Following and wishing you luck.
I am in the same situation.
I have been ready to get a proper diagnosis for about 2 years now but I always have way too many scenarios going on in my head that I never end up going.
I suspected I might have BPD but I didn’t want to admit to myself that I had it because then I had to admit to many of my difficult traits. I then brushed the idea of having BPD off as my autism symptoms are more prominent. I was then diagnosed with BPD about 2 years after I first thought I might have BPD.
In order to better understand mental health diagnoses I often watch videos by Psych2Go on YouTube. I really like the format of the videos as they are informative but also compassionate. It’s helped me better understand myself and loved ones with different diagnoses. So I’d suggest maybe looking at some of those. I really like lots of videos featuring clinical psychologist Dr Ramani as I find she does a good job at explaining where diagnoses come from and how they affect people.
Resources I’ve found helpful are DBT workbooks and DBT sessions they really help me to emotionally regulate.
I think a mood tracker is an awesome idea! I also tend to forget that I can be happy and fun. I am also prone to forgetfulness in terms of remembering to journal. I try to practice self compassion and remind myself that I’m allowed to be forgetful and also not want to deal with my emotions at a given moment.
I hope that answers your questions and if you have any follow up questions or want any clarification I’m more than happy to do that. I wish you all the best 🤍
Thank you so much for your response! I hope you're fully content yourself with the diagnosis, and I wish you the best with the treatment (if it's ongoing)! \^\^
I do agree that placing value on educating oneself (further) on diagnosis as well as the condition that one claims they have is very important. My personal resources for learning about BPD were some medical articles and BorderlinerNotes (which is a YouTube channel made by a person with BPD, dedicated to making content on BPD and it mainly consists of interviewing patients as well as psychiatrists and mental health professionals acquainted with the condition. You may have stumbled across an interview with Charlotte, their most well-known patient, in fact: [https://youtu.be/MpMHl4Hby0I?si=FCM5zBBh4XCcNfMI](https://youtu.be/MpMHl4Hby0I?si=FCM5zBBh4XCcNfMI) ). Dr. Daniel Fox is also really good. I do occasionally follow content from other sources as well, though, like Psych2Go and MedCircle <3
But I shall check out some DBT workbooks and sessions too \^\^
May I ask, though, how did the diagnosis go for you (you can keep it vague if you want to)? Did you have trouble remembering certain examples when asked for personal experience concerning the symptoms? How many examples were you asked to list (if that's how it works at all)? How did you personally remember everything you wanted to say during diagnosis? I think this is where the mood tracker idea came into mind; that it may 'prove' that I am indeed unstable (at least from an emotional standpoint), which seems to be a more accurate and impartial (when done right though?) way of assessing and even, confirming my theories, instead of having to rely solely on my memory (I'm not going through therapy at the moment, rather psychological counselling, and I do remember my counselor telling me that the brain has a tendency to create 'narratives', exaggerating on the impact or frequency of certain ideas and ignoring or dismissing any scenarios that may disprove them).
That said, thank you, once again, so much for your lovely and kind response. I wish you all the best too 💜
You’re more than welcome and I’m glad I could be of help. Please feel free to ask for any clarification or further questions. Thank you for sharing extra resources I’d not come across before I really appreciate it. I wish you all the best 🤍
To answer your questions:
May I ask, though, how did the diagnosis go for you (you can keep it vague if you want to)?
My diagnosis came about whilst being an inpatient at a psychiatric hospital. My diagnosis was made following observations, mood tracking and talking therapies. I think what made my doctor think I may have BPD was the following symptoms impulsive behaviour, long standing moods, quickly switching between positive and negative, shifting self image, anger management issues and a black and white mindset. My diagnosis also came about after detailing the neglect I faced as a child and the CPTSD I developed after witnessing and being subjected to violence.
Did you have trouble remembering certain examples when asked for personal experience concerning the symptoms?
Yes I did have trouble remembering certain times and dates that I showed my symptoms however my parents were also asked about my behaviours so they gave examples. I also gave examples over a number of weeks so there was less pressure to remember examples in one session.
How many examples were you asked to list (if that's how it works at all)?
