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Borderline Personality Disorder – Illness for Uncertain Times?

Stressors like unemployment, eviction, and mounting debt can tip even the most sanguine among us into states of heart-pounding distress. But what of those who are already vulnerable? As early as November, mental health professionals were noticing that worry over the economy was wreaking havoc on their patients’ symptoms. Anxiety, depression, and psychosomatic illnesses are up. Suicide spikes are predicted.

Some are suggesting that there might be a particular illness that defines this difficult era. A recent article by John Cloud in Time Magazine called “Minds on the Edge” suggests that Borderline Personality Disorder, a mysterious disease that causes immeasurable suffering, may be the “signature crack-up illness” of the day.

BPD is a condition with environmental and biological causes, characterized by emotional deregulation, identity disturbance, instability and impulsivity. Neil R. Bockian, a psychologist and author of a book on the condition, explains that “the person with BDP may live life without a clear sense of identity,” noting that additional symptoms include constant “feelings of inadequacy.” Suicidal behavior is common among those afflicted, as are self-harming behaviors like cutting and violent rages. Such patients comprise roughly 2% of the general population and 10% of all mental health outpatients.

The diagnosis, according to Cloud, appears to be on the rise. And that rise may speak to our peculiar zeitgeist. Cloud points out that every era has its defining ailment: the postwar trauma of the 50s brought on widespread anxiety. The suspicion and paranoia of the ‘60s and ‘70s caused schizophrenia to capture the public imagination. In the ‘90s, patients were popping Prozac to cure what seemed to be an epidemic outbreak of chronic depression. “Whether driven by scary headlines, popular movies or just pharmacaological faddishness,” writes Cloud, “the decade and the disorder do tend to find each other.”

If the Recession era and BDP are finding each other, we Americans shouldn’t be surprised. We identify so completely with work that when we lose our jobs, we don’t know who we are. We leave little time in our busy lives for the things that can guard against emotional shocks, like maintaining social bonds, exercising, playing, and just having some downtime. We are transient and often unsure of our place in the scheme of things. BDP can be thought of as the individual manifestation of a current of illness in the culture at large.

Sadly, the Recession has already over-strained mental health care facilities and stripped many patients of health insurance benefits. Without proper care and therapy, attempted suicide and completed suicide are possible outcomes for people suffering from BDP. We have to demand that our government and our communities not abandon those who are most in need of our care as the tsunami of economic turmoil rushes over us.

If patients suffering from mental illness get the treatment they deserve, this much is certain: it will be the triumph of our era.

Tags: anxiety, BDP, crackup, mental illness