Unpacking BPD Part 4: Healing is Possible
If you are reading this, I hope you have been safe and well in the midst of this collective and chronic pandemic experience. It is long overdue but with grace I am bringing you the final installment of our Unpacking BPD series! So far, we have covered what Borderline Personality Disorder is and is not, the critical role that trauma plays in BPD symptoms, and the stigma tied to this mental health diagnosis. It is time to bring this series full circle and talk about the fact that healing BPD is completely possible! With a competent, integrated care treatment team, safe connections and supports, stable and functional living environment, and self-paced vulnerability, post-traumatic growth can begin.
There is a lot of misinformation out there about this diagnosis like:
BPD is a life sentence (no possibility of remission or recovery) with most of those who struggle with BPD taking their mid to late twenties.
All people who struggle with BPD are dangerous and suicidal.
You should avoid someone if they share that they have BPD because they aren’t capable of having functional relationships.
Unfortunately, this misinformation is often what spreads like wildfire through society and sticks to the already magnetic stigma that surrounds the disorder. The way that BPD is labeled and categorized doesn’t do it any favors either but providers are hearing through the clinical grapevine that good changes are coming that will help address these issues. It is a known fact that the recovery rates for BPD are higher than what most believe. Clinical studies have been done on recovery and remission rates with these two terms not yet being clearly defined. In a general sense, achieving recovery means no longer meeting full diagnostic manual criteria (residual symptoms may still be present) for a sustained number of years (roughly 2 or more). Achieving remission means going an extended period of time ranging from 2 months to 2 years not meeting full criteria and then experiencing a relapse in symptoms thus meet full criteria again.
BPD Recovery and Remission Statistics
Zanarini and co-researchers* followed 290 individuals with BPD over a period of 10 years beginning after a mental health crisis hospitalization and found that:
93% achieved sustained remission for at least 2 years.
86% of participants achieve sustained remission for at least 4 years.
Of those 86% who achieved sustained remission for at least 4 years, 15% experienced a recurrence of symptoms.
50% of participants achieved recovery status.
This was one of the first longitudinal clinical studies done and the findings were very powerful. It really showed that recovery from BPD is difficult but very possible and once recovery is achieved it is relatively stable over time. I will never sugar-coat the impact and pervasiveness of this disorder but I will do my best to de-stigmatized, educate, and spread awareness about the other sides of BPD research that are not as sensationalized. Knowledge is power. Knowledge will help us all step outside of our own perceptions and experiences to show up in the world in a more empathetic manner. I empower you to continue being open and curious rather than making quick assumptions in all of your human interactions. We never know what someone is dealing with in lonely silence in order to avoid shame and judgement. Healing trauma begins with safety and human connection🖤
“In my early professional years, I was asking the question: How can I treat, or cure, or change this person? Now I would phrase the question in this way: How can I provide a relationship which this person may use for his own personal growth”
DISCLAIMER: All views and information on this site/post are my own and do not represent the opinions of any entity whatsoever with which I have been, am now, or will be affiliated. The information on this site/post are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any mental illnesses. I, the author, do not in any way guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any message and will not be held responsible for the content of any message. Always consult your personal physician(s) for specific medical and/or mental health advice and/or treatment.
*Zanarini, M. C., Frankenburg, F. R., Reich, D. B., & Fitzmaurice, G. (2010). Time to attainment of recovery from borderline personality disorder and stability of recovery: A 10-year prospective follow-up study. The American journal of psychiatry, 167(6), 663–667. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2009.09081130
