Possibly suffering with bpd?
I suffer from anxiety and depression and have been doing for some years now, but after reading up on bpd I think I may have that? I relate to the symptoms a lot (and I'm not self diagnosing at all, like I said, its a possibility and I am speaking to my doctor about it) but I was just wondering like what the process of getting a diagnosis was for people and whether getting a diagnosis has helped people or not?
New to this so sorry if this isnt the right place for this or something
Thank u
Borderline personality disorder is a tricky thing. As you probably read, it affects relationships greatly - any relationships, and usually in a bad way. That's typically the telltale sign. People with mental illness often find relationships to be challenging, so it can hard to know whether it's depression/anxiety/other or actually BPD. I'm only 18, and this is pretty young for a diagnosis of a personality disorder. For me, the diagnosis was surprisingly quick, but it's not like this for most people - or at least that's what I've determined after months of research. Many people seem to be misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder until middle to late adulthood, and that's when the diagnosis is corrected. Here's the thing with personality disorders: it's usually caused by childhood emotional traumas, and it has to be chronic, meaning consistent throughout your life, to be considered a personality disorder. If it's BPD, you would have displayed symptoms since you were a young kiddo O:
Treatment is hard. Pills don't work. I mean, they can help with the depression and anxiety associated with the illness, but that's it. The main treatment is DBT, or dialectical behavioral therapy. Basically, the treatment is to teach you skills to help you keep yourself calm, to think mindfully and clearly, and to help you maintain relationships with other people.
Recovery is possible. So many people have experienced similar struggles - that's why there's a name for it! If it applies to you (a mental health professional will tell you) then that's great. It means you have figured out something important and can start feeling better soon. ♥
I'm open to any questions that you may have (:
Getting a diagnosis was surprisingly easy for me - getting other doctors later on to take it seriously, unfortunately, way more challenging.
It has helped me greatly in understanding myself, and in finding ways to manage the symptoms. Knowing where they come from has helped me a great deal in accepting them. It's hard, and I think it will never be easy, but knowing what it is, for me, has been a great stepping off point.
BPD is a very tricky disorder to be diagnosed, espicially if you are under the age of 18. It has similar symptons as bipolar disorder, but BPD has no breaks in between like biplar. Also, BPD affects not only the person, but their loved ones. They want to feel loved, but they tend to push everyone who tries to help them away. So far there isn't a medication for BPD, only treatment therapies. Most BPD patients are also diagnosed with other mental disorders like depression. Medications can treat the other mental disorders but not BPD. If you have any questions just let me know; I did a research paper on BPD for psychology.
