“Caught Between The Tides Of Pain And Rapture”

Borderline Personality Disorder

Description:

A borderline personality disorder is a mental illness marked by a continuous pattern of varying moods, self-image, and behavior.

Symptoms:

Avoidance of abandonment
Unstable relationships
Identity disturbance
Impulsivity
Suicidality/self-injury
Affective instability
Emptiness
Anger
Stress-induced paranoia/dissociation

Note: One may feel that they tend to have hints of these symptoms, but psychological disorders refer to 'extreme personalities'.

Vulnerable population:

BPD usually occurs during adolescence and not later than early adulthood. Approximately 1.6 percent of the population have BPD, and 5.6 percent are diagnosed with BPD at some stage in their lives.

How we can help:

Psychotherapy is the first-line treatment for people with borderline personality disorder.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Interesting research:

A study conducted by Melges, F. T., & Swartz, M. S. (1989) showed that borderline patients face a conflict between fears of abandonment and domination. When they get closer to others, they fear that they will be dominated; when they distance themselves, they fear that they will be abandoned. This gives rise to recurrent oscillations between attachment to and detachment from others.

Reference: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1990-01521-001

Read to know more: https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/borderline-personality-disorder/index.shtml

Here’s a fact sheet for more information: https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/borderline-personality-disorder/index.shtml