Borderline Personality Disorder: Seeing Life In Black And White

Strong emotions, recurring thoughts of self-harm, suicide attempts, intolerance to frustration, and chronic feelings of loneliness are just some of the symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD).

There are many people who deny the existence of this disorder. This is because BPD is not easy to recognize due to the wide range of symptoms it can cause. Some of the symptoms are similar to the symptoms of other conditions, such as depression and anxiety.

People who go from one extreme to the other

People who suffer from Borderline Personality Disorder are constantly going from one extreme to the other: from feeling very good to feeling extremely bad. They are unable to create and maintain a balance, and if they can, it will be only for a short time.

This disorder usually appears at a very early age, usually during adolescence, although it is sometimes not diagnosed until adulthood. This is because the mood swings and emotional ups and downs can also be explained by the hormonal changes that occur during a person’s adolescence.

However, BPD does not go away on its own. Without the correct diagnosis, the disorder will only progress and cause a lot of suffering. Would you like to learn more about the characteristics of people who suffer from this disorder?

• When these people feel as if they are being abandoned, whether in reality or just imagining it, they make a desperate effort to avoid it. This is when the suicide threats and self-harm begin.

• The relationships they maintain with other people are very intense and are usually accompanied by an ideal image of the other person, an image that later turns into contempt.
• They have problems with their identity and don’t know who they are, desperately trying to find their place in the world.
• They are extremely impulsive, often hurting themselves, suffering from eating disorders and taking drugs.
• Many people who suffer from Borderline Personality Disorder report experiencing a chronic sense of inner emptiness that they try to fill in a variety of ways.

These are some of the realities that people with borderline personality disorder experience, although it’s important to focus primarily on the most notable: self-harm. People who suffer from BPD don’t know how to deal with their emotions, and they experience their emotions so intensely that self-harm is their only way out.

This torment is usually expressed in the form of problems such as eating disorders (refusing to eat or having regular binge eating and then deliberately spitting everything out).

Chaotic relationships and unbalanced emotions

In addition to the inner emptiness they feel and the intense emotions they try to deal with, people with BPD also struggle with interpersonal relationships. This is the plane where they constantly run into a wall that they can’t possibly get over.

This disorder usually develops during childhood. The factors that can influence the development of BPD are abuse, poor communication within the family, a family falling apart, abandonment during childhood or adolescence, etc.

These factors all indicate a before and after in their relationships. A constant search for the person who will free them from the emptiness they experience in themselves, but also the constant frustration of not finding this person. This only causes their relationships to become toxic sooner or later.

Even within their friendships, a lie or deceit can result in a downward spiral of disappointment, turning into rage and then sadness. The situation becomes untenable, and sometimes people with BPD tend to cut themselves off from the world to avoid further disappointment.

Faced with all these circumstances, it is normal for these people to develop anxiety disorders and depression, making it more difficult to diagnose Borderline Personality Disorder.

With the right treatment, this disorder can be controlled and the people who suffer from it can very well lead normal lives. The ups and downs will be a lot less frequent, and their relationships will improve immensely. They will also be responsible with their jobs (often people with BPD tend to quit their jobs all the time, or because they are simply unable to get out of bed and complete their tasks for several days, losing their jobs each time ).

Life is not black and white; there are a lot of nuances that people with BPD cannot perceive. Their high sensitivity and emotional overload cause them to move back and forth between two extremes. Although it is by no means easy, the right treatment can help them move forward.