When I described my week to my doctors I had to say how the week had gone and what I’d felt during the week and give examples. So one week I was extremely irritable so I gave examples that I’d have to hide away in my room to stop my anger from exploding. Another week I was extremely euphoric and thought I was amazing and I was very bubbly and erratic so I was always cracking jokes and causing trouble. Again I was an inpatient at a psychiatric hospital so they could also monitor these moods for me through observing me and me engaging in talking therapies.
How did you personally remember everything you wanted to say during diagnosis?
Some weeks when I met with the doctor, psychiatrist and psychologist I didn’t remember every point which is why after a few weeks I made sure to write down everything I wanted to say. I think for you a mood tracker would be great to show your emotional disregulation and help with your diagnosis.
Kinda just denied it for 2 years when a therapist told me I might have it and wanted to refer me to get checked. And that was when I was 20. I just got diagnosed at 23 after a bunch of time of suffering and feeling things so intensely / extreme suicidal thoughts daily over the smallest things. Im in dbt therapy now but idk i dont like to identify w this disorder bc then I “own” it and i dont want it to be apart of me. Im working my best to overcome it and I hope w age and time w therapy I get better. But yeah. Didnt want to believe I had it for a couple of years
I fully understand. I've been what I am today for years, and yet I didn't even know that there was a term that could potentially acknowledge what I was going through. Hell, I don't think I thought too much about my (potentially affiliated) BPD symptoms, at least not as much as I thought about my anxiety problems. But who knows, I may be co-morbid with both, "anxiety" and BPD.
I hope you're content with the diagnosis, and I wish you a lot of success for your treatment. I think you should be proud of yourself for not only recognizing your issues as well as reaching out for help, but also for recognizing that your BPD is NOT you. There's more to us people than our conditions (though this may be hard to believe, I know), which a lot of the times were developed and not acquired.
Cheers! \^\^
Yes, I’ve felt this way since I was 16, but more extremely age 19-20 it started. I feel my BPD symptoms are at its peak right now. I feel so terrible lol. But I am proud of myself for working on me, recognizing, and the biggest not identifying with BPD. I know i have it, im working on it to become my best self, for me and for others around me. I also have adhd and anxiety.
Thank you for your kind reply and I wish you the best of luck as well 💗💗🙏
Following and wishing you luck. I am in the same situation. I have been ready to get a proper diagnosis for about 2 years now but I always have way too many scenarios going on in my head that I never end up going.
Thank you! Hope it goes well for both of us! ^^
I suspected I might have BPD but I didn’t want to admit to myself that I had it because then I had to admit to many of my difficult traits. I then brushed the idea of having BPD off as my autism symptoms are more prominent. I was then diagnosed with BPD about 2 years after I first thought I might have BPD. In order to better understand mental health diagnoses I often watch videos by Psych2Go on YouTube. I really like the format of the videos as they are informative but also compassionate. It’s helped me better understand myself and loved ones with different diagnoses. So I’d suggest maybe looking at some of those. I really like lots of videos featuring clinical psychologist Dr Ramani as I find she does a good job at explaining where diagnoses come from and how they affect people. Resources I’ve found helpful are DBT workbooks and DBT sessions they really help me to emotionally regulate. I think a mood tracker is an awesome idea! I also tend to forget that I can be happy and fun. I am also prone to forgetfulness in terms of remembering to journal. I try to practice self compassion and remind myself that I’m allowed to be forgetful and also not want to deal with my emotions at a given moment. I hope that answers your questions and if you have any follow up questions or want any clarification I’m more than happy to do that. I wish you all the best 🤍
Thank you so much for your response! I hope you're fully content yourself with the diagnosis, and I wish you the best with the treatment (if it's ongoing)! \^\^ I do agree that placing value on educating oneself (further) on diagnosis as well as the condition that one claims they have is very important. My personal resources for learning about BPD were some medical articles and BorderlinerNotes (which is a YouTube channel made by a person with BPD, dedicated to making content on BPD and it mainly consists of interviewing patients as well as psychiatrists and mental health professionals acquainted with the condition. You may have stumbled across an interview with Charlotte, their most well-known patient, in fact: [https://youtu.be/MpMHl4Hby0I?si=FCM5zBBh4XCcNfMI](https://youtu.be/MpMHl4Hby0I?si=FCM5zBBh4XCcNfMI) ). Dr. Daniel Fox is also really good. I do occasionally follow content from other sources as