Overview
Dr. Fox presents a self-assessment guide to help individuals with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) evaluate the severity of their symptoms using the nine DSM criteria, aiming to build insight and empower positive change.
Assessing BPD Severity: DSM-5 Criteria
- Use a scale of absent, mild, moderate, or severe to rate each of the nine BPD criteria on paper.
- Criterion 1: Intense fear of abandonment, often leading to extreme actions to avoid real or imagined rejection or separation.
- Criterion 2: Pattern of unstable, intense relationships, alternating between idealization and devaluation.
- Criterion 3: Rapid changes in self-identity or self-image, including shifting goals, values, or feelings of emptiness or invisibility.
- Criterion 4: Periods of stress-related paranoia or loss of contact with reality, ranging from minutes to hours.
- Criterion 5: Impulsive and risky behaviors such as reckless driving, unsafe sex, spending sprees, or sabotaging positive progress.
- Criterion 6: Suicidal threats, behaviors, or self-injury, often in response to separation or rejection (seek help if experiencing these).
- Criterion 7: Wild mood swings lasting hours to days, with episodes of intense happiness, irritability, shame, or anxiety.
- Criterion 8: Ongoing feelings of emptiness, described as a persistent, unfillable internal void.
- Criterion 9: Inappropriate, intense anger, which may be directed outwardly or inwardly, including self-criticism or self-harm.
Building Insight and Next Steps
- After rating all criteria, review which are severe, moderate, or mild for individualized insight.
- Identify core content areas associated with higher-severity criteria and recognize overlaps and differences in triggers.
- Use insight gained to inform adaptive strategies for managing BPD symptoms and making positive life changes.
Recommendations / Advice
- Discuss your self-assessment results with a mental health professional for further clarification or diagnosis.
- Seek immediate help if experiencing suicidal thoughts, using provided international resources if necessary.
- Use insight from this exercise to empower choices and develop healthier coping strategies.
Questions / Follow-Ups
- Consider exploring related resources (e.g., videos, books) to deepen understanding of dissociation or complex BPD.
- Reflect on situational and interpersonal factors that influence symptom severity for personalized strategy development.