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[Princessrolo]

Hi All,

Its been a while since I have posted on here. I just sort of wondered off for a while! I have been in my current bout of Depression now for 18 months.  I have good periods, then very bad periods.  After 2 failed medication attempts I was referred to a psychiatrist by my GP.  He has diagnosed me with Major Depression with Borderline Personality Traits.

I think I am somewhat confused about the Borderline Personality Trait diagnosis as he said I do not meet the full criteria to be considered as having the disorder, but I do have have half of the traits associated with it.

Some of the symptoms of BPD are me spot on and some are not, so I see his point, I just do not understand how a diagnosis can be made that you only have half of an illness. Would I not just either have full BPD or not?

I'm confused!!  

[PainfulSecrets]

Princessrolo, on 18 November 2010 - 09:25 AM, said:

Hi All,

Its been a while since I have posted on here. I just sort of wondered off for a while! I have been in my current bout of Depression now for 18 months.  I have good periods, then very bad periods.  After 2 failed medication attempts I was referred to a psychiatrist by my GP.  He has diagnosed me with Major Depression with Borderline Personality Traits.

I think I am somewhat confused about the Borderline Personality Trait diagnosis as he said I do not meet the full criteria to be considered as having the disorder, but I do have have half of the traits associated with it.

Some of the symptoms of BPD are me spot on and some are not, so I see his point, I just do not understand how a diagnosis can be made that you only have half of an illness. Would I not just either have full BPD or not?

I'm confused!!  

The BPD traits can be confusing to understand. Maybe one reason for only showing some of the symptoms could be from not being exposed to situations or circumstances in which the others don't show. Though I can say that I have at some times experienced each of the symptoms, currently I'm only experiencing a couple of them.

[shizuku]

Princessrolo, on 18 November 2010 - 09:25 AM, said:

Hi All,

Its been a while since I have posted on here. I just sort of wondered off for a while! I have been in my current bout of Depression now for 18 months.  I have good periods, then very bad periods.  After 2 failed medication attempts I was referred to a psychiatrist by my GP.  He has diagnosed me with Major Depression with Borderline Personality Traits.

I think I am somewhat confused about the Borderline Personality Trait diagnosis as he said I do not meet the full criteria to be considered as having the disorder, but I do have have half of the traits associated with it.

Some of the symptoms of BPD are me spot on and some are not, so I see his point, I just do not understand how a diagnosis can be made that you only have half of an illness. Would I not just either have full BPD or not?

I'm confused!!  

Hey you! I've not been here for a while either, great to see you again  

You have a diagnosis, which is just one step in the right direction on your road to recovery. Just because you have some of the symptoms and not all of them, does not mean you don't have the illness. At the end of the day, he is the professional, and as time goes by maybe his diagnosis will change.

Are you currently taking any medication? xx

[TwilightZephyr]

The Diagnostic Manual is updated so often as we learn more.

In the new one coming out Diagnosing BPD will be a bit different. Part of it will be on not necessarily how many traits you have but on the severity of the traits.

Their are several diagnoses that don't quite fit...sometimes you will see NOS (not otherwise specified) as part of the diagnosis for those.

[TwilightZephyr]

The Diagnostic Manual is updated so often as we learn more.

In the new one coming out Diagnosing BPD will be a bit different. Part of it will be on not necessarily how many traits you have but on the severity of the traits.

Their are several diagnoses that don't quite fit...sometimes you will see NOS (not otherwise specified) as part of the diagnosis for those.

[Barebones]

I am a bit confused about this.

All i have known is u had to meet at least 5 of the diagnostic symptoms out of the 9 to be diagnosed as BPD.
The other thing i know is that with therapy or medication it can reduce the amount of symptoms u will suffer from, but the over all being diagnosed of say the illness is u do have to meet 5 or more from start to be diagnosed.

sry prob raving about nothing.

Ive was diagnosed with bpd 19yrs ago, and had i think 8 or was the 9 of the criteria of the symptoms. That went on until i went on medication and im still going through therapy still.

sry dont think this will help, all i know is alot of my symptoms is back due to coming off the meds.

[Princessrolo]

Thank you all so much for your support and insight, you have helped with my confusion a great deal.  Hi Shizuku! Good to see you around!

I thought I would list the symptoms of BPD that apply to me below, the ones in green are the ones that I have the most:

• Frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment
• A pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships characterized by alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation
• Identity disturbance, such as a significant and persistent unstable self-image or sense of self
• Emotional instability due to significant reactivity of mood (e.g. intense episodic dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety usually lasting a few hours and only rarely more than a few days)
• Chronic feelings of emptiness

• Transient, stress-related paranoid thoughts or severe dissociative symptoms

Edited by Princessrolo, 26 November 2010 - 09:04 AM.