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People with a borderline personality disorder are unstable in several ways. They are usually extremely afraid that they will be abandoned, and accordingly are prone to idealize friends and family, or go to the other extreme of anger and hatred. They may be reckless with sex or spending, or in other ways. They often have a weak sense of self, depending too much on friends or family for their identity. They may mutilate themselves or threaten or attempt suicide in an apparent attempt to dispel feelings of anger, emptiness or guilt. Their moods, like the other aspects of their lives, may undergo wild swings from feelings of emptiness and unhappiness to feelings of fear, anxiety, or anger. They may also have paranoid ideas, often about their relationships with others. People with several of these characteristics (not necessarily all) are likely to diagnosed with BPD. Recent estimates are that 20% of psychiatric inpatients and 10%
of psychiatric outpatients have BPD. The disorder is difficult to
treat; patients with BPD often show the same unstable pattern of
relationships to their therapists that they show to others. Most
show symptoms before they reach adulthood. Suicide gestures and
suicide attempts are common and frequently are the gateway through
which they enter mental health treatment. Suicide gestures,
much like self-injurious behavior (cutting, for example) are
attempts on the part of people with BPD to control their environment
by harming themselves. Unfortunately, 8% to 10% go too
far and end up dying from these behaviors. Therefore, even if the
person has a long history of failed suicide attempts, threats of
suicide must be taken very seriously. If these individuals,
75% of whom are women, make it to their 30s and 40s, many settle
into more stable patterns of living. Borderline and Beyond: A Program of Recovery from Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) by Laura Paxton Stop Walking on Eggshells;Coping When Someone You Care about Has Borderline Personality Disorder by Paul T. Mason, Randi Kreger, Larry J. Siever I
Hate You-Don't Leave Me : Understanding the Borderline Life
at the BorderLife at the Border ,by Leland M. Heller
(Introduction), Mary Elizabeth Hausman Sales Visit a
website for people with BPD. Last updated 12/19/03 |
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