What is borderline personality disorder?
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a developmental disorder that greatly disrupts a person’s ability to regulate their emotions, control their actions, and form stable interpersonal relationships.
Unfortunately, BPD is often misdiagnosed as bipolar disorder, when in BPD changes in mood happen much more rapidly and can often fluctuate dramatically within the same day.
To be diagnosed with BPD the person must experience at least five of the following symptoms:
• Fear of abandonment
• Unstable or changing relationships
• Unstable self image; struggles with identity or sense of self
• Impulsive self-destructive behaviours (excessive spending, unsafe sex, substance misuse, binge eating and others)
• Suicidal behaviour or self injury
• Mood instability with varied mood swings
• Feelings of emptiness
• Difficulties with anger, including frequent loss of temper or physical fights
• Stress related paranoia or dissociation
If you feel that the above applies to you, it is important to see a specialist to diagnose you correctly as people with BPD often also experience other disorders such as depression, anxiety, substance misuse or eating disorders.
If you are suffering from BPD, specialist therapy can greatly improve your day to day functioning and quality of life.
Which therapies might help?
Medication is not recommended for BPD by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines, however, there is some evidence that it might be helpful in managing the symptoms of depression and anxiety that people with BPD often experience.
Our highly skilled team of professionals at My Online Therapy have specialist experience in the treatment of BPD.