Borderline Personality Disorder

Borderline Personality Disorder Borderline Personality Disorder is a pattern of instable moods, relationships, and a sense of identity. The Borderline Personality Disorder is usually found in the Axis I of the DSM-IV, it is can be qualified as a mood disorder because of the disturbance in mood and most Borderlines tend to have substance abuse problems, which is also found in Axis I. But Borderline Personality Disorder can also be categorized in the Axis II, because it is a personality disorder. People who are diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder are functioning at the border of neurosis and psychosis (Halgin & Whitbourne, 2010). Individuals have a higher possibility for developing Borderline Personality Disorder in their 20s. This disorder was affected more by women but now there seem to be little difference between men and women being diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder (Cloud, 2009). Psychologist Marsha Linehan of University of Washington describes how she sees Borderline Personality Disorder, “Borderline individuals are the psychological equivalent of third-degree-burn patients. They simple have no emotional skin. The slightest touch or movement can create immense suffering” (Cloud, 2009). A person with Borderline Personality Disorder seems to always fear the people they love and care about will leave them, but the person with Borderline Personality Disorder usually ends up pushing the ones they love away because they cannot control their emotions like someone can who is not living with Borderline Personality. People with Borderline Personality Disorder tend to express themselves more intensely and tend to react quickly without thinking about the consequences of the situation. Borderline individual’s relationships are usually “all or nothing” whether it is romantic or platonic (Halgin & Whitbourne, 2010). As therapists are concerned, individuals seeking help who may have Borderline Personality Disorder are feared the most

References: Cloud, J. (2009, January, 8). The Mystery of Borderline Personality Disorder. Time Magazine, 2-8. Retrieved October 16, 2010, from http://www.time.com/printout/0,8816,1870491,00.html Halgin, R., Whitbourne, S. (2010) Abnormal Psychology: Clinical Perspectives on Psychological Disorders. Borderline Personality Disorder, 314-319.