Borderline personality disorder counseling at Thriveworks is personalized to each individual. Depending on your unique needs, it can help you learn to manage uncomfortable feelings, reduce impulsivity, and improve relationships (which might otherwise be negatively affected by your condition).
The length of borderline personality disorder counseling sessions will vary from one person to the next, dependent on their specific needs. However, most treatments for borderline personality disorder last for 1-3 years.
Counseling for Borderline Personality Disorder in Boston, MA—Counselors and Therapists
Seeking help and care are important for anyone, but especially for people diagnosed with BPD. Therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder has helped people mitigate many of the harmful effects of the disorder and live the life they have envisioned. Thriveworks Boston has worked with many clients who have BPD and has offered them the treatment they need and deserve. It is possible to find equilibrium after BPD has thrown life off balance. Reach out today for help.
Signs of Borderline Personality Disorder
Borderline Personality Disorder’s pattern is instability. BPD can cause volatility in an individual’s sense of self, emotions, and relationships.
That unpredictability is represented in the signs for BPD…
- Swinging back and forth from one emotional extreme to another: happiness to irritability, euphoria to anger, and more.
- A history of chaotic and often broken relationships (people with BPD may idealize people and then, when their expectations are not met, they villiainize them).
- An inability to receive any kind of separation or criticism.
- An extreme fear of being abandoned.
- Risky behavior that can recklessly put people in harm’s way: spending sprees, daredevil driving, drug use, sex, self-sabotage, gambling, unsafe binge eating, and more.
- Suicide attempts and self-injury (especially as a way to manage difficult emotions).
- Outbursts of anger, belligerence, aggressiveness.
- Feeling empty inside.
A quick glance at these signs of BPD gives a glimpse of the harm it can cause in an individual’s life. However, BPD can also raise people’s risk for other mental illnesses, including eating disorders, substance abuse, self-harm, depression, and addiction.
Development and Management of Borderline Personality Disorder
Just over 1 percent of people in America have Borderline Personality Disorder. Women are diagnosed at a greater rate than men, but it is unclear if women are more susceptible to it or if men are under-diagnosed. What is clear is that certain genetic and experiential factors can increase an individual’s risk of developing it, factors such as…
- A smaller hippocampus (part of the brain that handles emotion and stress responses).
- As a child, losing a caregiver or parent to death or abandonment.
- Surviving childhood trauma (especially emotional, sexual, or physical abuse by a parent or caregiver).
- Genetic history of mental illness, particularly BPD.
The difficulty that BPD can introduce into an individual’s life may be alleviated with the help of mental health care. Many people who have BPD benefit from a therapy called Dialectical Behavior Therapy. As Eliza explains, DBT teaches people coping skills that can help them, skills like…
- Emotional regulation – The ability to stay in control of oneself regardless of what one is feeling.
- Distress tolerance – Turning to healthy coping mechanisms instead of unhealthy ones.
- Mindfulness – Paying attention to what one is thinking, sensing, and feeling without passing judgment on those thoughts, sensations, and emotions.
- Interpersonal effectiveness – Building healthy relationships in a wide variety of contexts and with a wide variety of people and in a wide variety of ways.
Counseling for Borderline Personality Disorder at Thriveworks Boston—Scheduling an Appointment
If you are ready to work with a mental health professional, know that Thriveworks Boston offers therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder. New clients often meet with their therapist within the week of their first call. We accept many different insurance plans. We also offer weekend and evening appointments. Let’s work together. Call today.
