Can I work with borderline personality disorder?

It is possible to have career success when you're not overwhelmed by your symptoms. But the effects of BPD can vary in different workplace settings, affecting your job performance and your ability to "fit in" with your co-workers. BPD symptoms can affect your career in a few different ways.


Can a person with borderline personality disorder hold a job?

Many people who live with BPD have meaningful and successful careers in a wide range of industries. When it comes to borderline personality disorder and work, everyone's experience is different. For some people, their BPD symptoms can lead to challenges in the workplace.

Why is it difficult to work with BPD?

Effects of BPD symptoms

Criticism by a co-worker or manager, professional detachment, or moodiness can trigger feelings of abandonment or rejection which can lead to inappropriate anger, intense emotions, self-harm, or other impulsive behaviours.


Does BPD count as a disability?

The Social Security Administration placed borderline personality disorder as one of the mental health disorders on its disabilities list. However, you'll have to meet specific criteria for an official disability finding. For example, you must prove that you have the symptoms of the condition.

What coping skills do people with borderline personality disorder have?

Coping skills for BPD are often centered around learning to manage moments of emotional instability and/or control anger. Some techniques to help in these situations could include: Using stress-reduction techniques, like deep breathing or meditation. Engaging in light exercise, like walking or yoga.


Borderline Personality Disorder and Work



What kind of people are attracted to borderlines?

Borderline/dependent: A person with borderline personality disorder (BPD) is well-matched with a person who has a dependent personality disorder (DPD). The BPD has an intense fear of abandonment which is a good match for the DPD who will not leave even a dysfunctional relationship.

What are good qualities of people with BPD?

8 positives of BPD / EUPD
  • Loyalty. Those with BPD tend to be extremely loyal and trustworthy. ...
  • Empathy. People with BPD are extremely sensitive to their own, and others' emotions and feelings. ...
  • Resilience. ...
  • Courage. ...
  • Elation. ...
  • Creativity. ...
  • Resourcefulness. ...
  • Intuition.


Should I tell my employer I have BPD?

Not all employers will stigmatize workers who disclose mental illness. Many are understanding, accommodating, and kind. If you have a boss like this, disclosure could actually benefit you. It can be a relief to let those around you know about what you are experiencing.


Can I get SSI for borderline personality disorder?

To qualify for disability benefits through Social Security on the basis of BPD, you need to either meet SSA's Blue Book listing or demonstrate that your BPD makes it impossible for you to work.

Why do antidepressants not work for BPD?

Limited therapeutic effectiveness of antidepressants in BPD may be related to lack of serotonin receptor specificity, since 5-HT2A but not 5-HT2C antagonism is associated with decreasing impulsivity.

Can you get fired for having BPD?

The Fair Employment and Housing Act

It also protects you if you have a history or record of a mental disability, or if you have a perceived mental disability. Your employer is not permitted to terminate you because of a mental disability or because you requested a reasonable accommodation for your mental disability.


What is the hardest mental disorder to treat?

Personality disorders are some of the most difficult disorders to treat in psychiatry. This is mainly because people with personality disorders don't think their behavior is problematic, so they don't often seek treatment.

How do you handle a BPD employee?

Be as consistent with your behavior toward them as you can. Try to keep things on decent, civil terms and document everything. Cover yourself at every turn. Learn as much as you can about Borderline Personality Disorder and try not to take any irrational actions personally.

What are borderlines like at work?

In the workplace, BPD can manifest in a person as: Indecision: it may be that their goals, likes, dislikes, and career progression change often. Unstable relationships: relationships with colleagues may be intense, all-or-nothing, and inconsistent.


Is borderline personality disorder a serious mental illness?

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a serious, long-lasting and complex mental health problem. People with BPD have difficulty regulating or handling their emotions or controlling their impulses.

How do you prove someone has borderline personality disorder?

Signs and symptoms may include:
  1. An intense fear of abandonment, even going to extreme measures to avoid real or imagined separation or rejection.
  2. A pattern of unstable intense relationships, such as idealizing someone one moment and then suddenly believing the person doesn't care enough or is cruel.


Is BPD on a spectrum?

It is now clear that DSM-IV-defined BPD is a heterogeneous construct that includes patients on the mood disorder spectrum and the impulsivity spectrum (Siever and Davis, 1991), in contrast to the original speculation that these patients might be near neighbors of patients with schizophrenia or other psychoses.


How do therapists know if you have BPD?

Personality disorders, including borderline personality disorder, are diagnosed based on a: Detailed interview with your doctor or mental health provider. Psychological evaluation that may include completing questionnaires.

What is the IQ level for BPD?

Results of this study suggest that factors associated with the best outcomes for patients with BPD include high intelligence (IQ >130); unusual artistic talent; physical attractiveness (women only); and obsessive-compulsive features that enhance self-discipline, work-orientation, and the ability to structure leisure ...

What IQ is borderline personality disorder?

Borderline intellectual functioning is an important and frequently unrecognised comorbid condition relevant to the diagnosis and treatment of any and all psychiatric disorders. In the DSM-IV-TR, it is defined by IQ in the 71–84 range.


Which celebrities have BPD?

Celebrities That Have Borderline Personality Disorder
  • Pete Davidson. Pete Davidson is a comedian on Saturday Night Live. ...
  • Brandon Marshall. Brandon Marshall is an NFL wide receiver that has been very vocal about his BPD diagnosis. ...
  • Darrell Hammond. ...
  • Marsha M. ...
  • Ricky Williams. ...
  • Mikey Welsh. ...
  • Vincent van Gogh. ...
  • Conclusion.


Is BPD hypersexuality?

As a symptom

Some people with borderline personality disorder (sometimes referred to as BPD) can be markedly impulsive, seductive, and extremely sexual. Sexual promiscuity, sexual obsessions, and hypersexuality are very common symptoms for both men and women with BPD.

What is the average length of a BPD relationship?

Results found in a 2014 study found the average length of a BPD relationship between those who either married or living together as partners was 7.3 years. However, there are cases where couples can stay together for 20+ years.


How can you tell if a woman is borderline?

There are a handful of medically recognized symptoms of borderline personality disorder.
  • Instability in Relationships. ...
  • Extreme Emotional Swings. ...
  • Explosive Feelings of Anger. ...
  • Self-Harm. ...
  • Lingering Feelings of Emptiness or Worthlessness. ...
  • Feeling Out of Touch With Reality.


Do borderlines gossip?

For example, someone with BPD may misperceive the intentions of a loved one and believe that they are being “treated like a child.” This individual may go to a close family member to gossip which causes this person to want to get involved in the argument and “make things better.” To avoid feeding into this behavior, ...