child corruption or neglect, may be a cause.

Genetics

Inquiry suggests that information technology may be an inherited genetic condition or linked with other mental disorders amid other family members.

Brain Abnormalities

Sure brain differences are thought to be contributing causes of the disorder. When certain brain chemicals responsible for mood regulation don't function properly, at that place are changes in some areas of the brain. This has been linked to aggression, difficulty regulating destructive urges, and depression.

BPD Doesn't Oftentimes Occur Lonely

Effective handling involves addressing related disorders.

Many people diagnosed with borderline personality disorder feel other weather condition, including:

  • Depression
  • Anxiety disorders
  • Eating disorders
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Bipolar disorder
  • Substance apply disorder

In that location Are Many Misconceptions

This disorder is misunderstood past many, including some mental wellness practitioners. This confusion tin touch on and influence the way that people are treated. Even worse, long-standing myths can discourage people from seeking help for the condition, especially if they feel their experience is being misunderstood.

Some common myths and misconceptions are:

Myth: It'south Not Treatable

Borderline personality disorder is very treatable. In the past, since BPD affects someone'southward personality, many were quick to conclude that it was untreatable because someone'southward personality cannot be changed.

More recently, many therapies have been proven effective equally treatments, including dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), mentalization-based treatment (MBT), and transference-focused psychotherapy (TFP). At present, a growing number of less intensive, generalist approaches, like general psychiatric direction (GPM), are besides beingness practiced around the world.

A BPD diagnosis doesn't mean that someone will live with symptoms forever. With handling, the symptoms ebb and menstruum. Many people with the condition can have high-functioning lives.

Myth: People With BPD Are Victims of Child Abuse

This is not always the example.

While some cases of borderline personality disorder stem from childhood trauma, a diagnosis is more than probable to be the result of a combination of environmental factors. These tin can include attachment, childhood trauma, biological factors, and social factors.

Myth: It Affects Merely Women

Information technology's estimated that over 14 one thousand thousand Americans have BPD. Once more commonly diagnosed in women, the largest report done on psychiatric disorders shows that it occurs equally often in women and men.

One explanation behind it appearing to affect more than women is that women are more likely to seek mental health care than men. Since enquiry on BPD is oft conducted in a psychiatric setting, information technology was previously less likely for men with deadline personality disorder to be included in these enquiry efforts.

Another explanation is that BPD is often misdiagnosed in men. Many men with the condition are oftentimes diagnosed with depression or PTSD.

1000000'south Journey With BPD

Meg is a participant in McLean's Deconstructing Stigma entrada, and she struggles with BPD.

Read more about Meg's mental health story and her message of hope for those who are also struggling.

Recognizing Borderline Personality Disorder in Yourself—or Others

People with deadline personality disorder struggle with self-regulation. Self-regulation is the ability to manage emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in ways that accept positive outcomes, like self-esteem and practiced relationships.

To be officially diagnosed, a person has to exhibit five or more than related symptoms. These symptoms have to be ongoing and impact various aspects of life.

At that place are a handful of medically recognized symptoms of borderline personality disorder.

Instability in Relationships

Intense and brusk-lived relationships are mutual for people with BPD. Information technology's very mutual for someone with this disorder to have intense, unstable relationships filled with drastic and quick-changing feelings.

A person with BPD may fall in honey quickly and presume that the other person will make them happy. Typically, this results in the person feeling injure and disappointed and tin further intensify emotional swings. People with this condition may have either perfect or horrible relationships, with rapid changes in perception resulting from anger, hate, and devaluation.

Farthermost Emotional Swings

Someone with this condition oftentimes experiences unstable moods and emotions. The picayune things that don't mean much to others—similar someone not property the door open for you or meeting a new friend—tin can be either very exciting or frustrating.

Many with this condition can be happy one moment and extremely sad or disappointed the adjacent. Their moods are also very intense and unpredictable in timing. They can final anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours or longer.

