Online Therapy for Personality Disorder
On the United We Care mental health platform, you can find clinical personality disorder therapists and counseling professionals who can help deal with the abnormal thoughts and behavior, and manage the symptoms of personality disorders.
What are Personality Disorders?
When a person's thoughts or behavior does not meet normal expectations of culture and causes distress or problems over a prolonged period of time, he/she might be suffering from personality disorder.
Types of Personality Disorder
Personality disorders are divided into 3 clusters or groups:
Cluster A - Suspicious
Paranoid Personality Disorder
People with paranoid personality disorder find it difficult to trust others. They believe that others are lying or manipulating them, even when there is no evidence of this happening.
Schizoid Personality Disorder
People with this type of disorder often feel uncomfortable in forming personal relationships or partaking in social interactions.
Schizotypal Personality Disorder
People with schizotypal personality disorder believe that they can read minds or that they have special powers, such as a 'sixth sense'. They often misinterpret behaviors.
Cluster B - Emotional and Impulsive
Antisocial Personality Disorder
People with antisocial personality disorder behave in ways that are unpleasant for others. They tend to treat others harshly without expressing remorse for their actions. They may lie, steal, or abuse alcohol or drugs.
Borderline Personality Disorder
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is also known as Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder (EUPD). Patients have trouble controlling their emotions. They also tend to engage in risky and impulsive behavior, such as unsafe sex, binge-drinking, and gambling.
Histrionic Personality Disorder
People with histrionic personality disorder depend very heavily on being noticed, or seek approval to such an extent that it affects their day-to-day living.
Narcissistic Personality Disorder
In this type of personality disorder, there is a sense of self-importance and power. Patients have a deep need for admiration, but lack empathy for other people.
Cluster C: Anxious
Avoidant Personality Disorder
People with avoidant personality disorder avoid relationships, friendships and intimacy because of the fear of rejection.
Dependent Personality Disorder
In dependent personality disorder, people heavily depend on other people to meet their emotional and physical needs. They are also likely to tolerate physical and verbal abuse.
Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder
Obsessive compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) is separate from obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), which describes a form of behavior rather than a type of personality. They strongly adhere to rules and regulations, and feel extremely uncomfortable or agitated when perfection isn’t achieved.
What is Personality?
Personality is the way people think, feel and behave. A person's personality depends on multiple factors including experiences, environment and inherited characteristics.
Cause of Personality Disorders
While there is little knowledge on the cause of personality disorders, it is widely believed that genetic and environmental influences can act as triggers for such disorders.
Effects of Personality Disorder
People with personality disorder have a very different view of the world around them, and are often very hard to get along with. They find it hard to participate in social and familial activities. Because of their tendency to blame others for their problems, they feel isolated, thus causing them to feel depressed or anxious.
Do I Have a Personality Disorder? | Test for Personality Disorder
It is significant to understand the difference between personality styles and personality disorders. Determining the difference between personality styles and personality disorders can be done by assessing the person’s personality function in certain areas, such as:
- Work
- Relationships
- Feelings/emotions
- Self-identity
- Awareness of reality
- Behavior
- impulse control
If symptoms are visible, then the therapist will assess the complete medical history and perform a physical examination to rule out any physical illness. Psychiatrists and psychologists use specially designed interview and assessment tools to evaluate a person for a personality disorder. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), is a reference that mental health professionals use to help diagnose personality disorder.
Treatment for Personality Disorder
Treatment of personality disorder can vary depending on the type and severity of the personality disorder. This may include psychotherapy and medications.
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy, also known as talk therapy, helps in managing the symptoms of personality disorders. The therapist provides the tools and techniques to manage the symptoms and behaviors that interfere with everyday life with the help of psychotherapy.
There are various psychotherapies, the most commons ones used are:
Dialectical Behavior Therapy
This therapy evolved into a process in which the client and the medical professional will work one-on-one to help the patient learn skills such as accepting the situation and regulating emotions.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
This therapy aims to teach people how to change negative thinking patterns to better cope with everyday challenges of living with personality disorder.
Medication
There are no approved medications for personality disorders. However, some types of medication might help deal with the symptoms of personality disorder, such as antidepressants, which can help improve a depressed mood, anger, or impulsivity; antipsychotic medication, also known as neuroleptics, which may be beneficial for people who often lose touch with reality; and anti-anxiety medication, which helps deal with relieving anxiety, agitation, or insomnia.
Blogs About Personality Disorder | Expert Advice
How Psychologists Test for Borderline Personality Disorder
If you are experiencing the symptoms of BPD, you can take a quick online mental health test to self-diagnose the personality disorder.