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welcome to the bpd carrd -- a very simple carrd about bpd by someone with bpd.
the person who made the carrd wants you to use this carrd for some personal
education (and to break down some stigma), but not for you to make a
self-diagnosis.


 * what is bpd?

 * what is dbt?

 * what does "switching" mean?

 * bpd resources

 * a little personal note


WHAT IS BPD?

Borderline Personality Disorder, sometimes called Emotional Dysregulation
Disorder, is a mental illness where a person’s relationships with people,
self-image, and emotions are impaired. It is often described as having "no
emotional skin," or "emotional third-degree burns" because of how intensely
people with BPD feel their emotions. It is usually environmentally induced. It
is also often misdiagnosed.

Those with BPD are often labelled as toxic because of their behavior. BPD is
very heavily stigmatized, even in a professional environment. There are many
clinicians with reservations about both the legitimacy of the disorder and
taking on patients with BPD. Other diagnoses with symptoms of suicidality or
anger are not considered stigmatizing in the same way, which is why many
patients won’t disclose that they have BPD in fear of being turned away.

By not disclosing diagnoses, patients can receive inadequate and misguided
treatment. And while BPD is often accompanied by some other mental illness (i.e.
depression) that can be managed with medication, BPD cannot usually be treated
with medication alone.

 * click to read dsm criteria

 * what is the dsm?

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“There is perhaps no serious mental illness more maligned and misconstrued than
borderline personality disorder.” - Joyce Burland, Ph.D

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SOME BPD FACTS

• 65-70% of persons with BPD make at least 1 suicide attempt

• 10% of patients with BPD complete suicide

• Self-injury (cutting, burning, bruising, head-banging, biting) is seen in 75%
of patients

• Clinicians have the right to turn away BPD patients




DSM CRITERIA


DO NOT BY ANY MEANS USE THIS TO SELF-DIAGNOSE

1. Frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment.
2. A pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships characterized
by alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation.
3. Identity disturbance: persistently unstable self-image or sense of self.
4. Impulsivity in at least two areas that are potentially self-damaging (e.g.,
spending, sex, substance abuse, reckless driving, binge eating).
5. Recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats, of self- mutilating
behavior.
6. Affective instability due to a marked reactivity of mood (e.g., intense
episodic dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety usually lasting a few hours and
only rarely more than a few days).
7. Chronic feelings of emptiness.
8. Inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger (e.g., frequent
displays of temper, constant anger, recurrent physical fights).
9. Transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociative symptoms.
Note that 7 out of 9 of the criteria affect OTHER relationships which is why
it’s considered the “disorder of relationships.”

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BPD CRITERIA REORGANIZED


INTERPERSONAL DYSREGULATION:
-ABANDONMENT FEARS
- UNSTABLE RELATIONSHIPS (IDEAL/DEVALUED)
-EMPTINESS

AFFECTIVE/EMOTION DYSREGULATION:
- AFFECTIVE INSTABILITY (NO ELATIONS)
- INAPPROPRIATE, INTENSE ANGER

BEHAVIORAL DYSREGULATION:
- RECURRENT SUICIDALITY, THREATS, SELF-HARM
- IMPULSIVITY (SEX, DRIVING, BINGEING)

SELF DYSREGULATION:
- UNSTABLE/DISTORTED SELF-IMAGE
- DEPERSONALIZATION / PARANOID IDEATION UNDER STRESS

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“Borderline individuals are the psychological equivalent of third-degree burn
patients. They simply have, so to speak, no emotional skin. Even the slightest
touch or movement can create immense suffering.”
- Marsha Linehan




BPD RESOURCES

 * emotions matter

 * national institute on mental health

 * DBT self help

 * BPD resource center

 * needymeds

 * NowMattersNow




WHAT IS DBT?

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), developed by Marsha Linehan, is a type of
psychotherapy ("talk therapy") primarily used to treat borderline personality
disorder (BPD). DBT is a form of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), meaning
it's a type of therapy that focuses on the role of cognition, which refers to
thoughts & beliefs, behavior, or actions, in the development and treatment of
BPD.

DBT has also proven to be helpful with other mental illnesses, such as ADHD,
PTSD, and various eating disorders.

