Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)

What is Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)?

If you have borderline personality disorder (BPD), you probably feel like you’re on a rollercoaster, and not just because of your unstable emotions or relationships, but also the wavering sense of who you are. Your self-image, goals, and even your likes and dislikes may change frequently in ways that feel confusing and unclear. When you’re in the throes of overwhelming emotions, you’re unable to think straight or stay grounded. You may say hurtful things or act out in dangerous or inappropriate ways that make you feel guilty or ashamed afterwards. It’s a painful cycle that can feel impossible to escape. But it’s not.

Signs and Symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)

Here are some of the symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder:

  • Fear of abandonment.
  • Unstable relationships
  • Unclear or shifting self-image that is typically unstable
  • Sometimes you may feel good about yourself, but other times you hate yourself, or even view yourself as evil.
  • You probably don’t have a clear idea of who you are or what you want in life.
  • You may frequently change jobs, friends, lovers, religion, values, goals, or even sexual identity.
  • Impulsive, self-destructive behaviours.
  • If you have BPD, you may engage in harmful, sensation-seeking and risky behaviours, especially when you’re upset.
  • Spending money you can’t afford, binge eat, drive recklessly, shoplift, engage in risky sex, or overdo it with drugs or alcohol.
  • Self-harm, suicidal behaviour and deliberate self-harm
  • Thinking about suicide, making suicidal gestures or threats, or actually carrying out a suicide attempt.
  • Common forms of self-harm include cutting and burning.
  • Extreme emotional swings. Unstable emotions and moods. One moment, you may feel happy, and the next, despondent.
  • Mood swings are intense, but they tend to pass fairly quickly
  • People with BPD often talk about feeling empty, as if there’s a hole or a void inside them.
  • You may feel as if you’re “nothing”, this feeling is uncomfortable, so you may try to fill the void with things like drugs, food, or sex.
  • Explosive anger. If you have BPD, you may struggle with intense anger and a short temper. You may also have trouble controlling yourself once the fuse is lit—yelling, throwing things, or becoming completely consumed by rage.
  • You may spend a lot of time feeling angry at yourself.
  • Feeling suspicious or out of touch with reality and chronic feelings of emptiness.
  • People with BPD often struggle with paranoia or suspicious thoughts about others’ motives.
  • When under stress, you may even lose touch with reality, an experience known as dissociation.
  • You may feel foggy, spaced out, or as if you’re outside your own body.

Common co-occurring disorders

  • Depression or bipolar disorder
  • Eating disorders
  • Substance abuse
  • Anxiety disorders

Crisis support services

If you are experiencing difficulty or have concerns about the mental health of yourself or others, the following helplines provide telephone crisis support and counselling 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and online assistance (limited hours, depending on the service).

Australian Helplines

Lifeline: 13 11 14 and online ‘crisis support chat’ provides short- term support for people who are overwhelmed, are finding it difficult to stay safe. This service is available 7:00pm – 4am (AEST), 7 days a week. Calls to Lifeline are free from mobile phones.

Suicide call-back service: Free Counselling 24 hours a day, 7 days per week. 1300 659 467 – also has online crisis counselling via video or online chat.  This website also has helpful educational materials

Kids Helpline: 1800 551 800 – also has online chat and email counselling (for kids and teens aged 5–25 years).

Mensline: 1300 789 978

PANDA: 1300 726 306 (perinatal anxiety and depression): Monday to Friday 9am to 7.30pm AEST)

QLife (LGBTI+, 3pm to 12am): 1800 184 527

Butterfly Foundation (eating disorders, Monday-Friday 8am to 9pm AEST): 1800 334 673

Are you ready to make a change?

You are very welcome to get in touch, for any enquiries or questions you may have, or to schedule an appointment.

Get in touch