There are many different personality disorders. Every personality disorder is marked by their own specific symptoms. These symptoms have been active in the individual for a long period of time. These symptoms cause distress to the individuals’ interpersonal relationships, and their functioning in society. Borderline personality disorder is a disorder in which individuals suffer turmoil in inter-personal relationships. This particular personality disorder has a specific list of symptoms that separate it from other personality disorders. This personality disorder is particularly known for individuals engaging in self-mutilation, and extreme destructive behaviors. This personality disorder has many symptoms. Every individual with borderline …show more content…
There are several different ways an individual can perform self-mutilation. An individual can cut themselves, burn themselves, rip apart at open sores, (not allowing them to heal properly, possibly causing infection), scratching at themselves, ripping at their hair, cutting their cuticles until painfully blooding, etc. There are many reasons why an individual, with or without this personality disorder, would do such a thing to themselves. The first is that they feel as if they deserve the pain they inflict upon themselves due to guilt or self-loathing. Harming themselves acts as a form of “release” of the negative emotions one would be feeling. Another reason is because many individuals with borderline personality disorder have dissociate issues, feeling in a dream-like state, as if they do not exist. Therefore, harming themselves reminds the individuals that they are in-fact, a living being. To continue, anger is a major symptom within borderline personality disorder. The suffering individual does not usually contain, or control anger well. Self-harm is used as an outlet for anger, especially individuals with borderline personality. Control, is one the main factors of self-harm. The individual cannot control what is going on in their lives, or the emotions they are feeling, but they can control their physical pain. Lastly, people continue doing this because it all feel familiar. …show more content…
Dissociate symptoms are in the criteria for borderline personality disorder, but are not as common. Individuals that suffer from dissociative symptoms can feel as if they are outside of their own body, feeling as if everything is “dream like.” This dream like state can make individuals feel as if nothing is real, making individuals think things such as “is this real”, “is life real”, etc. This dissociative issue is called existential crisis. This issue makes the individuals feel foggy, and tired most of the time. To continue, another trait of borderline personality disorder is chronic feelings of emptiness. This emptiness individuals experience appears to have no cause, and doesn’t appear to be relievable. Chronic feelings of worthlessness are also paired with this symptom of hollowness. This symptom may lead to the individual being anxious, or having anxiety, because they’re “not good enough.” The causes of borderline personality disorder appear to be up for debate. One of the many theories is childhood trauma. The majority of individuals that have been diagnosed as suffering from borderline personality disorder have history of some sort of childhood trauma, whether it be sexual abuse, losing a loved one, etc. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2014), “ A history of childhood trauma (e.g., physical or sexual
People with Borderline Personality Disorder tend to view the world as simple as possible. People who view the world like this, confuse the actions of others. (Hoermann et al, 2005) Recurrent thoughts about their relationships with others, lead them to experience extreme emotional reactions, great agony which they have a hard time controlling, which would result in engaging in self-destructive behaviors. Diagnosing a patient with this disorder can be challenging which is why is it is labeled as one of the difficult ones to diagnose. (Hoermann et al, 2005)
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a disorder in which individuals display overall instability, major shifts in mood, unstable self-images or relationships, and impulsivity
Borderline personality disorder is a hard-mental disease to diagnose, according to The National Institute of Mental health the definition of borderline personality disorder is: “… a serious mental disorder marked by a pattern of ongoing instability in moods, behavior, self-image, and functioning. These experiences often result in impulsive actions and unstable relationships” (pg 1). When we look at that definition alone this is a very vague description of the disorder that anyone that is experiencing just a rough time in life, can be diagnosed with this mental disorder. Roughly about 3 million Americans are diagnosed with borderline personality disorder a year. To find out who really has this mental disorder we should look at case studies,
This paper looks at a person that exhibits the symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). In the paper, examples are given of symptoms that the person exhibits. These symptoms are then evaluated using the DSM-V criteria for BPD. The six-different psychological theoretical models are discussed, and it is shown how these models have been used to explain the symptoms of BPD. Assessment of
According to the DSM-5, Personality Disorders are characterized by “impairments in personality functioning and the presence of pathological personality traits”. Borderline Personality Disorder is one of ten personality disorders listed in the DSM-5. The DSM-5 lists several criteria that must be met in order for someone to be diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. They are quoted as follows:
Borderline Personality disorder is a commonly misdiagnosed mental illness. The symptoms of borderline personality disorder are so closely related to other mental illnesses, that it is most often under diagnosed or misdiagnosed altogether. This illness can be completely debilitating to effected person. They do not understand that it is their mental illness that is making them feel the way that they do. They feel hopeless, like their lives will never improve from this point. Which is a major factor into why borderline personality disorder has one of the highest rates of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts.
