DIAGNOSIS: BPD. What is it? How can I tell?

[BPDFamily.com]

I have been reviewing several online resources about some of the co-morbid features of BPD, including alcoholism.  What I have found is that those suffering from alcoholism per se, whether they are ACOA or not, is the striking similarity of symptoms to those discussed on this board, including some used in the DSM used to classify someone as having BPD:

Black-white thinking

Relationship difficulties, barriers to intimacy

Child-like reasoning/thinking

Low self-esteem; poor sense of self

Fear of abandonment

Hypersensitivity to criticism

There might be common impairments but an alcoholic can stop drinking and much of the impairment stops too... . unfortunately not so easy with BPD

I wouldn't agree with this.

My son is a recovering alcoholic.  He went through rehab, and I learned a lot from meetings at the treatment facility.

They talk about "dry drunks":  people who have more-or-less quit drinking but haven't dealt with the underlying issues.  I went through periods like this with my son - still dishonest, manipulative, etc. - pretty much the same personality he had when he was drinking.  Then he went through treatment and got to some of the underlying issues, and he got more honest - grew up a lot.  Now he's a much different person - sober more than five years and still working on himself the best he can.

Interestingly, some resources describe people with BPD who have been in treatment for a few years as achieving "remission of major symptoms" - not a "cure" - you still have BPD but you're "in recovery" like a recovering alcoholic.

So I think the analogy might be pretty good... .

[Matt]

I have been reviewing several online resources about some of the co-morbid features of BPD, including alcoholism.  What I have found is that those suffering from alcoholism per se, whether they are ACOA or not, is the striking similarity of symptoms to those discussed on this board, including some used in the DSM used to classify someone as having BPD:

Black-white thinking

Relationship difficulties, barriers to intimacy

Child-like reasoning/thinking

Low self-esteem; poor sense of self

Fear of abandonment

Hypersensitivity to criticism

There might be common impairments but an alcoholic can stop drinking and much of the impairment stops too... . unfortunately not so easy with BPD

I wouldn't agree with this.

My son is a recovering alcoholic.  He went through rehab, and I learned a lot from meetings at the treatment facility.

They talk about "dry drunks":  people who have more-or-less quit drinking but haven't dealt with the underlying issues.  I went through periods like this with my son - still dishonest, manipulative, etc. - pretty much the same personality he had when he was drinking.  Then he went through treatment and got to some of the underlying issues, and he got more honest - grew up a lot.  Now he's a much different person - sober more than five years and still working on himself the best he can.

Interestingly, some resources describe people with BPD who have been in treatment for a few years as achieving "remission of major symptoms" - not a "cure" - you still have BPD but you're "in recovery" like a recovering alcoholic.

So I think the analogy might be pretty good... .

[Panda39]

I didn't mean to imply that the recovering alcoholic doesn't have underlying issues and problems... . there is a reason for the alcoholism but you take away the alcohol and with it the drunken impairment it causes then you can better deal with the underlying issues. 

BPD seems a lot more complicated to me.  They aren't deliberately doing something to their brains that they can just stop or remove that will  suddenly make them better able to help themselves.

I hope I'm making sense.

[Matt]

I didn't mean to imply that the recovering alcoholic doesn't have underlying issues and problems... . there is a reason for the alcoholism but you take away the alcohol and with it the drunken impairment it causes then you can better deal with the underlying issues. 

BPD seems a lot more complicated to me.  They aren't deliberately doing something to their brains that they can just stop or remove that will  suddenly make them better able to help themselves.

I hope I'm making sense.

Yeah, I think that makes a lot of sense!

[AlonelyOne]

I strongly suspect my wife has it, our marital counselor referenced her strongly black and whiting things. But I have no real diagnosis.  But when I read these 13 traits, or victims of BPD abuse will feel these 15 things.  Usually all but one or two items are relevant.

I was just curious if there was some questionaire (similar to the one I have seen for Asperger's) but for BPD?

[Youcantfoolme]

There are many, like this one www.psychcentral.com/quizzes/borderline.htm but they are more like personal assessments that would be needed to be taken by the person who's suffering from the disorder. You may be able to guess her answers but you can never truly tell how she feels inside.  Also google things like "my wife has BPD" or "how to tell if your wife has BPD" and you will find a wealth of information on it.

[Arkadiusz]

Hello

Please reply.
I suspect my ex-partner about BPD.
Why did she not look into my eyes for four months?
At first she avoided looking at me like fire.
When we lay down, she always turned her head. She never looked at me or talked face to face.
At the end of the relationship, she sometimes looked.
Who knows this behavior, who can write something