While BPD can affect many areas of your life, your legal status and physical health, many people with BPD lead normal and fulfilling lives. Learn how BPD might impact you, and how you can improve your quality of life.
Mindful walking is one way to promote mindfulness skills without having to make time for formal practice. Try this simple exercise to promote mindful walking.
Some people with BPD are very successful in their work, while others are chronically unemployed or unhappy in their careers. How have your BPD symptoms affected you at work?
BPD often impacts every area of a person's life, including their career. BPD and career success are possible, but here are some things to consider if you have BPD and career questions.
Using music to cope is quick, relatively easy, and inexpensive. However, there are a few ground rules to follow to ensure that this strategy doesn't backfire.
Most of us have those "go-to" songs that help us get through tough times. What are your favorite songs to help you cope?
Are you looking for ways to reduce stress and improve your emotional stability if you have borderline personality disorder? Certain stressors in our lives are controllable, and with some planning we can keep these stressors at bay. Here are some tips for reducing controllable stressors.
If you have BPD, you've probably noticed that all of your symptoms get worse during times of stress. Do you have strategies you use for reducing stress? What's worked for you? Any advice for those who are struggling with severe stress?
If you are struggling with intense emotions, impulsive behavior, self harm, or suicidality, you need to find ways to cope when your emotions start to take over. Building a coping skills toolbox is a great way to keep yourself from doing something destructive in the heat of the moment.
Do you have a list of coping skills that you use when trouble is brewing? What skills are in your coping skills toolbox? How do you make sure you use healthy skills rather than resorting to old, unhealthy habits?
Expressive writing has been shown to have a positive impact on both physical and psychological health in individuals suffering from a variety of conditions, including chronic pain, depression, psychological trauma, cancer, and asthma. It’s no wonder that people have used expressive writing for centuries as a means of personal discovery, catharsis, and meaning-making. If you’ve never tried expressive writing, this is another skill to add to your coping skills toolbox.
Share your expressive writing here. Expressive writing has been shown to have a positive impact on both physical and psychological health in individuals suffering from a variety of conditions, including chronic pain, depression, psychological trauma, cancer, and asthma. It’s no wonder that people have used expressive writing for centuries as a means of personal discovery, catharsis, and…
Many people with BPD struggle with abandonment sensitivity - the intense fear of others leaving. However, people with BPD also tend to experience more conflict in relationships, which can lead to more break-ups. Do you struggle with abandonment sensitivity? What do you do when you are afraid someone might leave you? Have you found a way to overcome this symptom?
Mental health experts have long known that one of the keys to good psychological health is having more structure in your daily life. But what exactly is structure, and how can you create more of it? Here are some simple steps to create more structure.
Too often we focus on trying to deal with difficult emotions we face in our day-to-day lives. However, it's often more effective to focus on the problem at hand than to focus on trying to control your emotions. Tackling problems head on can help you feel that your life is more manageable and less stressful.
Grounding exercises are helpful for dealing with dissociation, panic, impulsive urges, and intense emotional distress. Learn more about grounding exercises and how they can help you.
Most people with borderline personality disorder (BPD) can benefit from having one or two grounding tools in their coping repertoire. Do you have a particular grounding tool that works for you? When do you know you need to use grounding tools?
Learn more about stigma and borderline personality disorder. Why are people with borderline personality disorder stigmatized? How does stigma affect people with BPD? And what can be done to stop stigma?
Many people with borderline personality disorder (BPD) have experienced the effects of stigma. How has stigma affected you? Have you found ways to effectively fight stigma? What would you like other people to know about the ways that stigma has impacted your life?
Have you told others about your borderline personality disorder diagnosis? How did they react? Share your experiences with disclosing your diagnosis.
Distress tolerance skills training is a core feature of Dialectical Behavior Therapy for borderline personality disorder (BPD). The distress tolerance skills are meant to reduce impulsive behavior, which can often result from an inability to tolerate strong emotions.
