There are two main ways in which BPD can be treated, medication and talking therapies. Research is now showing that used together, they can be very effective in reducing the symptoms of BPD and may have a significant effect on the prognosis of this disorder. Treatment in this area is still controversial however, and different things work for different people. Below I will list the treatments and medications that are currently being recommended.
List of medications that may be recommended:
Antidepressants:
Setraline.
Paroxetine.
Fluoxetine (Prozac).
Citalopram.
Nefazodone.
Mirtazapine.
Amoxapine.
Bupropion.
Maprotiline.
Nefazodone.
Venlafaxine.
Amitriptyline.
Desipramine.
Doxepin.
Imipramine.
Anticonvulsants:
Depakote.
Carbamazepine.
Mood stabilisers:
Lithium.
Antipsychotics:
Risperidone.
Olanzapine (Zyprexa).
Quetiapine (Seroquel).
Clozapine.
Ziprasidone
List of talking therapies that may be recommended:
Psychodynamic psychotherapy:
This examines ways that patients perceive events, based on the assumption that perceptions are shaped by early life experiences. This therapy aims to identify perceptual distortions and their historical sources and to facilitate the development of more adaptive modes of perception and response. Treatment usually continues for several years, starting from several times a week, lessening as time goes on to say, once a month. In layman’s terms, this therapy focuses on your early relationships and your inner conflicts. It looks at how you saw these events and the effect they may be having on your beliefs and behaviours in the present.
Cognitive therapy:
This is also called cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). It is based on the idea that cognitive errors based on long standing beliefs influence the meaning attached to interpersonal events. It deals with how people think about their world and their perception of it. It is an active therapy that identifies the distortions and engages the patient in efforts to reformulate perceptions and behaviours. This therapy usually takes place once a week for a set time, anything from 6-20 weeks. In layman’s terms, this therapy looks at ways of problem solving. It questions your beliefs and behaviours and the outcome or effect of them identifying new ways of looking at things which results in a change of perception and behaviour.
Dialectical behavioural therapy (DBT):
This is a skills based therapy that was developed by Marsha Linehan PhD). It can be used individually and in groups. It has been applied to Borderline Personality Disorder. The emphasis is on the development of coping skills to improve affective stability and impulse control and on reducing self-harmful behaviour. In layman’s terms, this is a relatively new treatment designed specifically for BPD. Like CBT, it works by addressing perception and behaviour but it works on the basis that opposites move together over time, for example, acceptance and need for change (dialectic). In other words, bringing opposite skills together, like flexibility and stability, nurturing and challenging, capabilities and limitations.
Interpersonal therapy (IPT):
Conceives of patients’ difficulties resulting from a limited range of interpersonal problems including such issues as role definition and grief. Current problems are interpreted narrowly through the screen of these formulations and solutions are framed in interpersonal terms. Therapy is usually weekly for 6-20 sessions. IPT is not widely practiced though and therapists are difficult to locate.
Group psychotherapy:
This allows interpersonal psychopathology to display itself among peer patients, whose feedback is used by the therapist to identify and correct maladaptive ideas, communication and behaviour. Sessions are usually once a week over several months to years. In layman’s terms, the idea is that therapy can be successful in a group as it is educational in nature and interactions between group members can lead to insights about how we affect each other.
(Information sourced from eMedicine – Personality Disorders: Article by David Bienenfeld 2007 New Hope for People with BPD N Bockian 2002)
Comments (10)
Write Your Comment
Please keep your comment relevant to the subject of this article.
If you entered the wrong security code. *Refresh* your browser for a new security code to be displayed prior to clicking 'Send'.
There are two main ways in which BPD can be treated, medication and talking therapies. Research is now showing that used together, they can be very effective in reducing the symptoms of BPD and may have a significant effect on the prognosis of this disorder. Treatment in this area is still controversial however, and different things work for different people. Below I will list the treatments and medications that are currently being recommended.
Comments (10)