Alex Forrest Borderline Personality Disorder

1077 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Borderline personality disorder research paper

To meet the diagnostic criteria for an adjustment disorder, an individual must show emotional or behavioural symptoms in response to an identifiable stressor that occur within three months after the onset of the stressor. These symptoms must be out of proportion to the severity or intensity of the stressor and must significantly impair the individual’s social or occupational functioning (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Alex Forrest’s behaviour following the breakup with Mr. Gallagher are certain out of proportion considering it was an affair that only lasted over the course of a weekend. She becomes suicidal and violent, and even stalks Mr. Gallagher (Jaffe & Lansing, 1987). The symptoms for an adjustment disorder must not meet the …show more content…

People suffering from Borderline Personality Disorder have an intense fear of abandonment and will go to drastic measures to avoid real or perceived abandonment. They may engage in suicidal or self-mutilating behaviours, and impulsive behaviour. Alex Forrest has an impromptu affair with a married man without using any contraceptives or (protection), which is risky and impulsive behaviour. In a later part of the film, Ms. Forrest cuts her own leg with a knife when she confronts Mrs. Gallagher, and when Mr. Gallagher tries to break off the relationship, she cuts her wrists in an attempt to get him to stay with her (Jaffe & Lansing, 1987). This is after she violently lashes out at him the first time he tries to leave. Inappropriate, intense anger and difficulty controlling that anger is another symptom of Borderline Personality Disorder (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). People with Borderline Personality Disorder also have a tendency to view others as “all-good” or “all-bad” (Nolen-Hoeksema, 2013). They may idealise a person one minute and despise them the next. An example of this “splitting” is the tape Alex leaves for Mr. Gallagher. Her words to him at the beginning of the recording make it seem like she cares deeply for him. However, as the tape continues to play, her words become harsh and antagonistic (Jaffe & Lansing,

Show More
Related

  • Differential Diagnosis of Alex Forrest of Fatal Attraction

    1926 Words  | 4 Pages

    For my case study my group and I chose the movie “Fatal Attraction”, and we chose Alex Forrest for our case study. For my part I chose to do the diagnosis aspect on Alex Forrest. Throughout this paper I will be diagnosing Alex Forrest. The following key clinical data will be discussed: client demographics, presenting problem, preliminary diagnostic information, symptoms, client characteristics and history, diagnostic impressions, potential disorders, and the DSM diagnosis.

    Read More

  • A Case Against Warren and Abortion

    1103 Words  | 3 Pages

    While controversial, this person, who could be in the middle of an average life, does not suddenly become less of a person Consider the second criteria of emotionality. Emotionality is one’s ability to feel and be affected by emotions. While all average individuals do possess emotions, it is worth mentioning that in certain cases, as with sociopaths, some may not have this capacity. These mentally ill individuals, while often able to mimic, are unable to genuinely feel a substantial proportion of the spectrum of human emotion, such as love, compassion, or remorse.... ...

    Read More

  • Borderline Personality Disorder in Girl Interrupted

    608 Words  | 2 Pages

    Borderline Personality Disorder in “Girl Interrupted” The movie, “Girl Interrupted,”is about a teenage girl named Susanna Kaysen who has been diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. People with Borderline Personality Disorder “are often emotionally unstable, impulsive, unpredictable, irritable, and anxious. They are also prone to boredom. Their behavior is similar to that of individuals with schizotypal personality disorder, but they are not as consistently withdrawn and bizarre” (Santrock, 2003).

    Read More

  • Understanding and Treating Borderline Personality Disorder

    1329 Words  | 3 Pages

    In order for someone to be diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder, they must experience at least five of the following symptoms: 1) fear of abandonment, 2) a history of intense and unstable relationships with family, friends, and loved ones, which often go back and forth between idealization (which includes love and extreme closeness) to devaluation (which includes extreme hatred or anger), 3) a disto...

    Read More

  • Echo Personality Disorder

    1738 Words  | 4 Pages

    The term Echo Personality Disorder was coined by British Psychosynthesis practitioner Patrick Hurst, as a replacement term for 'Inverted Narcissism' and 'Covert Narcissism' which later terms place unwarranted emphasis on narcissistic qualities of the personality, which in many of these individuals may not be a feature at all.

