borderline personality disorder

There are a number of myths that have developed about borderline disorder. The following are among the most common and harmful:

Borderline Personality Disorder is not a  Psychiatric Diagnosis

Many mental health professionals did not believe that borderline disorder should be considered a valid diagnosis because of lack of agreement and great confusion about the distinguishing symptoms of the condition. This issue was clarified by research, and borderline personality disorder was included for the first time in the third edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-III), published by the American Psychiatric Association in 1980.

Since 1980, the validity of borderline disorder has been strengthened further by research findings demonstrating that it is associated with significant and specific biological disturbances in the brains of those who suffer from it, and that genetic factors contribute significantly to the risk of the development of the disorder.

Other mental health conditions often coexist with borderline disorder and this increases the complexity of symptoms and the difficulty in making an accurate diagnosis,  especially by those clinicians who are not experienced with the disorder.

Ultimately, this myth leads to a significant number of people with the disorder being misdiagnosed. The most common diagnoses made instead of borderline disorder include bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety and panic disorders, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Misdiagnosis of borderline disorder is frequently followed by many years of ineffective treatment, frustration for patients, and their families, and to a poorer prognosis.

Almost Everyone Who Has Borderline Disorder is a Woman

In fact recent studies show that 50% of sufferers are male.

Borderline starts in adulthood

Psychiatrists are naturally reluctant to diagnose children with a serious mental illness but Borderline is normally detectable in childhood.

Sufferers of BPD do not respond to treatment

there are a number of different types of care, medications, and individual and group therapy treatment approaches that have been shown  to help the BPD sufferer gain increased control over their lives.