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BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER

Being a borderline feels like eternal hell. Nothing less. Pain, anger, confusion, hurt, never knowing how I’m gonna feel from one minute to the next. Hurting because I hurt those I love. Feeling misunderstood. Analyzing every thing. Nothing gives me pleasure. Once in a while I will get “to happy” and then anxious because of that. Then I self-medicate with alcohol. Then I physically hurt myself. Then I feel guilty because of that. Shame. Wanting to die but not being able to kill myself because I’d feel to much guilt for those I’d hurt, and then feeling angry about that so I cut myself or O.D. to make all the feelings go away. Stress.
-A Woman with BPD (“What?”)

Borderline personality disorder is defined as an individual trait that reflects deeply rooted, inflexible and maladaptive behavioral patterns characterized by impulsive and unpredictable actions, mood instability, and unstable interpersonal relationships (“Borderline”). The term “borderline” came from the fact that people with this disorder tend to feel they are living on the border of life and death. Stuck somewhere between sanity and insanity, being and not being competent in the world (Scheingold). According to DSM-IV, Borderline personality disorder, also known as BPD, is a general pattern of instability in interpersonal relationships, self-image, and affects, together with a marked impulsiveness beginning in early adulthood.
There is a simple way to find out if you have BPD, and this is how. If you have five or more of the following, there is a strong possibility you could have BPD. However, if you have seven or more it is almost a definite diagnosis. Many people think that they might be borderline because many people have experienced a lot of these symptoms at different times in their lives, but the key to being a borderline is to have five or more of the symptoms at one time. Here are some of the...