Why do people with BPD not receive adequate treatment?

I’ve heard quite a few things both online and offline where as soon as someone receives a diagnosis for borderline personality disorder, mental health professionals do not take them seriously and just put everything down to their personality without giving them any help.

1 Like

I think it’s because it’s easy to just blame it on their personality.
I know that many with BPD can’t help their emotional outbursts, but because normies are able to, people tend to expect everyone to be able to do that to some degree, and will see it as an unwillingness to get better when they can’t.

I know quite a few people with BDP, and even though some really are trying, some of them tend to just say “It’s part of my diagnosis, I can’t help it”, and then refuse to work on their issues.

It’s sad that mental health professionals give up on people like that, but I don’t think they do it to be mean. When you meet a bunch of people with a certain diagnosis, who are unwilling to work on their problems, you start assuming everyone with that diagnosis are unwilling whether you mean to or not.

7 Likes

Do u have bpd @Jesspresso …!!!

My current Pdoc diagnosed me with BPD. I cried when he told me. I told him I’m not lying about my symptoms, he looked at me like he felt sorry for me.

I don’t like the label. I don’t like the term ‘borderline’ as in on the border of psychotic and neurotic. I don’t like that when people hear BPD they think of a manipulative liar.

I don’t want the diagnoses to follow me around, I already have a hard enough time getting the help I need as is.

I don’t even relate to BPD either. I don’t have attachment issues, self worth issues, I can cope with impulsive thought. Yeah, I’m emotional, but so what?

I cry a lot I guess, and can dissociate and sometimes struggle with self harm, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I have BPD.

Am I considered manipulative and attention-seeking, not ill, because of my frequent episodes of self-harm and suicide ideation ?

7 Likes

No, but I’ve heard of quite a few people who do and like @valiumprincess has said, they are just seen as attention seeking rather than being ill… which is ridiculous.

If I were to be diagnosed with any personality disorder later on in life I think it would either be schizotypal or obsessive-compulsive :wink:

5 Likes

Whatever ur diagnosis be … try to enjoy ur life.!!! We all are sufferer here… we can get better in the future…!!

Shout out to u jess…!!! Keep doing right…!!!

7 Likes

Try to think of it as a spectrum, just as SZ and SZA may be. I think every person, well or ill, has a bit of BPD. People just fall on different places on the spectrum. Does that make sense? Its not bad or good, it is just what it is.

2 Likes

Not gunna lie, this sounds like something a neurotypical would say. If I had a dollar everytime I heard 'everyone has a bit of ADHD/anxiety/OCD/'whatever else I would be rich.

I think it’s more of an issue then that, and should be taken seriously. You wouldn’t like it if someone said to you ‘everyone’s a little schizophrenic’ right?

3 Likes

I do believe everyone is a little SZ or SZA. But regardless you make a good point.

As someone who has worked in mental health hospital, I saw nurses act exactly as you pointed out. I was also fooled by a patient who was suffering from sx.

Have you looked into quiet borderline: https://www.borderline-personality-disorder.com/mental-health/what-is-a-quiet-borderline/

2 Likes

I have two friends with BPD and they present completely differently.

One has been locked in a specialist personality disorders unit for almost 1.5-2yrs now.
It was hard to get her the treatment that she deserves and this is probably her last chance at turning her life around.
They kicked her off therapy (DBT) as she was too unwell and told her not to come one week as she’d self harmed. They do crazy stuff like have self harm contracts which is a little coercive and probably counter productive.

The other developed a diazepam problem, but is studying his Msc atm.
He has problems with his MH though is doing ACT atm.
They fobbed off some of his medical problems and has since been found to have other health problems that they are now sorting like his B12 and thyroid that effect his MH.

1 Like

I don’t think they have a treatment for personality disorders so they just do what they know and are used to. Psychologists are not in the business of soothing individuals, they are in the business of diagnosis and perscription drugs.

2 Likes

I relate to this only slightly. I was never an introvert until crippling anxiety came along into my life a few years ago. I also can have tantrums (I call them meltdowns) but I think that’s due to my ASD and becoming to overstimulated.

I relate to depression that leads to ‘existential hopelessness that seemed to swallow her’ I also relate that the example of the girl with BPD was 22, not working, not going to school, and unable to maintain social communication. Because that’s all basically me. But I think those things are an issue because of my MI, not a personality disorder.

I actually don’t really love anyone. For the first 14 years of my life, I loved nobody and didn’t feel any emotional attachment to anyone. Even now I have zero empathy for anyone. Even with the people I love, I wouldn’t care if they left.

So I’m still unsure of the diagnoses.

1 Like

Both mental health and medical doctors stigmatize certain groups of people.

Sometimes it is by diagnosis. Beleive it or not, yes even by gender and race.

Black men are given less perscriptions to improve quality and length of life than their other male counter parts with the same cardiac conditions.

White women with cardiac issues are often
misdiagnosed with anxiety as compared to their male countr parts.

Doctors are not with out bias.

4 Likes

This is super true! I read somewhere that woman displaying symptoms got diagnosed with BPD, then men with the same exact symtoms got the diagnoses of PTSD.

It isn’t as common for a man to be diagnosed with BPD because professionals see it as more of a woman’s illness. It’s really sad.

Reminds me of when they thought all woman had hysteria in the early 1900s and would get them to lay down for days on end because they thought they were weak, and easily frightened/excitable.

3 Likes

exactly.

But let us al not forget the biggest factor in who does or doesnt get treatment-

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$!$$$$$$$$$$$$!!!

4 Likes

I think the women have that problem because almost all the research done on animal tests have been exclusively male. So when they bring it to the human model, they already have a bias towards male anatomy and health.

The reasons for this are not clear but coming from a female friend who is in the health science, they don’t like to work with female rats because they are too emotional and rowdy. It wasn’t clear that other people were doing this in their research either until a study was done on the research that’s been pilling up for…well forever.

4 Likes

There’s a major problem with personality disorders in that it comes down to people subjectively deciding what is or isn’t a good personality. It’s often less about helping people than psychiatrists etc going into obnoxious, self righteous mode and dragging people over the coals for their ‘unhealthy’ personalities.
People with BPD need help and support to use better coping mechanisms not some empathy deficient arsehole passing negative moral judgements on them.

The treatment of BPD and other personality disorders shows the psychiatric profession in its worst and least intelligent light.

5 Likes

http://www.bpdrecovery.com/256-shades-of-bpd

It’s a diverse disorder. Person A can meet criteria 1 2 3 4 5. Person B 5 6 7 8 9 .Both have BPD.

1 Like

I agree with @firemonkey

It was completely hurtful hearing that I had a personality disorder. Like my personality is sick or unhealthy.

I thought my personality was good, I just deal with MI. But now I can’t help feeling like somehow my personality is flawed, and I’m somehow ■■■■■■ up or scientifically incorrect.

1 Like

They said if it wasn’t Aspergers, it would be BPD. I was accused of being a hard patient and being manipulative at one point.