Borderline Personality Disorder, Symptoms, Causes, Treatment

Borderline Personality Disorder, also known as emotionally unstable Personality Disorder,  makes it hard for someone to control their emotions. It can make them act impulsively, feel bad about themselves, and have relationship problems.

However, Effective treatments are available that can help people manage the symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder. This article gives detailed information about its symptoms, remedies, and diagnosis to help medical professionals gain better knowledge.

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What is Borderline Personality Disorder?

Borderline Personality Disorder is a mental illness in which a person has unstable relationships, struggles with understanding who they are, and experiences intense emotions. They often engage in risky behaviours and may harm themselves due to difficulty in managing their feelings.

BPD usually starts in early adulthood and can be triggered by normal events. It's often linked with other mental health issues like substance abuse, depression, and eating disorders and carries a risk of suicide.

Borderline Personality Disorder Symptoms

Borderline personality disorder changes how you see yourself, get along with others, and act, including your self-perception, relationships with others, actions or behaviors., and how you behave in different situations.

The various symptoms that identify a person with the borderline disorder are given in the points below:

• Impulsiveness: If you have BPD, when you feel upset, you might do dangerous things and make you feel good for a short time. This could be spending money you don't have, eating a lot, driving fast, stealing, or using too much drugs or alcohol.
• Self-harm: Their feelings about themselves can change a lot, and they might hurt themselves by cutting or burning. This could be talking about suicide, making threats, or trying to harm themselves. Self-harm includes hurting yourself without wanting to die.
• Controlling emotions: They might have trouble managing their feelings, especially anger and anxiety. They can go from feeling happy to very sad quickly. Small things can make them very upset, and these mood swings are strong but don't last long, usually just a few minutes or hours.
• Dissociation: They might feel disconnected from their body or the world around them. When they're stressed, they might even feel like they're not connected to reality. They could feel confused like they're in a fog, or as if they're not really in their own body.
• Feeling empty: They might feel something important is missing. This feeling is uncomfortable, so they might try to fill it with things like drugs and food,  but nothing makes them feel truly satisfied.
• Intense relationships: They might have a lot of conflicts and fights in their relationships. Their relationships feel either great or terrible, with no in-between. This can make their loved ones think emotionally, and confused due to sudden changes in feelings toward them.
• Depression: They might feel very suspicious or down a lot of the time. Sometimes, you might feel okay, but other times, you dislike yourself or even think you're bad. You might need to learn exactly who you are or what you want. Because of this, you might change jobs, friends, partners, beliefs, and goals.
• Hearing voices: Individuals with BPD may encounter auditory hallucinations, such as hearing voices, particularly during periods of emotional stress.
• Loneliness: People with BPD fear being left alone, even by small things like a loved one coming home late. This fear can make them act desperately to keep the person close. They might beg, cling, or even start fights. But sadly, this often pushes people away instead.

Not everyone with Borderline Personality Disorder will have all these signs.  These can vary from person to person. People with Borderline Personality Disorder are more likely to hurt themselves or think about hurting themselves than other people who don't have this disorder.

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Borderline Personality Disorder Causes

It is unsure what causes BPD, but it's thought that a mix of things like your surroundings, genes, and how your brain works could make you more likely to have it. Borderline personality disorder can happen because of different things:

• Bad experiences : Many people with BPD have been through abuse or trauma when they were kids, like being hurt emotionally, physically, or sexually. Problems with family, like not feeling close to parents or parents having issues with drugs, can also be linked to BPD.
• Family history : If someone in your family has had BPD, you might be more likely to get it, too, but it doesn't mean you definitely will.
• Brain changes : In people with BPD, parts of the brain that control feelings and actions don't work the way they should. This can lead to problems with how they act and feel.

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Borderline Personality  Disorder Diagnosis

To diagnose Borderline disorder, a psychiatrist or another mental health professional does a thorough evaluation. They talk to the patient about their symptoms and history and may also gather information from family, friends, and medical records. It's important to check for other mental health conditions, substance use problems, suicidal thoughts, and self-harm. Detailed information about the diagnosis is described in the points below:

• • Involving individuals in the diagnostic process can help them accept the diagnosis better.
  • Even though there's stigma around BPD, disclosing the diagnosis is usually helpful. It clarifies their experiences and guides them toward suitable treatments.
  • The psychological evaluation examines when symptoms started, how severe they are, and how they affect daily life.
  • Important areas to notice include suicidal thoughts, self-harm, and thoughts of harming others.

• Diagnosis depends on both what the individual reports and what the clinician observes.

• • Other tests like physical exams and blood tests may be done to rule out other conditions like thyroid disorders or substance use problems.

• In the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10), BPD is called emotionally unstable Personality Disorder, but its criteria are similar to those in the DSM-5.

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Borderline Personality  Disorder Treatment

Treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder can help reduce symptoms and improve quality of life. It's crucial to seek help from a licensed mental health professional for the best care. Improvements in symptoms may take time, so it's important to be patient and stick to the treatment plan.

Some individuals may require intensive care, like staying in a hospital, while others can manage with regular appointments outside the hospital. The therapies that include treating Borderline Personality Disorder treatment include the following:

Psychotherapy Treatment

Effective treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder typically involves long-term psychotherapy, which can significantly reduce symptoms and improve quality of life. The treatment includes:

Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)

DBT was made for those with Borderline Personality Disorder. It helps by teaching mindfulness, which means being aware of your feelings and what's happening now. The therapy includes:

• Psychodynamic therapies
• Managing emotions
• Improving relationships
• Changing negative thought patterns

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Treatment(CBT)

It is a type of therapy that focuses on identifying and changing behaviours and beliefs associated with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). The treatment includes the following methods:

• In CBT, individuals work with a therapist to identify thoughts and behaviours and develop strategies to change them.
• Through CBT, individuals learn to recognize negative thought patterns contributing to their symptoms.

By modifying these thoughts and behaviours, individuals can experience improvements in their overall mental health and functioning.

Group Therapy

Group therapy is when people talk about their problems with a therapist. It can help those with BPD get along better with others and talk about their feelings better.

Borderline Personality Disorder Medications

Doctors usually don't give medicines as the main treatment for BPD because it's not clear if they help much. But sometimes, a psychiatrist might suggest medicines to help with certain symptoms or other mental health issues happening at the same time. These medicines can help with anxiety, feeling sad, managing mood swings, or stopping impulsive actions. Some people find antipsychotic drugs helpful for BPD.

Living with Borderline Personality Disorder

If you have a friend or family member with Borderline Personality Disorder, here's how you can support them:

• Learn about BPD so you can understand what they're going through.
• Encourage them to get treatment for BPD and suggest family therapy if you're a relative..
• If you're feeling stressed or have mental health issues like anxiety or depression because of the situation, consider getting therapy for yourself.

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a serious mental illness known for unstable moods and behaviours. People with BPD struggle to control their emotions and thoughts. For example, many female inmates show signs of BPD, often linked to past trauma like childhood abuse. BPD is also connected to breaking the law because those with the disorder can't manage their emotions well.

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