(summarized from “Borderline Personality Disorder in Adolescents: A Complete Guide to Understanding and Coping When Your Adolescent Has BPD”)
1. BPD doesn’t occur in those younger than 18:
The DSM doesn’t prohibit diagnosis in those younger than 18
2. Borderlines are manipulative and attention seeking:
We are all constantly manipulative and the majority of manipulation benefits both parties and doesn’t leave anyone taken advantage of.
The term “manipulation” implies that borderlines are skilled at managing people, while the exact opposite is true. Manipulation is often not the borderline’s intention, but is a way to try to deal with a situation. The “manipulation” is often an impulsive action driven by fear, usually fear of abandonment. It’s a maladaptive attempt to get others to care for them
BPD occurs 7 times more than schizophrenia. More than 14 million Americans have BPD
4. BPD is a form of Bipolar Disorder:
While both those suffering with BPD and Bipolar Disorder experience mood swings, that is the only similarity and even the mood swings are very different. Misdiagnosing Borderlines as Bipolar has many negative effects, such as the treatment in ineffective and them being put on extremely strong medication that doesn’t help
5. Bad parenting causes BPD:
There is absolutely no data to support this statement
6. Borderlines are incapable of feeling love:
Borderline love is often painful and complicated, but it is often extremely strong. It has been shown that giving those suffering with BPD a pet can be very helpful as it gives them something to direct their love towards without the struggle of complicated relationships
7: BPD only affects women:
Recent studies show that the distribution of BPD between men and women is 50:50
8. Borderlines can be high or low functioning:
There is no validity to this statement, nor is there research to back it up. These labels mischaracterize borderlines, who can have both good and bad days. It has also been used to imply that “low functioning” borderlines are needy, attention seeking, and hard to be around
9. Borderlines are unbearable:
Borderlines are people and all people are unbearable at times
10. Borderlines don’t really want to kill themselves:
10% of borderlines commit suicide, while between 70% and 90% attempt suicide
11. There is no treatment for BPD:
While medication doesn’t help, therapy has proven to be extremely useful. 88% of people no longer fulfill BPD criteria after 10 years. Overall, it is a very positive prognosis
12. BPD is caused by trauma:
While 50% of borderlines have experienced trauma, the other 50% have not. However, trauma does increase the severity of the BPD
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