Borderline Personality Disorder remains one of the most misdiagnosed and misunderstood psychiatric disorders. Many therapists and psychiatrists are reluctant to take on patients with BPD because of the complexity of the illness.
Oftentimes, life seems hopeless for BPD sufferers. The mood swings, feelings of abandonment, rage, and depression can be overwhelming. However, there is hope. Recent advances in medications and therapies have enabled many BPD patients to live normal and productive lives.
The clinical presentation of borderline personality disorder varies widely and can be very vague. Common features include:
somatic complaints such as headaches, abdominal pain or malaise autonomic instability as indicated by cold hands, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea a tendency to demonstrate fictitious illnesses, which may lead to overuse of medical resources a pattern of undermining themselves just as a goal is about to be achieved psychotic-like features, especially in times of stress a history of suicide attempts or self-mutilation a history of a history of substance misuseResources
Information and resources on BPD
- Borderline Personality Disorder Sanctuary
- Excellent resource on current research and trends. Including areas for families and friends as well as "Ask the Therapist" feature.
- Borderline Personality Disorder Today
- Borderline personality disorder information, resources, community, research, books, expert archives, family section and more.
- NIMH: Borderline Personality Disorder
- Clinical information on BPD from the National Institutes of Mental Health (NIMH)
- BPD on WebMD.com
- What is borderline personality disorder? - Borderline personality disorder is a mental health condition ...
- Borderline Personality Disorder Research Foundation
- Framed as the Manhattan Project for understanding/treating borderline personality disorder, the BPDRF is coordinating research to develop an integrated research paradigm to study BPD.
Resources for Families & Friends
- BPD Central
- An exhaustive guide for families and friends dealing with a BPD patient.
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Resources on Amazon
Life at the Border - Understanding and Recovering from the Borderline Personality Disorder
One of the best books available for understanding and dealing with BPD. Full of helpful information on pharmacologic therapies as well as practical advice for learning to live with BPD.
Amazon Price: (as of 12/31/2009) 
List Price: $20.00
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Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder
Dr. Linehan's approach is sensible, pragmatic, and effective. Most importantly, it offers the therapist a humane and sensitive perspective on persons with Borderline Personality Disorder.
Amazon Price: $53.13 (as of 12/31/2009)
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Skills Training Manual for Treating Borderline Personality Disorder
Companion workbook to Dr. Linehan's treatment guide.
Amazon Price: $30.03 (as of 12/31/2009)
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Get Me Out of Here: My Recovery from Borderline Personality Disorder
Borderline Personality Disorder. "What the hell was that?" raged Rachel Reiland when she read the diagnosis written in her medical chart. As the 29-year old accountant, wife, and mother of young children would soon discover, it was the diagnosis that finally explained her explosive anger, manipulative behaviors, and self-destructive episodes- including bouts of anorexia, substance abuse, and sexual promiscuity. With astonishing honesty, Reiland's memoir reveals what mental illness feels like and looks like from the inside, and how healing from such a devastating disease is possible through intensive therapy and the support of loved ones.
Amazon Price: $10.04 (as of 12/31/2009)
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I Hate You, Don't Leave Me: Understanding the Borderline Personality
For years BPD was difficult to describe, diagnose, andtreat. But now, for the first time, Dr. Jerold J. Kreismanand health writer Hal Straus offer much-neededprofessional advice, helping victims and their familiesto understand and cope with this troubling,shockingly widespread affliction.
Amazon Price: $7.99 (as of 12/31/2009)
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Stop Walking on Eggshells: Taking Your Life Back When Someone You Care About Has Borderline Personality Disorder
Stop Walking on Eggshells: Coping When Someone You Care About Has Borderline Personality Disorder is a self-help guide that helps the family members and friends of individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) understand this self-destructive disorder and learn what they can do to cope with it and take care of themselves. It is designed to help them understand how the disorder affects their loved ones and recognize what they can do to get off the emotional roller coasters and take care of themselves.
Amazon Price: $12.20 (as of 12/31/2009)
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The Stop Walking on Eggshells Workbook: Practical Strategies for Living With Someone Who Has Borderline Personality Disorder
Randi Kreger draws on extensive new research to provide advice for successfully navigating life with someone who has borderline personality disorder. Step-by-step suggestions--many from users of the author's comprehensive website-- help readers set and enforce personal limits, communicate clearly, cope with put-downs and rage, develop a safety plan, and make realistic decisions. Throughout the text are worksheets, checklists, and exercises that build on one another and enable readers to apply the suggestions to their lives.
Amazon Price: $14.93 (as of 12/31/2009)
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