The core DBT strategies:
Mindfulness
Helps you focus on the present or “live in the moment.” It helps you pay
attention to what is happening inside: your thoughts, feelings, sensations, and
impulses. It also encourages you to tune in to what's happening around you (what
you see, hear, smell, and touch) in nonjudgmental ways. Mindfulness skills help
you slow down and focus on using healthy coping skills when you are in the midst
of emotional pain.

Distress Tolerance
These techniques help prepare you for intense emotions and empower you to cope
with them with a more positive long-term outlook.
It includes distraction, improving the moment, self-soothing, and thinking of
the pros/cons of not tolerating distress.

Interpersonal Effectiveness
Helps you to become more assertive in a relationship (for example, expressing
your needs and be able to say "no") while still keeping a relationship positive
and healthy. It also helps you to learn, to listen, and to communicate more
effectively, as well as deal with challenging people, respect yourself, and
respect others.

Emotion regulation
These skills help you learn to identify, name, and change your emotions. When
you are able to recognize and cope with intense negative emotions (for example,
anger), it reduces your emotional vulnerability and helps you have more positive
emotional experiences.




WHAT IS "SWITCHING?"

"Switching," also known as "splitting," is very common with BPD.

"When a baby enters the world, they experience the things within it as either
good or bad, or as all or nothing. As the baby develops psychologically, they
begin to understand that the world isn’t just good or bad. They become able to
integrate the idea that good and bad can be held in the same object."

People with borderline personality disorder often experience overwhelming
emotions. This causes them to struggle with the concept that good and bad can
co-exist.

Switching or splitting is a psychological mechanism which allows the person to
tolerate difficult and overwhelming emotions by seeing someone as either good or
bad, idealized or devalued. It makes it (seemingly) easier to manage emotions.

This is a type of black and white thinking. You may be completely repulsed by
someone one day or one week or one hour, then think they are perfect the next.
This way of thinking often jumps back and forth, and can be hard for the
receiving end to follow. It's important to keep in mind that this has a name and
is a real thing people experience -- it does not make someone evil. It just may
take some communication and work toward a healthier relationship.




A NOTE TO MY FELLOW BORDERLINES (OR WHATEVER YOU PREFER TO BE CALLED)

If you're reading this and having a hard time, I hope you know all your feelings
are valid and real and I know how deeply you feel them. I also hope you know
that you're not a bad person, no matter what evidence you use against yourself.
Frankly, if you're paranoid about being a bad person, that's a huge sign that
you aren't -- you wouldn't really be worried about being a bad person if you
were one, no?

I really struggle with personalizing everything I see online. I know how hard it
can be to read things online about "toxic" traits and feeling ashamed when you
can cross off everything, especially when people say things like "drop people
like this," because it's othering and dehumanizing. I'm just going to say it
plainly: those people are so, so ignorant. And, you know what? Sometimes, they
simply lack compassion. That's on them and not entirely on you. Of course, you
should try to combat your behavior you know can potentially cause pain. But you
deserve to be surrounded by people who see and recognize your struggle.

There's nothing someone, especially me who is literally sitting here making a
carrd with her laptop on her stomach with four chins, can say that can make you
feel better when you're struggling because your brain can seemingly just keep
going unless you utilize the skills to stop it (and that's a muscle, and
sometimes, it doesn't work the way you need it to). But something that helps me
is remembering this: feelings aren't facts -- they move. They come and go like
waves. I know each time can feel significantly worse than the last, but you can
make it and I hope you're able to get the help and support that you need.



I've written two things about BPD on Medium. One of them is called "Down the
Rabbit Hole," which goes more in-depth into how it feels to have BPD and how
fucking left out you can feel on days like World Mental Health day, when you
feel like everyone has depression and anxiety but will never understand the
depth of what you feel or the way you behave. And the other is called "I'm
Borderline -- Not Broken," which is just a thank you to Rebecca Bunch from The
CW's Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, who has BPD (and, to me, is the best representation of
BPD that I've ever seen on TV). And if you want to read them and they help you
feel less alone or seen in any way, they were worth writing!




WHAT IS THE DSM?

The government and many insurance carriers require a specific diagnosis in order
to approve payment for treatment.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is a book
published by the American Psychiatric Association that is widely used by
clinicians and psychiatrists in the United States to diagnose psychiatric
illnesses. It covers all categories of mental health disorders for both adults
and children, and contains descriptions, symptoms, and other criteria necessary
for diagnosing mental health disorders.

It also contains statistics regarding the demographics of each illness, the
effects of treatment, and common treatment approaches.



( Made with Carrd )