Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) Awareness Month

We celebrate borderline personality disorder (BPD) awareness every May. It serves as an opportunity to educate, advocate and lift up the voices for those living with BPD. It is a highly stigmatised condition and often misunderstood. Raising awareness of the symptoms and challenges they face helps dispel stigma while promoting understanding and support.

what is BPD?

BPD affects approximately 2% of adults in the UK alone, yet it remains poorly understood. Someone with a personality disorder, such as BPD, thinks, feels, behaves and relates to others in a way that differs from the norm. BPD is also known as emotionally unstable personality disorder (EUPD) or emotional intensity disorder (EID).

signs

People with BPD may experience a wide range of symptoms, including:

• Intense emotions: Individuals with BPD often experience intense, unstable emotions, such as anger.
• Fear of abandonment: A fear of being abandoned or rejected can lead to frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment, sometimes resulting in intense or turbulent relationships.
• Identity disturbance: Confused feelings about who you are and your identity.
• Impulsivity and recklessness: This may include substance use, reckless driving, binge eating or excessive spending.
• Self-harm or suicidal thoughts: Individuals with BPD may engage in self-harm or thoughts of suicide, often to cope with emotional distress.

diagnosis

Often, BPD is left undiagnosed or is misdiagnosed because of the similarity in symptoms with other mental health conditions, such as bipolar. Almost 40% of people diagnosed with BPD were incorrectly diagnosed with another disorder previously. Hazel was misdiagnosed with bipolar initially before receiving a BPD diagnosis, read more about her experience here.

To find out more about getting a diagnosis or support for BPD in Scotland, visit the NHS Inform website.

challenging stigma

Individuals with BPD often face high levels of stigma, often because of myths and hurtful stereotypes. Here are 5 facts about BPD that you may not know:

1. 87% of people with BPD also have another mental health condition, such as anxiety, depression or bipolar.
2. BPD is treatable. Through talking therapies, such as dialectical behavioural therapy (DBT), recovery is possible. These therapies address unhelpful thought patterns and behaviours and help employ useful coping strategies.
3. 80% of individuals with BPD experience suicidal thoughts, 52% attempt suicide and 8% die by suicide.
4. 71% have experienced some form of trauma during their childhood.
5. Around 50% of people with BPD no longer meet the diagnostic criteria after 10 years when receiving the right support and treatment.

Evidence supports the idea that stigmatising phrases, such as ‘attention-seeking’, ‘crazy’, ‘manipulative’ and ‘can’t be helped’, reinforce shame, worsen self-image and discourage individuals from seeking support. Using person-first and non-judgmental language, such as ‘a person with BPD’ and recognising behaviours as expressions of distress, can help reduce stigma and promote understanding and empathy.