    Read More

  • Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson

    1628 Words  | 4 Pages

    A common form of neurotic behavior is caused by isolation, the separation of one from one or more people. In the short story “Adventure”, the main character Alice Hindman expressed her insanity through actions: “Getting out of bed, she arranged a blanket so that in the darkness it looked like a form lying between the sheets and, kneeling beside the bed, she caressed it, whispering words repeatedly, like a refrain”(101). Alice’s former lover Ned Currie had left to work in the city, and while he was in the busyness he had come across many different people to fall in love with; Alice, on the other hand, was shy and reserved, and because she did not want to let go of her first love, she committed to only loving Ned Currie: “The outer crust of her life, all of her natural diffidence and reserve, was torn away and she gave herself over to the emotions of love”(95). At that rate, Alice continued to wait for Ned to return, only eventually finding her self longing for just someone to be with, and later discovering that she had completely wasted her life over the wait for Ned instead of looking for new love.

    Read More

  • Borderline Personality Disorder Essay

    1234 Words  | 3 Pages

    Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a mental illness characterized by patterns of ongoing instability in moods, behavior, self-image, and functioning. An individual suffering from this disorder may act impulsively and experience unstable relationships (The National Institute of Mental Health, 2016). The term Borderline Personality Disorder stems from the idea that the characteristics of this disorder fall between anxiety and psychosis (Cacioppo & Freberg, 2016). According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (2017), “1.6% of the adult U.S. population have BPD but it may be as high as 5.9%. Nearly 75% of people diagnosed with BPD are women, but recent research suggests that men may be almost as frequently

    Read More

  • Anti-Social Personality Disorder

    792 Words  | 2 Pages

    Anti-Social Personality Disorder is a classified personality disorder in which a person, sometimes referred to as a “psychopath”, has a lack of empathy, an increased chance of acting violently towards others, and a complete disregard for authority and punishment. Prevalent features and symptoms include: shallow emotions, irresponsibility, mistrust of others, reckless thrill-seeking, disrespect for the law, prone to lash out with physical violence, harmful impulsiveness, arrogance, manipulative, greedy, lack of kindness or compassion, disrespect for others, and dishonesty (Psychology Today, n.d.). A main factor of this disorder is the inability to process, interpret, and display emotion, even fear. An example is that most criminals with this disorder respond drastically different to their sentencing than normal. They seem relaxed and unable to process it on an emotional level. They are also fully aware of what they are doing, and have no sense of distorted reality, or remorse which classifies them as sane people. They also have neurotransmitter deficiencies in the brain, such as reduced serotonin and dopamine (Freedman & Verdun-Jones, 2010). The overall population of people having this disorder is a small amount, about 3% and higher in prisons and abuse clinics which is around 70%. Also, because of their constant involvement in violence, most people diagnosed with this disorder die by violent means such as suicide and homicide (Internet Mental Health, n.d.).

    Read More

  • Psychoanalytic Criticism In Girl, Interrupted By Susanna Kaysen

    1201 Words  | 3 Pages

    Some symptoms of BPD can include fear of abandonment (1), unstable relationships (2), self-harm (3), and destructive behavior (4). In one scene in the middle of the movie, Rowe gets sent to a different ward for drugging a nurse. (1) Kaysen causes a huge scene and demands to know where Rowe is. Kaysen is so distraught because she claims that Rowe is “All she has left.” Kaysen seems to have a lot of people come and go throughout her life. (2) In one part Kaysen states “I just don’t want to end up like my mother.” This could mean that Kaysen and her mother don’t share the greatest bond. As seen throughout the movie, there is a bandage on the wrist of Kaysen (3) suggesting that she might have cut her wrists when she had a “headache.” Kaysen having destructive behaviors, as mentioned before is an indicator of BPD. (4) In the early movie, it shows how promiscuous she could be. She had a one-time affair with a married college professor who wanted more than she did. She also had an on and off relationship with a boy named Toby who was later drafted in the military, but decided to run away and take Kaysen with him. But, she declined because she didn’t want to leave

    Read More

  • Borderline Personality Disorders: A Case Study

    1068 Words  | 3 Pages

    There has been no change in the diagnostic criteria from the DSM-IV to the DSM-5 with regards to diagnostic criteria for borderline personality disorder. Borderline personality disorder is defined by the American Psychiatric Association in the DSM-5 (2013) as “a pervasive pattern of instability of interpersonal relationships, self-image, and affects, and marked impulsivity, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts” (Borderline Personality Disorder). There are nine criteria listed in the DSM-5 (2013) that are utilized as indicators that the individual meets the diagnostic definition of BPD. The individual must meet a minimum of five of the criteria