These experiences often result in impulsive actions and unstable relationships. A person with BPD may experience intense episodes of anger, depression, and anxiety that may last from only a few hours to days”. (https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/borderline-personality-disorder/index.shtml) I read that studies show that people with Borderline Personality Disorder have “structural and functional changes in the brain, especially in the areas that control impulses and emotional regulation”. (https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/borderline-personality-disorder/index.shtml) People who suffer from BPD tend to have unstable moods which could last from anywhere from a few hours to even days. People with BPD also go through periods where they try to avoid real or imagined abandonment. People with this disorder are often impulsive and exhibit dangerous behaviors. These behaviors consist of going on shopping sprees having unsafe sex with people the use of various drugs and even as dangerous as reckless driving. People with BPD also have dangerous suicidal behaviors, and may also exhibit self-harming
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
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a very common personality disorder that is often confused with Bipolar disorder. Unlike Bipolar disorder which is when a person’s mood changes from depression to manic, borderline personality disorder is when a person suffers from unstable emotions, behavior and relationships with others and themselves. Individuals who suffer from severe BPD often have manic/ psychotic encounters. This disorder is very common in young adults, especially in women of every race and ethnicity. BPD was first added to the addition of DSM-III in 1980. Borderline Personality disorder can be linked to many other disorders such as depression, eating disorders, bipolar depression, schizophrenia and/or attempted or completed suicides. According to National Institute of Mental Health: about 85 percent of people with BPD also meet the diagnostic criteria for another mental illness. Medical Professionals take interest in this disorder because it is deep rooted and irregular unlike many other disorders. 1 in every 25 individual’s live with this disorder
Personality disorder. Encyclopedia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopedia Britannica Inc. 2014. Web. 08 Feb 2014
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
An estimated 1.6%-5.9% of the adult population in the United States has BPD, with nearly 75% of the people who are diagnosed being women. Symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder include Frantic efforts to avoid being abandoned by friends and family, Unstable personal relationships that alternate between idealizations, Distorted and unstable self-image, Impulsive behaviors that can have dangerous outcomes, Suicidal and self-harming behavior, Periods of intense depressed mood, irritability or anxiety lasting a couple hours/days, Chronic feelings of boredom or emptiness, Inappropriate, intense or uncontrollable anger - often followed by shame and guilt, and Dissociative feelings. The three main factors that could cause this mental illness are Genetics, Environmental factors, and Brain function. This illness can only be diagnosed by a mental health professional after a series of interviews with the patient and family/friends of the patient. The patient must also have at least five of the nine symptoms of this illness in order to be diagnosed. The most common treatment for this illness is some form of psychotherapy. Some other treatment options are to prescribe medications and if needed a short-term
Borderline Personality disorder (BPT) is defined as “a pervasive pattern of instability of interpersonal relationships, self-image, and marked impulsivity, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts.” (DSM, 2000) When diagnosing a patient with Borderline Personality Disorder a doctor must ask the patient numerous questions about his or her history and life. There is a criterion that a patient must have in order to be considered BPD. The patient must experience five or more of the following symptoms. They may go through frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment such as staying solitary or making threats towards themselves in order to guilt loved ones. People with BPD tend to be very sensitive to their environmental circumstances. They may feel anger and anxiety simply from a friend being tardy. (DSM, 2000)
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).