Borderline Personality Disorder

Living with borderline personality disorder (BPD) is like living with a storm inside. Emotions swing wildly. Relationships get tangled. At times, you cannot realize yourself. If so, then you are not alone, and there is plenty of hope.

We know what BPD is like at Clamon Counseling Services, which is why we provide gentle, individualized therapy that brings serenity in the storm. Finding this page will help you understand what BPD is, how it is diagnosed, and, more importantly, how you can manage it so you can live a more complete and balanced life.

What Exactly Is Borderline Personality Disorder?

Borderline Personality Disorder is NOT just mood swings or being a tad unstable. This is a serious mental health issue that influences how you manage your emotions, connect with other individuals, and see yourself. 

Here are some of the things you may go through if you live with BPD:

• Intense emotions that shift rapidly, ranging from sadness and anger to anxiety and joy.
• Fear of abandonment, whether real or imagined, leads to frantic attempts to avoid being left alone.
• Impulsive behaviors such as reckless spending, unsafe sex, substance abuse, or binge eating.
• Unstable self-image, where your sense of identity changes frequently and feels fragile.
• Troubled relationships that swing between idealizing someone and suddenly feeling distant or hostile.
• Chronic feelings of emptiness or boredom that leave you feeling lost or numb.

Such symptoms of life can cause everything to feel hopeless and unpredictable. However, with the right treatment, BPD is manageable, and people with the illness can still have a meaningful life.

Common Symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder

Exact symptoms are very broad, but common examples include

• Intense fear of abandonment and frantic efforts to avoid it, even in the face of no abandonment happening.
• Mood swings change fast over hours, and everything seems too intense.
• Only sporadically unstable, intermittent relationships are characterized by a combination of intense closeness, contact, and emotional distance.
• Engaging in risky behaviors that risk harming yourself or others, e.g., dangerous driving or substance use.
• A distorted sense of self, an uncertainty about who you really are.
• A prolonged sensation of emptiness and encountering trouble in appreciating pursuits.
• Struggles to control aggression that escalates into physical fights or verbal rages.
• Paranoia or dissociation from stress, feeling like you are not even yourself, or something surreal when you are going through a lot.

These signs can also give you a hard time in life, but they do not determine your value as a human being or your success in life.

Causes of Borderline Personality Disorder

BPD develops due to a complex mix of genetic, neurological, and environmental factors. No single cause explains it fully, but research points to several key contributors:

• Genetics: BPD can run in families, so having close family members with BPD or other mental health disorders can increase your risk.
• Brain differences: Research found alterations in brain regions that are responsible for regulating emotions and impulses, which could lead to a more challenging time when regulating emotions.
• Early trauma: Childhood abuse, neglect, or other types of trauma can bring on a lot of problems for the rest of your life. These experiences inform your interpersonal interactions and emotions.
• Environmental stress: Chronic stressors away from friends or family, loss, or disruptive living conditions can aggravate the symptoms.

It helps to personalize your therapy by letting you know what makes it therapeutic, and you can learn what trauma is causing your BPD.

Types of Borderline Personality Disorder

Although BPD is defined by core symptoms, it is inherently different from individual to individual. Experts characterize a number of the top types or patterns:

• Impulsive Type: Identified by the presence of dangerous behaviors, abrupt mood changes, and frequent outbursts of anger. This one is likely to have the most trouble with self-control.
• Petulant Type: Moody and irritable, easily frustrated with others, and always ready for a fight.
• Discouraged Type: feel helpless, want to withdraw, behavior is passive. You may feel trapped or like there is no way out.
• Self-destructive Type: Self-harm, thoughts of suicide or attempts at suicide, and substance abuse. This pattern needs care that is immediate and direct.

Understanding your pattern allows therapists to customize treatment plans that address your biggest difficulties first.

Treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder at Clamon Counseling Services

Proper care can help relieve and even stabilize these issues. Clamon Counseling Services is not your typical therapy; these are effective therapies that build skills, heal with compassion through the past, and create changes that will last.

• Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): This evidence-based treatment teaches you to combine acceptance and change. DBT skills are mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. This one is tailored for BPD; it guides you through high-emotion moments in a step-by-step manner.

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): CBT identifies and modifies negative thoughts and behaviors. It helps you develop more positive behaviors and a more realistic mindset.

• Schema Therapy: This therapy targets maladaptive coping strategies and emotions that are often rooted in childhood. It helps you identify and update these “schemas” to boost self-confidence and develop stronger relationships.

• Trauma-Informed Therapy: Many BPD patients have experienced trauma in their past, which impacts their behavior today. Trauma-informed care encourages an atmosphere of safety and trust and softly works to heal these wounds.

Your treatment plan will be developed according to your specific needs and at your own pace by your therapist. We emphasize developing an atmosphere that nourishes you to grow as you feel secure.

Outlook/Prognosis

While living with BPD can sometimes feel disastrous, there is much that has changed for the better. If treated well, most individuals improve dramatically within months to years. 

We become more stable and more steady emotionally. Therefore, relationships become more steady also. You can then live a rich and meaningful life.

It will boil down to commitment: to therapy, to self-reflection, and to self-care. It is a process, not a destination.

Prevention

Given that BPD is influenced by genetics and early experiences, prevention is centered on early intervention:

• Helping children cope in high-stress environments
• Finding early ways to teach kids to regulate their emotions
• Facilitating open dialogue within the family
• Getting early treatment for trauma or abuse

However, if you realize BPD in yourself or someone else that you love, early support can alter the path.

How Therapy at Clamon Counseling Services Transforms Your Experience with BPD

Having BPD is like a hurricane inside you. Therapy is your compass through that storm. Since the first day, we have built a trustful relationship at Clamon Counseling Services. Your therapist listens and provides non-judgmental support.

You’ll:

• Identify emotional triggers.
• Learn skills to manage overwhelming feelings.
• Build healthier, more stable relationships.
• Develop self-compassion and resilience.
• Create a clear plan for setbacks and recovery.

With our online sessions, you can get the treatment you need no matter where you are, as it is all flexible according to your schedule. We support you to take control of your mental health, one step at a time.

Ready to Take Control of Borderline Personality Disorder?

BPD does not have to dominate your life any longer. At Clamon Counseling Services, we offer compassionate, expert care designed for you. Contact us now if you are looking to start feeling calmer, calmer, and more connected.

Schedule an appointment with Clamon Counseling Services and start your path to emotional stability and true recovery.