Hi folks! If you are someone who is experiencing BPD or if you are a friend/relative/partner/care-taker of someone with BPD, then this post is meant for all of you. I guess you already know what BPD actually is. In case, you want to know what BPD is, let us take a quick tour into its psychological and pathological aspect.

The World Health Organization’s ICD-10 considers BPD as Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder. It states that there are two variations of it:

F60.30 Impulsive type

At least three of the following symptoms must be present, one of which must be:

  1. Marked tendency to act unexpectedly and without consideration of the consequences;
  2. Marked tendency to engage in quarrelsome behavior and to have conflicts with others, especially when impulsive acts are thwarted or criticized;
  3. Liability to outbursts of anger or violence, with inability to control the resulting behavioral explosions;
  4. Difficulty in maintaining any course of action that offers no immediate reward;
  5. Unstable and capricious (impulsive, whimsical) mood.

F60.31 Borderline type

At least three of the symptoms mentioned in F60.30 Impulsive type must be present, with at least two of the following in addition:

  1. Disturbances in and uncertainty about self-image, aims, and internal preferences;
  2. Liability to become involved in intense and unstable relationships, often leading to emotional crisis;
  3. Excessive efforts to avoid abandonment;
  4. Recurrent threats or acts of self-harm;
  5. Chronic feelings of emptiness.
  6. Demonstrates impulsive behavior, e.g., speeding, substance abuse

So that was bit of an idea about what BPD is and what are the symptoms of BPD. A Mental Health Professional or a Clinical Psychologist does the diagnosis of BPD after detailed behavioral and psychological assessment. The symptoms that you just read are just a minute view of what BPD patients suffer from. However, the personal, physical, psychological and social aftermath of BPD is really painful and intense. The turmoil that one goes through on all these levels is overwhelming indeed. That is why whether you are suffering from BPD or you are closely related to someone who has BPD… Each and every one of you needs to know the essential logistics related to it. Only then you can understand the vital aspects, help yourself and help others too.

One of the major issues in BPD is stability. Be it stability in relationships, thoughts-behavior-moods, profession/education, stability in commitment or overall stability in life as a whole, BPD has serious impact on these aspects. BPD suffers also face problems in consistency of treatment as well. They tend to start treatment or therapies with a lot of spur but often find difficulty in sticking to it, continuing it or completing the therapy procedures. Therefore, owing to this let me tell you some ways in which you can stay tuned to the different aspects of your life, maintain stability in those dimensions and effectively deal with BPD:

  • No Matter how strong the negative thoughts or impulses are, try your level best to push yourself towards your therapy sessions. Research studies and clinical outcomes show that most of the BPD cases get healed after successful treatment. Ongoing treatment and after-care also makes chances of relapse less.
  • Relationships suffer most in case of BPD. This is not your fault. The symptoms of BPD make you be so. If you see that your relationships are falling apart, then it’s high time to understand that this is due to BPD and take necessary steps to keep your bonding n ties intact.
  • Proper lifestyle management, routine management, time management will help you a lot in maintaining consistency in the different aspects of your life including social interaction, profession, education, etc.
  • BPD is also linked with fluctuating moods. Therefore, when you feel that your mood is fluctuating try to pacify yourself as much as you can.
  • Relaxation training, Yoga, Meditation, Reflex therapies…. Apart from psychological interventions these therapeutic avenues can also help a lot in achieving stability and improve the prognosis of BPD.
  • For BPD caretakers it is very important to understand the deep issues related to BPD so that you can understand the emotional and personality problems the person may go through.
  • With the help of empathetic understanding, timely and proper treatment, ongoing practice of therapy techniques, BPD can be easily dealt with and its stability issues can be pacified.

Best wishes,

Sareeta