I consider myself a communicator and that part of me has been shut down because I simply cannot communicate with this man honestly. Right? Can anyone out there communicate honestly with a BPD?
Hey fellow communicator! I'm from the South... .and even down here people around FF say... "that fellow can talk... ." My bachelors degree was in (wait for it... .yep... you guessed it) communications and for most of my Navy career I flew a plane (E-2C Hawkeye) that, among other things, was in charge of making sure thousands of people were communicating properly to carry out the assigned mission.
Let's just say I was proud of my ability to communicate (although I'm sure you didn't pick up on that before now... .)
Then... I met BPD. Very humbling... .challenging... .and still a work in progress.
I'm going to challenge you to think of this as learning a foreign language. While on the surface it may appear pwBPD speak our language, the "rules" of their language are very different.
I would also challenge to you examine what "honest communication" looks like to you.
If it means saying exactly what you feel and think in any given moment. A relationship/communication with a pwBPD is NOT going to work out well.
If you are able to take time to reflect on what "you really want them to understand" and also take time to think about "how best to say this", then... .perhaps... .you can "honestly" communicate with your pwBPD.
Thoughts?
FF