1 BPD often causes symptoms like extreme mood shifts and uncertainty in how a person views themselves and others
-people with BPD have difficulty regulating emotions, unsteady sense of self, and a pattern of intense, unstable relationships, it affects how a person thinks and feels about themselves and others enough to negatively impact their daily life
-people with BPD experience mood shifts so severe they make a person feel overcome by massive waves of emotion, and the stimuli for these extreme emotional reactions can be minor
2 BPD is thought to affect about 2 to 6% of people in the United States
3 People with BPD often have other mental health conditions
-the relationship between BPD and other conditions is not completely understood
-may be negative coping mechanism to deal with the painful symptoms of BPD
4 BPD and Bipolar are not the same thing
-share some similarities, such as bipolar disorder also causes extreme shifts in mood and behavior
-however, with bipolar disorder, the shifts are primarily between depressive, manic, and hypomanic episodes
-fear of abandonment and unstable personal relationships inherent to BPD aren’t in the diagnostic criteria for bipolar
5 People with BPD are at an elevated risk for self-harm and suicide due to a mix of intense emotions and impulsivity
-self-harm, suicidal ideation, and suicidal behavior are more prevalant among people with BPD
-about 10% of people with BPD die by suicide, which is tragically high
-people with BPD may turn to self-harm because it feels like instantaneous relief for heightened emotions
6 There is no single cause of BPD, but experts believe there are several key risk factors involved
-combination of hereditary, neurological, and environmental factors
7 Some experts advocate for diagnosing BPD in adolescents while others prefer to wait until adulthood
-clinicians are discovering that BPD can be detected in children and adolescents, possible signs are impulsive risk-taking, frequent angry outbursts, continuous interpersonal issues, low self-esteem, and repetitive self-injury or suicide attempts
-the earlier we intervene, the more likely we are to help
8 The first-line treatment for BPD is therapy
-we cannot take away people with BPDs emotional reactivity, but we can give them skills to better respond to the emotional reaction
-DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy)-combines acceptance and mindfulness of one’s emotional state with coping skills for these emotions
-CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy)-helps people with BPD identity and manage their emotions and behaviors
9 It can be hard for a person with BPD to trust their therapist, and that bond if often foundational to recovery
-therapists treating BPD typically emphasize acceptance and validation
-group therapy is also good for BPD patients, so they can learn how to best interact with and express themselves to other people
10 There are not any medications specifically recommended to treat BPD
-there simply aren’t yet clear enough benefits to using medications as the primary treatment for BPD
-can only prescribe meds for symptoms
-mood stabilizers for emotional instability
11 BPD is often stigmatized, even among healthcare providers
-some mental health providers hold false and harmful views on BPD
-one of the most pervasive misperceptions is that people with BPD are intentionally maliciously trying to manipulate those around them with their displays of extreme emotion or self-harm. This is false. These symptoms stem from mental illness, not a person deciding of their own volition that they’d like to manipulate other people
12 People with BPD can be empathetic and lovely individuals
-there are serious challenges with extreme sensitivity, but there are also benefits
-people with BPD are often able to understand the feelings of other people to a greater degree
-many people with BPD are unusually creative because they have a deeper and broader experience of human emotion from which to draw
-people with BPD are fun. creative, compassionate, beautiful people
13 With solid therapy and hard work, the long-term outlook for people with BPD can be bright
-remission rates of BPD are incredibly high
-BPD does not have to define you; it’s treatable, and there’s help out there
The BPD Group 