Post by Mea on Jan 5, 2016 1:42:10 GMT
Anonymous asked: I'm in a similar situation as that last anon except my therapist straight up said that she doesn't think I have BPD, but her only reasoning was because I don't have the push-and pull kind of relationships with *everyone*, just friendships and romantic relationships... But I feel like everybody experiences it differently? Idk what to think because she's adamant about it but it's the only thing that makes sense to me
Answer: I’m going to start writing stern letters about what BPD actually is to all these therapists, I swear. Here are the official DSM 5 diagnostic criteria. What you’re talking about is criterion 2. She’s wrong and you’re right about individual experience of a symptom - I experience little instability in my friendships, but instability in every other relationship - but she’s also wrong because even if you did not have that symptom at all, you could have any five or more of the other eight criteria, and therefore qualify for a diagnosis of BPD. (But you do have it because she’s wrong about needing it to apply to literally everyone. It just has to be a problem for you. Not splitting on the postman isn’t much consolation when you split on your partner every day, so I don’t really see her logic! Splitting in close relationships only is extremely difficult to deal with!)
Symptoms of a personality disorder are almost always present at some level, but they come out more under stress. As we are all different, different things stress us all out. Some people only get stressed enough to start splitting in romantic relationships. Some people feel most safe and secure in their romantic relationships but split with other people. Some people will split on anybody or anything, if their lives in general are stressful enough. It’s very possible for people with personality disorders to be comfortable with or able to cope with certain things or people, and to be triggered by other things or people.
I hope you can convey this to your therapist, and/or access a new therapist.
- Exo
Answer: I’m going to start writing stern letters about what BPD actually is to all these therapists, I swear. Here are the official DSM 5 diagnostic criteria. What you’re talking about is criterion 2. She’s wrong and you’re right about individual experience of a symptom - I experience little instability in my friendships, but instability in every other relationship - but she’s also wrong because even if you did not have that symptom at all, you could have any five or more of the other eight criteria, and therefore qualify for a diagnosis of BPD. (But you do have it because she’s wrong about needing it to apply to literally everyone. It just has to be a problem for you. Not splitting on the postman isn’t much consolation when you split on your partner every day, so I don’t really see her logic! Splitting in close relationships only is extremely difficult to deal with!)
Symptoms of a personality disorder are almost always present at some level, but they come out more under stress. As we are all different, different things stress us all out. Some people only get stressed enough to start splitting in romantic relationships. Some people feel most safe and secure in their romantic relationships but split with other people. Some people will split on anybody or anything, if their lives in general are stressful enough. It’s very possible for people with personality disorders to be comfortable with or able to cope with certain things or people, and to be triggered by other things or people.
I hope you can convey this to your therapist, and/or access a new therapist.
- Exo
