Borderline Personality Disorder And Insecure Attachment

What is Borderline Personality Disorder? Defined by the website www.borderlinepersonalitydisorder.com, “Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a serious mental illness that causes unstable moods, behavior, and relationships. It usually begins during adolescence or early adulthood.” One may wonder what can be the cause of this disorder. BPD can be detected by an in-person interview about the symptoms that are occurring. The input from family and close friends of the individual that is being treated can also help detect the symptoms. The causes for BPD are not fully

John Bowlby developed his Attachment Theory to examine and explore the contextual relationships between a child and their caregiver and their behavioral repercussions. He describes it is “a way of conceptualizing the propensity of human beings to make strong affectional bonds to particular others and of explaining the many forms of emotional distress and personality disturbance, including anxiety, anger, depression, and emotional detachment, to which unwilling separation and loss give rise” (Bowlby, 1979, p. 127). An infant’s attachment to their primary caregiver establishes a sense of security, through protection, so the infant is able to explore the world with confidence and without threat and risk. During a child’s

Psychiatric research on Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) has increased in popularity over the past few decades. It was included into the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (Third Edition) in 1980. Over the years, professionals have found dramatically effective treatments for a disorder that was once considered disabling. Even though Borderline Personality Disorder can be hard to treat, it’s usually comorbid with other disorders like depression and anxiety. Throughout this paper, I will be focusing on background information, symptoms, and treatments of Borderline Personality Disorder.

Borderline personality disorder is defined in its most simplest sense as being a mental health disorder that generates significant emotional instability. [1] In sufferers it generates a wide range of symptoms typically characterised into three groups; Problems regulating emotions and thoughts; impulsive behaviour without thinking of the consequences of actions; and lastly unstable relationships. Evaluating the most effective treatment(s) for BPD remains a target for mental health services as the disorder is associated with self harm and suicide attempts, with suicide attempts recorded in 69-80% of patients. [2]

A personality disorder is characterized by a distinct pattern of behavior that does not meet normal standards of behavior within one’s culture. This pattern is ingrained as the norm to the person affected, and the characteristics of the affected person deviate markedly from societal standards (Hebblethwaite, 2009). The two main features that help to identify a personality disorder are chronic interpersonal difficulties and persons with one’s identity or sense of self (Livesly, 2001). Within this set of mental health disorders lie several other subsets, including one of the most prominent personality disorders - Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). BPD is a severe, long-lasting disorder that has an incidence of occurrence approximately equal to that of bipolar disorder and schizophrenia combined (Grant, Chou, Goldstein et al., 2008). BPD also puts those affected at risk for damage in many areas of their life if not properly diagnosed and treated, including personal relationships, school, work, and self-imagine. Furthermore, this disorder has a high co-morbidity with other disorders such as depression, substance abuse, eating disorders, and social phobia, among many more (Hebblethwaite, 2009). Misdiagnosis of borderline personality disorder can have serious clinical implications. This paper looks to identify the risk factors associated with BPD, the affects on various aspects of the person’s life, treatments, and give recommendations as to how to properly identify and

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a serious psychiatric illness. People that are diagnosed with this disorder suffer from an intense pattern of affective instability, extreme difficulties in interpersonal relationships, problems with behavioral or impulse control, and disrupted cognitive processes. The estimated prevalence of BPD in the general adult population is about 2%, mostly affecting young women.

Borderline Personality Disorder is a mental disorder characterized by instability in mood, impulsiveness, unstable relationships, and chronic emptiness. Borderline Personality Disorder affects approximately two percent of the population, and is predominately found in women. This disorder makes it difficult for people to understand social norms and the dynamics of relationships, so unpredictable and erratic behavior are common. Although Borderline Personality Disorder is incurable, it is treatable through talk therapy and medication. (Friedel, 2004, p. 2)

The main feature of borderline personality disorder is the pervasive pattern of unstable relationships, self-image, and impulsiveness. Borderline personality disorder begins by early adulthood and is present in a variety of situations. A person with borderline personality disorder will make major efforts to avoid any situation of abandonment. There are many symptoms that go along with having borderline personality disorder. Some examples would include: intense fears of abandonment, intense anger and irritability, impulsive and risky behavior, and wide mood swings. Self-harm, suicidal behavior and substance intoxication are very common in people with borderline personality disorder. A person with BPD experiences emotions in different ways than

