Borderline Personality Disorder Treatment and BPD Recovery: How Does It Scientifically Work?

Because I both have been diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder and no longer meet any of the criteria, my coaching is often sought after in understanding the true life experience of what research emphatically states: that recovery is more than possible. It is both scientifically proven, and lived out, over and over again.

When many come to me, they wonder if this news is too good to be true. Not only has much of what they have read on the Internet been erroneous information about Borderline Personality Disorder, their own therapists have painted a dismal picture of recovery.

Dr. John Gunderson, Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA and Director, Center for Treatment and Research on Borderline Personality Disorder, at McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, and author of much fascinating research on Borderline Personality Disorder, recently wrote, "Tami Green is living proof of what our research states: that those with BPD can and do get better and stay better. Her encouragement to others to expect positive results from treatment is to be applauded."

I thank Dr. Gunderson for his kind words. His research changed my thoughts about BPD recovery and helped me believe it could happen, which helped to create that eventual reality.

I was more than honored to recently meet with Dr. John Oldham, Senior Vice President and Chief of Staff of the Menninger Clinic and Executive Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs and Development of the Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. I asked him, amongst other questions, "do you always tell someone they have Borderline Personality Disorder once you have confirmed the diagnosis?" The reason I posed this question was because I encounter so many who had not been told by their therapists that they had the disorder. I wanted to know what one of the very best out there would have to say about it.

He conveyed that he believed it was, indeed, a "good news" diagnosis. He also gave the best definition of "borderline" that I have ever heard. My apologies to him if I don't get it completely right, but he said those with Borderline Personality Disorder are on the "border" of their impulsive/sensitive styles being problematic. And the research clearly shows that Borderline Personality Disorder is highly treatable. This is opposite to the archaic belief many therapists hold that those with Borderline are troublesome, insane people, and that BPD is untreatable.

I believe that if you have Borderline Disorder, you can move yourself out of the distressing components of your make-up into a style that works for you, rather than against you. Dr. Oldham has authored a book on personality styles that further explains the continuum of personality from a style to "pathology" entitled The New Personality Self-Portrait: Why You Think, Work, Love and Act the Way You Do.

Highly distinguished Brown Foundation Professor of Psychoanalysis and Professor and Director of Baylor Psychiatry Clinic, Dr. Glen Gabbard, also told me that offering the diagnosis is a positive event, because it was such a treatable condition. He would know: he and Dr. Gunderson, among many other important publications, authored a book entitled Psychotherapy for Personality Disorders Volume 19 that educates clinicians on effective practices surrounding personality disorders.

Dr. Oldham also explained to me the connection between biology and psychology and directed me to the work of Nobel Prize-winning psychiatrist and neurobiologist, Dr. Eric Kandel.

By studying the nervous system of a sea slug, Dr. Kandel showed that learning actually produces the creation of new neuronal connections. This means that learning literally changes the structure and function of the brain!

Of course my experience has born that out. My brain functions much differently than it did two years ago.  I participated in a groundbreaking study at Baylor College of Medicine which, essentially, shows that the brain of someone with BPD looks different than someone without the disorder. As part of the study, scientists recorded activity in my brain through Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).

What is amazing is that my MRI would look different today. This is because I have spent the better part of the past two years learning a new way to process information. This has lead to better feeling emotions, more effective behaviors, and, apparently, a changed brain.

Do I believe people can change their thoughts, feelings and behaviors? Yes. Definitely. Yes.

So to those who are experiencing extremely distressing emotions and impulsive behaviors that seem uncontrollable, I understand. If you've read my publications, you know I once felt that way as well. But I want you to know that I no longer experience those symptoms.

And you don't have to either.

So what does recovery look like? How does it work?

I don't believe that therapy just once per week will produce the kind of results that I have seen in my recovery.

If we have belief systems that produce severe distress or out of control behaviors, it's going to take some time and effort to turn things around. What is empowering is that we can change things. Once we realize that it is ALL about changing our thoughts, we then can re-teach our brains how to think. And in doing so, will actually change our brain.

What I recommend to my clients is that they immerse themselves in activities that produce thoughts that change their feelings or mood. We structure their days to include things that work for them and usually start with brainstorming ideas by looking at what I did.

First and foremost, I found effective therapy that redirected my thoughts. My therapist didn't discuss my past but accepted the situation just as it was and then we worked to fix it. I learned to change distressing thoughts into an equally plausible truth about any given situation, but one that felt a lot better.

I tapped into my life coaching resources. Coaches believe we have within each of us knowledge of our own path in life, and it is good.  My coaches helped me rediscover my true self and taught me how to trust myself again. 

I did every activity I could think of to make me feel just a little better. This included things like: going to yoga, eating ice cream on sunny days, and even, I admit, reading Hollywood gossip magazines. I tapped into my spiritual beliefs that explained the role of suffering and focused on believing in something greater than what I could see. And I read and read everything that was positive and hopeful and made me feel good.

How would I describe my life now? Happy, satisfied, joyful, grateful and full of love. Do I have challenges? Absolutely. Things happen that knock me right back to feeling pretty crummy some days. But I can move myself out of that fairly quickly now. If I am feeling bad, I have books and tapes and videos I go to that change my mood by changing the way I view things. These are some of the practices I use to stay healthy.

Each day I do things that are satisfying and utilize my competencies. I relax and pamper myself when things get stressful. I do things for those I love, no strings attached, and just watch their happiness and it becomes mine. I look at my thoughts all the time.

There are other things I recommend to improve brain chemistry. Simple things we've read about over and over again, such as eating healthy, reducing caffeine and alcohol, drinking water, exercising, getting fresh air and sunshine, and reducing stress. My clients notice that as they gradually increase these good habits, their desire for unhealthy habits decreases. It all adds up.

You can get happy.

You can.

I did it. So can you!

 

 

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