Explosive Feelings of Acrimony

Many people with BPD struggle with intense anger and a short temper. This makes it hard for them to feel in control of their emotions once they have been provoked. They can speedily make full with rage, though this anger may non ever be outwardly directed and can outcome in self-harm. Sometimes the person might be aroused at themselves and not at anyone or anything else.

Self-Damage

Self-harm is risky behavior that may brand the person experience good at the moment of distress. Many people with BPD oft appoint in self-harming activities, recollect about suicide, and brand suicidal gestures and threats.

Many people with borderline personality disorder engage in sensation-seeking behavior that could be harmful, especially when they are angry.

Risky or deliberate self-damage activities may include:

  • Engaging in dangerous and unhealthy binge drinking
  • Cutting or other self-injury
  • Going on shopping and spending sprees
  • Regularly engaging in dangerous sex
  • Using drugs

Not all self-harm is intended to end in death. It's of import to remember that it's ofttimes used equally a way to experience better in a grim moment. However, if it goes untreated, these risky behaviors tin stop in suicide.

McLean's Michael Hollander, PhD, an skillful in self-impairment in adolescents, helps us empathise more nigh teen cut and cocky-injury.

Lingering Feelings of Emptiness or Worthlessness

A lot of people with the condition struggle with emptiness or worthlessness. Many with BPD report feeling like in that location is a void within of them or like they don't affair. As a result, they often turn to sex activity, drugs, or food to effort to feel satisfied.

Feeling Out of Touch on With Reality

Many diagnosed with BPD feel suspicious virtually events in their lives. They struggle with feelings of suspicion and paranoia about the intentions of people around them. When they are stressed, they may lose touch with reality and become disassociated. Disassociation feels similar being spaced out, foggy, or every bit if you exist outside of your ain body.

BPD can be confused with other forms of mental illness, so a diagnosis is of import. If y'all or someone close to you lot frequently has feelings of emptiness, loneliness, or insecurity that cause irrationality or impulsivity, it'south important to talk to your wellness intendance provider.

Agreement BPD in Teens

The deviation between typical teen behaviors and emerging personality disorders tin can exist hard to recognize. How can y'all tell which is which?

When Is It Time To See a Professional person?

If yous are experiencing whatsoever of the previously mentioned signs and symptoms associated with deadline personality disorder, please consult a mental health professional. This condition is mutual and treatable.

You should see a doc any fourth dimension your symptoms are triggered. If you are unsure of your triggers, try to retrieve of a fourth dimension in the by when you experienced raging and intense emotions, acted impulsively, or had a desire to harm yourself. The events earlier this emotion are probable your triggers.

Many who have BPD experience suicidal thoughts. These can include just aren't limited to mental images and fantasies about self-harm and plotting suicide. If y'all are experiencing suicidal thoughts and may damage yourself or someone else, telephone call 911 immediately or visit your nearest emergency room.

Understanding and Recognizing Symptoms

People with BPD are sensitive to stress, so stressful situations activate symptoms related to the condition. The stressors that promote BPD'due south most volatile symptoms can exist external or internal, and they frequently vary from one person to another. In that location are both interpersonal and mental triggers of borderline personality disorder, many of which are unique to the individual.

Managing these symptoms, either for yourself or your partner, starts by agreement emotions, thoughts, and memories that set off symptoms. Then you can improve manage addressing the symptoms if a stressor is unavoidable. You should piece of work with a mental wellness professional to learn physical and mental exercises to understand triggers and develop skills to successfully manage them.

Interpersonal Human relationship Events

Separations, disagreements, and rejections—real or perceived—are the almost mutual triggers for symptoms. A person with BPD is highly sensitive to abandonment and being solitary, which brings about intense feelings of anger, fright, suicidal thoughts and cocky-harm, and very impulsive decisions.

When something happens in a relationship that makes them feel abandoned, criticized, or rejected, their symptoms are expressed. People with borderline personality disorder experience rejection sensitivity, which makes relationships very intense and dependent. Events that can worsen this tin be losing a task, catastrophe a relationship, or experiencing rejection of any type.

Identifying Episodes

To better manage triggers, information technology is crucial to understand episodes. These episodes are highly dependent on the situation at hand and the specific individual, but there are mutual red flags for recognizing an episode.

