Types of Personality Disorder
Explains personality disorders, including their causes and how to get help and therapy. Includes self-help advice as well as advice for friends and family. Millon was a highly respected authority on personality disorders as a contributor to early editions of the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, and his theories on borderline personality disorder have given mental health professionals additional analytical tools to aid in their treatment of patients with a BPD diagnosis. The four forms of borderline personality disorder identified by Millon are:
1. Disappointed on the outskirts
2. Borderline impulsiveness
3. Borderline petulant
4. On the verge of self-destruction
WHAT IS BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER, AND WHY IS IT DISCOURAGED?
A discouraged borderline personality disorder is one of these subtypes. The dependent parts of a person’s personality disorder influence how they think, feel and behave when they have discouraged borderline. According to Psychology Today, a person with discouraged borderline may appear similar to someone with dependent personality disorder from the outside. In most of their relationships, this individual shows characteristics of codependence.
A discouraged borderline type’s dependency is often most visible when they become reliant on someone dependence is unsuitable – for example, a casual friend or a new boyfriend or girlfriend. When compared to some of the other borderline disorder subtypes, a person with this subtype may appear depressed or severe on the outside.
Clinginess and a passive “follower” mindset characterize the discouraged borderline. While this person may appear indecisive or, at least, weak-willed on the outside, they are usually tormented within by their lack of leadership and anger toward others around them.
What is the definition of impulsivity in the context of borderline personality disorder?
The ordinary person may act impulsively now and again, but for those with BPD, it can be a significant source of distress. In general, impulsivity refers to acting without thinking and behaving in hazardous and improper ways for the context.
What is the definition of a petulant borderline?
Petulant BPD: This subtype alternates between explosive rage and thoughts of unworthiness or unlovability. They have a solid need to manipulate or control people, and they become excessively possessive, resulting in severe relationship unhappiness.
What does it mean to be on the edge of self-destruction?
People with self-destructive borderline symptoms are, as the term implies, their own worst enemies. They are prone to a wide range of risky behaviors, and they have a bias for sabotaging themselves when they appear to be making progress in life.
Self-destructive borderline systems sufferers lack a solid sense of self and are so reliant on others that their fear of abandonment often spirals out of control. Men and women who suffer from self-destructive borderline symptoms are typically gloomy, resentful, and filled with rage that they do not always express. Many of their problems stem from unspoken and unmet aspirations, making it difficult for them to benefit from treatment.
Summary
There is no guarantee that a person will experience the symptoms of only one subtype in Theodore Millon’s system. BPD’s borders are far too variable and susceptible to outside circumstances to be reduced to a single formula.
Other research groups have developed similar theoretical systems, but this current effort is more extensive than others. To find similarities across different BPD sufferers, the researchers used a comprehensive range of characteristics, including:
• The number of symptoms that are on the edge
• The degree to which the symptoms are severe
• Problems with relationships
• Factors affecting one’s quality of life
• Personality development
• Attachment levels
• Been exposed to trauma
Get Help Right Now
A borderline personality disorder is a significant medical condition that must be treated and managed with care. There is a range of therapies available, thankfully. You can learn how to control your symptoms and cope with identified triggers using various methods, including talk therapy and medicines.
Whether you or a loved one has the impulsive, discouraged, irritable, or self-destructive subtype, frequent therapies can help you take charge of your life now. So, what do you have to lose? Find a therapy plan that works for you and is comfortable with.
Contact our experts to discover more about the many varieties of borderline personality disorder. We look forward to assisting you on your healing and wellness journey!