A topic that comes up quite frequently in the BPD forum is whether or not to tell other people about your BPD diagnosis. BPD is such a stigmatized condition that sometimes you may feel reluctant to tell even mental health providers that you've been diagnosed with BPD.

What experiences have you had with disclosing your diagnosis? Have you ever dreaded telling someone you have BPD and then had it go better than expected when you actually told? Or, have you had experiences of rejection when you shared your diagnosis? Share your story of disclosure...

I was reading an article today on teen stereotypes and teen behavior. The main research finding in this article was that if parents believe that their teen is likely to conform to negative behaviors (e.g., teen drinking) then then their teen actually DOES engage in more negative behavior.

What does this have to do with BPD? Well, it got me thinking that perhaps the same kind of self-fulfilling prophecy could happen with BPD. There is so much stigma attached to BPD, and many people expect those with BPD to "behave badly." Is it possible that knowing what others expect of you actually makes you conform to this expectation by acting out? What do you think?

Difficult relationships are very common for people with borderline personality disorder (BPD). A key symptom of BPD is fear of abandonment. This symptom may cause you to need frequent reassurance that abandonment is not imminent, to go to great lengths to try to avoid abandonment, and to feel devastated when someone ends a relationship with you.

But people with BPD also tend to have more unstable, chaotic relationships than others, and these relationships often end prematurely due to conflict. So, in many ways, it's a double-whammy...read more.

A new study released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) found that more than 8 million Americans seriously consider suicide over the course of a year. That's roughly 3% of the U.S. population.

The study demonstrates just how common suicidal thoughts are in the general population. People with BPD have very high rates of suicidal ideation, as well as suicide attempts and completion. Want to learn more about suicidality and BPD? Check out these articles:

• Suicide in Borderline Personality Disorder
• Understanding Suicide Risk Factors