Ever since we began to bring up disorders during the beginning of our Abnormal Psychology course and Borderline Personality Disorder was mentioned, I have been a little bit apprehensive about discussing it. This is a serious mental disorder and I was nervous to talk about it because of the many symptoms of it that I am familiar with. So far during the semester I’ve taken solace in the fact that so many cases of Borderline Personality Disorder are misdiagnosed, and I assumed that my mind was simply misdiagnosing myself, but as I was attempting at the last minute to think of an alternative subject for this essay (In the other essay I was going to write about the abnormal psychology of addiction, and it did not pan out as I had hoped.) the only …show more content…
A personality disorder is characterized by an individual having “a rigid and unhealthy pattern of thinking, functioning and behaving” (Psych Central 2014). If the phrase “unhealthy patterns of thinking” is as confusing to others as it was to me the first time I was presented with this principle, it may be hard to grasp the severity of these ways of thinking. Because of this I will present a few short samples of unhealthy thinking patterns. One of the most detrimental in my opinion would be thinking in absolutes, or thinking of situations in an all-or-nothing mentality; as in, when a few things in my life do not work the way I hoped that they would, I would be assuming that nothing is going my way, putting me in a worse place mentally/emotionally than the situation itself had put me in. Another is to think illogically about past events in terms of “knowing that these experiences would have worked out better or more to my favor if I had magically become smarter, more socially adept, happier…” and so on (Common Unhealthy Thought Patterns 2010). Suffering from these thoughts and patterns of thinking is hard enough in the first place, but to some these are not considered abnormal thinking patterns. Add the behavioral and functional abnormalities on top of having an unclear mind like this and it becomes much easier to see why these people
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)
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
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) has been a disability surrounded by stigma and confusion for a long time, and the time to bring awareness and public understanding to this disability is long overdue. The disability itself often gets misdiagnosed as an other disability since the symptoms overlap with many other disabilities (NIMH, n.d, para 16), or worse case scenario, a medical professional refuses to diagnose or treat the disability due to the belief that these people are untreatable because of a negative schema about the disability and clinical controversies on whether BPD is a legitimate diagnosis (Hoffman, 2007) . However, after nearly three decades of research, it has come to light that BPD does indeed exist, does have a good prognosis for remission with treatment (BPD Overview, n.d, para 3), and that there are many treatment options available such as three different types of psychotherapy (Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Schema-focused therapy), omega-3 fatty acid supplements, and/or medications (NIMH, n.d, para 29, 30, 31, and 39, 41). Even though the disability started as a psychoanalytic colloquialism for untreatable neurotics (Gunderson, 2009), BPD is very treatable and doesn’t deserve the stigma it currently carries throughout society.
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:
In the past, BPD was believed to be a set of symptoms between problems associated with mood and schizophrenia. These symptoms were believed to be comprised of distortions of reality and mood problems. A closer look at this disorder has resulted in the realization that even though the symptoms of this disorder reveal emotional complexity, this disorder is more closer to other personality disorders, on the basis of the manner in which it develops and occurs in families, than to schizophrenia (Hoffman, Fruzzetti, Buteau &ump; Neiditch, 2005). The use of the term borderline has however, resulted in a heated controversy between the health care fraternity and patients. Patients argue that this term appears to be somehow discriminatory and that it should be removed and the disorder renamed. Patients point out that an alternative name, such as emotionally unstable personality disorder, should be adopted instead of borderline personality disorder. Clinicians, on the other hand, argue that there is nothing wrong with the use of the term borderline. Opponents of this term argue that the terms used to describe persons suffering from this disorder, such as demanding, treatment resistant, and difficult among others, are discriminatory. These terms may create a negative feeling of health professionals towards patients, an aspect that may lead to adoption of negative responses that may trigger self-destructive behavior (Giesen-Bloo et al, 2006). The fact however, is that the term borderline has been misunderstood and misused so much that any attempt to redefine it is pointless leaving scrapping the term as the only option.
Personality, defined by Merriam-Webster, is a set of enduring behavioral and mental traits that distinguish human beings from one another. Therefore, a personality disorder “is a type of mental illness in which you have trouble perceiving and relating to situations and to people—including yourself” (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). In general, someone who suffers from a personality disorder has a long-term pattern of behaviors and emotions that are very different from the society’s view of “normal”.
A personality disorder is an unhealthy group of mental illness (Personality Disorders , 2013). These thoughts and behaviors cause a series of problems in a person’s life. The disorder has often been linked to destruction in social, occupational, and an overall functioning of life (Soeteman, Verheul, & Busschbach, 2008).The person has often had problems associating with other people and managing stress (Personality Disorders , 2013). Personality disorders are consistently noted in a person that has obsessive-compulsive disorder (Butcher, 2010).
Ever since entering the field of Social Work, I have been exposed to many disorders, therapies, frameworks, and strategies in my studies. My worldview for much of my life had been that I would never need to use any of the treatments or skills, because I was not “broken”, or “too underprivileged” to have gained the education to “know better”. But, as I progressed through my education, I have come to realize that everybody is constantly learning and using acquired skills to function better in everyday life. For myself, I found the skills within Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) treatment to best addressed the areas I was lacking.
...f dialectical behavior therapy for patients with borderline personality disorder on inpatient units . Psychiatric Quarterly .
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.
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
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
non-integration between states of mind, a loss of differentiating, and emotional dis-regulation. People with Borderline Personality Disorder have states of mind that are chaotic, disregulated, and non-integrated. Transitions between these states of mind are rapid, and dramatic (Davidon et al., 2007). These effect other aspects of people’s lives.
In Medea, Medea shows copious traits of an unstable individual, which I believe to be characterized by borderline personality disorder. “Borderline personality disorder is a mental health disorder that impacts the way you think and feel about yourself and others, causing problems functioning in everyday life. It includes a pattern of unstable intense relationships, distorted self-image, extreme emotions and impulsiveness” (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2015, p. 1). Throughout the various actions and emotions displayed by Medea, sorceress and wife of Jason, you can see the relevancy of borderline personality disorder on herself.
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).