    Read More

  • Silver Linings Playbook Movie Analysis

    1093 Words  | 3 Pages

    That said, Tiffany was not diagnosed nor mentioned to have borderline personality disorder in the movie, but she did portray some of the symptoms that are listed in the textbook: Borderline Personality Disorder: Frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment, pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships characterized by alternating extreme idealization or devaluation, impulsivity that is self-damaging, affective instability due to marked reactivity of mood, chronic feelings of emptiness, inappropriate anger or difficulty controlling anger. In detail, Tiffany demonstrates to some degree the above listed diagnostic criteria from the textbook for borderline personality disorder. For example, we are able to recognize some frantic episodes portrayed by Tiffany as she fears abandonment. Their illnesses don’t define their identities, nor are they even the main point of the story.

    Read More

  • Mental Disorder In Silver Linings Playbook

    964 Words  | 2 Pages

    After noticing Pat’s uncontrollable anger and mood swings, he was diagnosed to be bipolar. Upon being released from the hospital, Pat was very compulsive and persistent in reaching out to his wife. Throughout this movie we saw him go from extreme euphoria to being ballistic. For example, One night Pat could not find his wedding video and his anger went through the roof, which left the house torn apart and his parents hurt. He also had a trigger that regularly set him off making him rash and angry. He walked in on his wife cheating on him while their wedding song was on, so every time he hears the song he lashes out. Although it is normal for something like this to affect someone strongly, Pat’s emotional outbursts were scarily difficult to be handled and

    Read More

  • Borderline Personality Disorder In The Virgin Suicides

    3105 Words  | 7 Pages

    People with this disorder tend to display “great instability, including major shifts in mood, an unstable self-image, and impulsivity” (Comer, 2014, p. 413). The term “borderline” was coined by psychoanalyst Adolf Stern in 1938 under the assumption that this condition resided on the border between neurosis and psychosis. The text also describes those with borderline personality disorder as being prone to bouts of anger and violent emotional reactions, however it can be suggested that the reason Lux does not portray this emotional reactivity is partially due to how she was raised. The strictness and control the Lisbon parents reinforced could have very well instilled in their daughters the notion that they are to do and act as they are told and to behave in a calm, polite, lady-like manner. This could explain why all five sisters seem to be shy and quiet, and even wild-child Lux has her moments of conservative propriety. In an article by Scott O. Lilienfeld and Hal Arkowitz in Scientific American Mind, it is said that people with borderline personality disorder (BPD) are “often regarded as hopeless individuals, destined for a life of emotional misery” (2012). Because of this stigma, many individuals do not fit the stereotypical mold of someone with BPD. Other films such as Fatal Attraction (1987) and Girl, Interrupted (1999) further shape the misconception that individuals suffering from BPD are violent and bizarre. While Lux does not bang her head against the wall out of anger or scream at her parents over the smallest infraction against her, she does at times portray other signs of BPD. Impulsivity and self-destructiveness can be seen as Lux partakes in risky behaviors such as drinking, smoking marijuana and cigarettes, and unsafe sex with different partners (Comer, 2014, p. 414). These behaviors of

    Read More

  • Borderline Personality Disorder: A Literature Review

    1574 Words  | 4 Pages

    The history of BPD can be traced back to 1938 when Adolph Stern first described the symptoms of the disorder as neither being psychotic nor psychoneurotic; hence, the term ‘borderline’ was introduced (National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health, 2009, p. 15). Then in 1960, Otto Kernberg coined the term ‘borderline personality organization’ to describe persistent patterns of behavior and functioning consisting of instability, and distressed psychological self-organization (National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health, 2009, p. 15).

    Read More

  • Psychological Analysis Of Girl Interrupted

    1324 Words  | 3 Pages

    Self-destructive behaviors are also very common in individuals with Borderline personality disorder. Susanna validates this trait by her lack of motivation, conversations about suicide, and her suicide For example; Lisa, the diagnosed sociopath, displays very little empathy for those around her. This is made clear when she sees Daisy’s post suicide body and is not saddened whatsoever. Another accurate portrayal is the patient with anorexia nervosa Janet. Janet refuses to eat, is in denial about her condition, is emotionally labile, and is always exercising.

    Read More

More about Alex Forrest Borderline Personality Disorder

Open Document