6) MacIntosh, H. B., Godbout, N., & Dubash, N. (2015). Borderline personality disorder: Disorder of trauma or personality, a review of the empirical literature. Canadian Psychology, 56(2), 227-241. Retrieved from

Predisposing factors: Borderline personality disorder is a disorder that is characterized by a persons impulsive and/ reckless behavior, poor self-image, self-injury, emotional fluctuations, unstable relationships. There are links that suggest it could be caused by genetic and environmental factors, but it is still being studied. A person that is part of a community or culture with unstable upbringing can increase the risk for this disorder (National Institute of Mental Health, 2014). A childhood with physical and sexual abuse was often linked to people with BPD. It was more-so found to be linked with any neglect as a child (Am J Psychiatry, 1997 ). 6 to 10 million people are affected by borderline personality disorder. 75-90% of people with BPD are women (Borderline Personality Resource Center, 2012).

Introduction: This article discusses the significance of psychotherapy options in treating borderline personality disorder (BPD). Borderline personality is a disorder with a variety of symptoms that can be briefly summarized as instability in mood, thinking, behavior, personal relations, and self-image. Psychotherapy options include cognitive

“Personality disorders have been documented in approximately 9 percent of the general U.S. population” (Angstman, Rasmussen, 2011). Emotional dysregulation disorder or its common name borderline personality disorder is a very serious and chronic disorder. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) describes borderline personality disorder as “a pervasive pattern of instability of interpersonal relationships, self-image, and affects, and marked impulsivity that begins by early adulthood and is present in a variety of contexts” (Gardner, 2006). Within the last 20 years, psychologists and other mental health professionals have made tremendous strides in research on what exactly borderline personality disorder, some of its triggers and possible effective treatment options. Borderline personality disorder is defined as a disorder that generates severe emotional instability which can be a springboard that can lead to other stress induced mental and behavioral problems.

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a serious and complex mental disorder involving maladaptive behaviors and multiple symptoms. This disorder often occurs in the context of relationships and can have a chaotic effect not only on the individual with BPD but also on their loved ones. According to the NIMH, “borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a serious mental illness characterized by unstable moods, behavior, and relationship”.9 A primary character of BPD is behavioral and emotional dysregulation. These behaviors are difficult

In the article titled An Attachment Theoretical Framework for Personality Disorders explores how John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth’s attachment theory provides a coherent perception of “intrapsychic and interpersonal” (2013) aspects of personality disorders, such as antisocial personality disorder. Adverse attachment is often at the root of most antisocial personality disorders. This theoretical groundwork pairs breadth and parsimony to the conceptualization of Bowlby by suggesting that because of the durability of working models, attachment behavior in adolescence and adulthood is an unequivocal continuation of infant attachment behavior. Attachment beyond infancy is evaluated by using instruments, such as The Adult Attachment Interview (AAI). The AAI involves assessing the internal working models developed during earlier in life, however it does not seek to extract objective memories of past attachment connected events; instead it endeavors to assume strategies for maintaining the attachment system through the assessment of the individual’s narrative of childhood attachment experiences. The security is analyzed by the individual to determine the coherence of his or her depiction of attachment encounters and well it incorporated into specific memories for a broader understanding the parent-child relationship (Levy, Johnson, Scala, Temes, Clouthier, 2015).

Borderline personality disorder is associated with a variety of different components and symptoms. The two main areas that borderline personality disorder is related to are moods and relationships; both of these areas tend to be quite unstable. The element about borderline personality disorder that I was not aware of was the increased risk that they have of injury or even death by their own hands. It is a common stereotype that is depicted in the media that those with psychological disorders are always acting sporadically and causing harm. It was discussed in this unit that the main reason these individuals are risks to themselves is because of instability, dysfunction, and impulsivity. Though these elements may sound like they match what is portrayed in the media, there are deeper meanings behind them that can cause dangerous behaviors. Instability is associated with relationships; individuals with borderline personality disorder often have unstable relationships because of their lack of emotional control, which can then lead to a constant fear of abandonment. Dysfunction is associated with unstable emotions and is often a good predictor of potential suicidal thoughts and