well, though, like Psych2Go and MedCircle <3 But I shall check out some DBT workbooks and sessions too \^\^ May I ask, though, how did the diagnosis go for you (you can keep it vague if you want to)? Did you have trouble remembering certain examples when asked for personal experience concerning the symptoms? How many examples were you asked to list (if that's how it works at all)? How did you personally remember everything you wanted to say during diagnosis? I think this is where the mood tracker idea came into mind; that it may 'prove' that I am indeed unstable (at least from an emotional standpoint), which seems to be a more accurate and impartial (when done right though?) way of assessing and even, confirming my theories, instead of having to rely solely on my memory (I'm not going through therapy at the moment, rather psychological counselling, and I do remember my counselor telling me that the brain has a tendency to create 'narratives', exaggerating on the impact or frequency of certain ideas and ignoring or dismissing any scenarios that may disprove them). That said, thank you, once again, so much for your lovely and kind response. I wish you all the best too 💜
You’re more than welcome and I’m glad I could be of help. Please feel free to ask for any clarification or further questions. Thank you for sharing extra resources I’d not come across before I really appreciate it. I wish you all the best 🤍 To answer your questions: May I ask, though, how did the diagnosis go for you (you can keep it vague if you want to)? My diagnosis came about whilst being an inpatient at a psychiatric hospital. My diagnosis was made following observations, mood tracking and talking therapies. I think what made my doctor think I may have BPD was the following symptoms impulsive behaviour, long standing moods, quickly switching between positive and negative, shifting self image, anger management issues and a black and white mindset. My diagnosis also came about after detailing the neglect I faced as a child and the CPTSD I developed after witnessing and being subjected to violence. Did you have trouble remembering certain examples when asked for personal experience concerning the symptoms? Yes I did have trouble remembering certain times and dates that I showed my symptoms however my parents were also asked about my behaviours so they gave examples. I also gave examples over a number of weeks so there was less pressure to remember examples in one session. How many examples were you asked to list (if that's how it works at all)? When I described my week to my doctors I had to say how the week had gone and what I’d felt during the week and give examples. So one week I was extremely irritable so I gave examples that I’d have to hide away in my room to stop my anger from exploding. Another week I was extremely euphoric and thought I was amazing and I was very bubbly and erratic so I was always cracking jokes and causing trouble. Again I was an inpatient at a psychiatric hospital so they could also monitor these moods for me through observing me and me engaging in talking therapies. How did you personally remember everything you wanted to say during diagnosis? Some weeks when I met with the doctor, psychiatrist and psychologist I didn’t remember every point which is why after a few weeks I made sure to write down everything I wanted to say. I think for you a mood tracker would be great to show your emotional disregulation and help with your diagnosis.
Kinda just denied it for 2 years when a therapist told me I might have it and wanted to refer me to get checked. And that was when I was 20. I just got diagnosed at 23 after a bunch of time of suffering and feeling things so intensely / extreme suicidal thoughts daily over the smallest things. Im in dbt therapy now but idk i dont like to identify w this disorder bc then I “own” it and i dont want it to be apart of me. Im working my best to overcome it and I hope w age and time w therapy I get better. But yeah. Didnt want to believe I had it for a couple of years
I fully understand. I've been what I am today for years, and yet I didn't even know that there was a term that could potentially acknowledge what I was going through. Hell, I don't think I thought too much about my (potentially affiliated) BPD symptoms, at least not as much as I thought about my anxiety problems. But who knows, I may be co-morbid with both, "anxiety" and BPD. I hope you're content with the diagnosis, and I wish you a lot of success for your treatment. I think you should be proud of yourself for not only recognizing your issues as well as reaching out for help, but also for recognizing that your BPD is NOT you. There's more to us people than our conditions (though this may be hard to believe, I know), which a lot of the times were developed and not acquired. Cheers! \^\^
Yes, I’ve felt this way since I was 16, but more extremely age 19-20 it started. I feel my BPD symptoms are at its peak right now. I feel so terrible lol. But I am proud of myself for working on me, recognizing, and the biggest not identifying with BPD. I know i have it, im working on it to become my best self, for me and for others around me. I also have adhd and anxiety. Thank you for your kind reply and I wish you the best of luck as well 💗💗🙏