Things that can signal an episode is occurring:

  • Intense aroused outbursts
  • Suicidal thoughts and self-harm behavior
  • Going to peachy lengths to feel something, and then becoming increasingly avoidant and withdrawn
  • Paranoia, feeling equally if at that place is someone out to get yous

These episodes can as well involve extreme feelings of positivity and euphoria. People with this status tin be very impulsive. It'southward important to notation these emotional highs equally signs of an episode because they may be involved in risky behavior as well.

Young man talks with clinicians

Treating Deadline Personality Disorder

Handling involves breaking down the dysfunctional patterns of the brain's thinking, feeling, and beliefs that cause distress to maintain a better emotional rest. Sometimes wellness care providers may propose medication as part of a intendance plan.

The treatment options often used are full general psychiatric direction (GPM), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), mentalization-based treatment (MBT), and transference-focused psychotherapy (TFP).

General Psychiatric Management

Sometimes referred to equally good psychiatric management, GPM is designed to provide "good enough" treatment to nearly patients. This treatment is not inferior to others. Studies take shown that GPM can be as effective as DBT in treating patients.

GPM combines the essential ingredients of other treatments to provide care to the patient, even when specialized or more resource-intensive treatments are not bachelor.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy

DBT is known every bit the gold standard BPD treatment. Information technology emphasizes the development of four skill sets: mindfulness, interpersonal effectiveness, emotion regulation, and distress tolerance. DBT teaches patients to control their intense emotions and minimize their destructive patterns.

Through DBT, patients can also learn how to build interpersonal skills and develop self-awareness.

DBT has been clinically tested, proven to exist effective in borderline personality disorder and depression treatment in adolescents and adults, and is used extensively at McLean Infirmary.

Mentalization-Based Treatment

MBT aims to assistance patients past improving interpersonal and relationship skills while reducing self-destructive behaviors. Mentalizing focuses on the ability to differentiate and concentrate on your emotional state of mind and separate your own thoughts and feelings from those effectually y'all.

Since individuals with BPD tin can find it difficult to recognize the impacts of their behaviors, MBT encourages focusing and reflecting on mental states to better understand how mental state affects behavior in ourselves and others.

Transference-Focused Psychotherapy

TFP focuses on the patient's sense of identity and aims to create more stable and realistic experiences of both self and others. With BPD, one's sense of identity may feel contradicted. TFP focuses on addressing identity-based problems with interpersonal relationships, cocky-esteem, and mood.

By helping patients learn to verbalize what they are feeling—versus interim impulsively on emotions—TFP helps with increased performance and satisfaction in interpersonal relationships.

In addition to these therapies, group and individual therapy may be useful as well. Group and individual therapies embrace a wide range of topics and are not necessarily sessions dedicated to BPD. Grouping and individual therapy tin be beneficial for addressing mindfulness, interpersonal relationships, stress direction, emotion regulation, and family unit relationships.

How Is Deadline Personality Disorder Diagnosed?

Borderline personality disorder is a complex condition that doesn't present itself the same fashion in every person.

Some mental and psychological disorders take similar symptoms, so information technology's vital to see a licensed mental health professional for an assessment and the right diagnosis.

To diagnose, your provider may go through the following:

  • A detailed interview with your doctor, a mental health provider, or both
  • A psychological evaluation
  • Medical history and/or a medical examination
  • Discussing signs and symptoms, including criteria in the hallmark signs of BPD

Near diagnoses are in patients 18 and older. BPD tin can, nevertheless, be diagnosed in younger patients.

If you are experiencing the mentioned signs and symptoms associated with borderline personality disorder, delight consult a mental health professional person.

People with this condition often experience suicidal thoughts, such as mental images and fantasies virtually cocky-harm and plotting suicide. You should contact a suicide hotline number, a close loved one, or a mental health provider to get help.

Suicide prevention resources can be found below.

Expert News: In that location's Hope for Folks With BPD!

