Lesson 7: A New Diagnosis

Attention

eye

How have we come to see individuals with Borderline Personality Disorder...?
This week's content is about an attempt at a new vision of the disorder that more accurately describes the nature of the condition.

The term "Borderline Personality" used to mean something very different...it used to refer to individuals who were on the border of "Neurosis" and "Psychosis"...however, the same clinical characteristics were identified...

Intense, unstable personal relationships
Repetitive self-destructive behaviors
Chronic fears of abandonment
Chronic feelings of intense anger, loneliness, and emptyness

Another idea is that Borderline Personality Disorder lays upon a continuum that reprsents the relative ease at which someone may dissociate. At one end are those who can be hypnotized, at the other end are those with Multiple Personality Disorder...and somewhere in the middle are the persons with Borderline Personality Disorder.

Hypnotizable<-------->Borderline Personality Disorder<------->Multiple Personality Disorder
correlated with...
Lower IQ<--------------------------------------------------------------->-Higher IQ

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this lesson's material, students will be able to:

  • Define the "new" diagnosis of "Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder"
  • Discuss ways in which this diagnosis is important in the field of Mental Health
  • Identify ways in which awareness of the perceptions of others with a diagnosis is an important component of the application of Psychosocial Rehabilitation principles when dealing with an individual who has experienced trauma.

Teaching

  • Read "Chapter 6: A New Diagnosis" in Trauma and Recovery

Goals, Values, Principles, and Practice of Psychosocial Rehabilitation

This document identifies the key principles associated with the prevailing philosophy and treatment approach within the Mental Health field. Review this document carefuly and consider how these principles both challenge and support your work with persons with Mental Illness and with a history of Trauma.

Assessment

Lesson 7 Discussion

This discussion will focus on the concept of Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Why is a new diagnosis important?

Lesson 7 Quiz

Answer the following questions in the appropriate assessment:

  1. In what ways do the principles of Psychosocial Rehabilitation relate to how you interact with an individual who has experienced trauma?
  2. In what ways do your own perceptions, and those of any agency you may be working at, of individuals with specific diagnoses help or hinder your application of Psychosocial Principles in your work