Borderline personality
Borderline Personality is a mental disorder. It is a serious emotional condition, typically with a tendency towards unstable and turbulent emotions, heightened anger, feelings of emptiness, and fears of being left alone. This disorder occurs in most by early adulthood.
The main feature of borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a pervasive pattern of instability in interpersonal relationships, self-image and emotions. People with borderline personality disorder are also usually very impulsive.
Symptoms include:
- Persistent impulsiveness
- Deep feelings of insecurity
- Confused, contradictory feelings
- Anxiety or mood disorders
- Causing deliberate pain by cutting, burning or hitting oneself
- Binge eating or starving; abusing alcohol and other drugs
The exact causes of BPD remain unknown, although the roles of both environmental and biological factors are thought to play a role in people who develop this illness.
It is diagnosed by mental health professionals following a comprehensive psychiatric interview that may include talking with a person’s previous clinicians, reviews of prior records, a medical evaluation, and when appropriate, interviews with friends and family.
The most effective treatment usually involves a combination of, psychological therapy, medication and support. Psychological therapies that have been found to be effective in the treatment of BPD are Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT). During IPT, a person learns new and effective ways to relate to significant people in their lives. DBT helps people learn to handle their emotions better and re-learn the way they typically respond to situations and other people.