Because borderline personality disorder is as unique as each person who lives with it, treatment requires a specialized approach.

Many people have BPD and, at times, experience emotional anguish from the condition. However, you don't have to resort to living a life that'due south full of pain and heartbreak. It's important to take care of yourself, recognize your triggers, and piece of work with your health intendance team to determine what treatments volition help keep it in check.

By committing to care and learning as much as possible most it, you tin can make a difference in your quality of life—and the lives of those around you.

McLean Is Here to Help

Want More than Info?

Looking for even more information almost borderline personality disorder? You may find these resources helpful.

Interesting Articles, Videos, and More

Acquire more than most borderline personality disorder and what you tin exercise if you lot or a loved 1 is displaying signs of BPD.

  • 4 Myths Virtually Deadline Personality Disorder
  • The Impact of COVID-nineteen on Individuals With Borderline Personality Disorder
  • Video: Remaining in Control of Our Emotions
  • How Working Improves Your Mental Health
  • Podcast: Living a Life of Empathy and Feel
  • Agreement Deadline Personality Disorder in Teens
  • Find access to all of McLean's resource on BPD

Helpful Links

These organizations may too accept useful data:

Behavioral Tech: Grooming for Mental Health Professionals
Behavioral Tech provides robust grooming for clinicians, peculiarly in dialectical behavior therapy and other treatments for borderline personality disorder. Behavioral Tech also offers resource for providers and consumers in an effort to bring ever-better treatments to those in need. The arrangement supports advancement efforts and BPD inquiry.

Borderline Personality Disorder Resources Center
The mission of the Borderline Personality Disorder Resource Center (BPDRC) is to promote BPD education and connect those afflicted by BPD to established resource for treatment and support. The BPDRC is affiliated with the Personality Disorders Establish at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Westchester Sectionalization, and their efforts are overseen by innovators in the research and handling of personality disorders. Among many resources, the BPDRC maintains a nationwide database of clinicians, agencies, and facilities that focus on treating BPD and co-occurring disorders.

National Education Alliance for Borderline Personality Disorder
This group provides education, while raising public awareness and understanding, in an attempt to reduce stigma and promote research and heighten the quality of life of those afflicted by deadline personality disorder. They piece of work with Congress to enhance the quality of life for those individuals afflicted by this serious simply treatable mental disease. NEABPD's many resources include BPD Family Guidelines, The Family Connections Program, and Family Education Workshop videos.

New England Personality Disorder Clan
NEPDA's mission is to promote education, support, and advancement in the field of personality disorders, with a concentration on borderline personality disorder. NEPDA sponsors workshops, conferences, and small group meetings for family unit members, friends and other loved ones, consumers of mental wellness services, professionals, and the customs at large to improve awareness of personality disorders and reduce the stigma that is often associated with them.

Personality Disorder Awareness Network (PDAN)
A not-for-profit system dedicated to increasing public awareness of personality disorders, alleviating the impact of personality disorders on families, and preventing the development of personality disorders in children.

Treatment and Research Advances Association for Deadline Personality Disorder
The TARA for Borderline Personality Disorder's mission is to foster didactics and research in the field of personality disorders, like borderline personality disorder. They support and encourage educational programs and endeavors targeting mental wellness professionals, consumers of mental health services, families, and communities to reduce stigma and increase awareness, to disseminate available information on etiology and treatment, and to advocate for accomplishments of these goals.

Suicide Prevention Resources

Although it is not possible to predict suicide with whatsoever certainty, our best tool is recognition of the signs that many people exhibit when contemplating suicide. The following three behaviors should prompt you to seek immediate help for yourself or a loved one:

  • Talking almost wanting to die or to kill oneself
  • Looking for a manner to kill oneself, such equally searching online or obtaining a gun
  • Talking about feeling hopeless or having no reason to alive

If You lot or Someone You Know Needs Assistance

  • Call 1.800.273.8255 for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
  • Text HELLO to 741-741 for free, 24-60 minutes back up from the Crisis Text Line
  • Outside of the U.South., visit the International Association for Suicide Prevention for a database of resources
  • Contact your mental wellness professional
  • Phone call us at McLean at 617.855.3141 for information on admission

If yous are suicidal or are a danger to yourself to others, please call ix-1-1 or visit your nearest emergency room immediately.

These organizations too offer suicide prevention resources:

Suicide Prevention Lifeline
If you are suicidal, please phone call 800.273.TALK (8255). Yous'll be connected to a skilled, trained advisor at a crunch center in your surface area. Counselors are bachelor 24 hours a solar day, vii days a calendar week. The Suicide Prevention Lifeline website besides offers many resources for those looking for back up.

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) is defended to saving lives and bringing hope to those affected by suicide. AFSP creates a culture that's smart well-nigh mental wellness through educational activity and community programs, develops suicide prevention through inquiry and advocacy, and provides support for those affected by suicide. AFSP has local chapters in all 50 states, with programs and events nationwide.

Samaritans: Massachusetts 24-Hour Crisis HelpLine
A non-denominational, not-for-profit volunteer arrangement dedicated to reducing the incidence of suicide by befriending individuals in crisis and educating the customs almost constructive prevention strategies. The Samaritans provide a gratis and confidential 24-60 minutes telephone befriending line. Phone call or text the 24/vii statewide Helpline at 877.870.4673.

Stop A Suicide Today!
Stop A Suicide Today is a nationwide campaign by Screening for Mental Health, Inc., to empower individuals to help themselves, colleagues, friends, and loved ones who are concerned well-nigh or feel suicidal.

Suicide Prevention Resource Center
The Suicide Prevention Resource Center is the simply federally supported resource center devoted to advancing the implementation of the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention.

Books Virtually BPD

Handbook of Expert Psychiatric Management for Adolescents With Deadline Personality Disorder
edited past Lois W. Choi-Kain, MEd, Doc, and Carla Sharp, PhD
(American Psychiatric Association Publishing, 2021)

Good Psychiatric Management and Dialectical Behavior Therapy: A Clinician's Guide to Integration and Stepped Care
edited by Anne Thousand.I. Sonley, JD, MD, FRCPC, and Lois Westward. Choi-Kain, MEd, MD
(American Psychiatric Association Publishing, 2020)

Applications of Good Psychiatric Management for Borderline Personality Disorder: A Practical Guide
edited past Lois W. Choi-Kain, MEd, MD, and John G. Gunderson, MD
(American Psychiatric Association Publishing, 2019)

Borderline Personality Disorder: A Case-Based Arroyo
edited by Brian Palmer, MD, and Brandon Unruh, Md
(Springer, 2018)

Beyond Borderline: Truthful Stories of Recovery From Borderline Personality Disorder
by John Thou. Gunderson, Dr., Perry D. Hoffman, PhD
(New Straw Publications, 2016)

Borderline Personality and Mood Disorders: Comorbidity and Controversy
edited by Lois W. Choi-Kain, MEd, MD, and John G. Gunderson, Dr.
(Springer, 2015)

Handbook of Good Psychiatric Management (GPM) for Borderline Patients
by John G. Gunderson, Physician, with Paul Due south. Links, Physician, FRCPC
(American Psychiatric Clan Publishing, 2014)

Mindfulness for Borderline Personality Disorder: Relieve Your Suffering Using the Core Skill of Dialectical Behavior Therapy
past Blaise Aguirre, MD, and Gillian Galen, PsyD
(New Straw, 2013)

Borderline Personality Disorder in Adolescents: a Consummate Guide to Understanding and Coping When Your Boyish Has BPD
past Blaise Aguirre, Doc
(Fair Winds Press, 2007)

Understanding and Treating Borderline Personality Disorder: A Guide for Professionals and Families
past John G. Gunderson, MD, and Perry D. Hoffman, PhD
(American Psychiatric Association Publishing, 2005)

Identifying and Understanding the Narcissistic Personality
by Elsa F. Ronningstam
(Oxford University Press, 2005)

Deadline Personality Disorder
by Mary C. Zanarini, ed.
(Taylor & Francis, 2005)