This is one exercise that is designed to help you identify what is meaningful to you. Of course, finding meaning is not an easy process, and no one exercise will get you there; finding meaning takes work and is best accomplished with the help of a good therapist. In fact, this may be an exercise that you want to work on with your therapist.
People with borderline personality disorder (BPD) often engage in dangerous impulsive behaviors in an attempt to reduce intense emotional pain. Distress tolerance skills are alternative, healthier behaviors that are meant to delay urges to engage in destructive behavior.
Sometimes people with borderline personality disorder (BPD) and other psychiatric disorders struggle to find meaning in their lives. How have you found meaning? What can other people with BPD do to create more meaningful lives?
What coping skills do you use to manage through tough times? Find a list of coping skills worth trying and add your own.
The pros and cons tool can help you evaluate any decision- whether or not to buy a house, drop out of school, or change jobs. This tool can help you look at a decision from all angles and choose the most effective course.
Borderline relationships are chaotic; they can feel like a roller coaster of emotion and conflict. Learning to manage these relationships is very difficult, but it is possible for borderline relationships to succeed.
If you experience a lot of emotional ups and downs, you may be able to make some simple changes to your lifestyle that will help you get off the roller coaster. Learn skills to reduce your emotional instability and improve your psychological health.
Emotion regulation skills training can help you to reduce emotional ups and downs and improve your overall psychological health. Learn more about how emotion regulation skills training can help you, and get tips of skills training exercises to try.
Practicing accepting emotions can lead to better emotional health. Learn more about the benefits of accepting emotions.
Sitting meditation can be a powerful way to improve your emotional health. Learn more about how to practice sitting meditation.
Practicing emotional acceptance can lead to greater emotional health and less emotional ups and downs. Learn more about how to practice emotional acceptance.
Suppressing emotions does not work, and it may even end up causing you to feel worse in the long run. Learn more about why suppressing emotions can get you in trouble.
Find ways to manage holiday stress and survive the holiday season. Learn about the sources of holiday stress and learn new ways of coping.
Read a description of a borderline personality case. A case example of borderline personality disorder.
Try this exercise to practice beginner's mind in your mindfulness practice.
Try this exercise to cultivate mindful eating.
Good self-care is critical to physical and mental health. Learn more about developing good self care, including diet, sleep, medication, and exercise habits.
A safety plan is critical if you are have experienced a mental health emergency in the past (e.g., a suicide attempt), or are at risk of one in the future. Learn how to develop a comprehensive safety plan to reduce your risk.
While the internet has become an important vehicle for education and communication for people with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), it may also make life harder for people with BPD. Learn more about how the internet may magnify some symptoms of BPD.
Mindfulness exercises can help to reduce problems related to automatic or impulsive behaviors. Try this mindfulness exercise: mindful driving.
A simple mindfulness exercise: mindful breathing
Mindfulness, or the practice of nonjudgmental awareness of the present moment, can help people with borderline personality disorder reduce emotion dysregulation. Learn more about mindfulness and how it may help reduce the symptoms of BPD.
When you are having an intense emotion, it can be hard to know what to do. Unfortunately, many people with BPD turn to unhealthy behaviors in an attempt to cope with emotional pain (e.g., self-harm, substance use, or aggression). Want to replace unhealthy habits with new, healthier skills? Try some of the coping skills listed below.
Learn new, healthier coping skills to help you manage the symptoms of BPD.
The symptoms of BPD can affect every part of your life, making relationships, work, and health very difficult to maintain. However, despite the suffering that BPD can cause, many people learn ways to cope the symptoms and lead normal, fulfilling lives.
Unfortunately, BPD is associated with some serious physical health conditions, including chronic pain disorders, arthritis, obesity, and diabetes. BPD is also associated with less healthy lifestyle choices. Learn more about the relationship between BPD and physical health, and what you can do to improve your health now.
Have you noticed that you are more likely to have strong emotional responses when you are tired? One key to good emotion regulation is getting good sleep. Sleep hygiene, or the practice of establishing good sleep habits, can help.
In times of stress or emotional turmoil, deep breathing can provide relief. Follow these steps for a quick way to reduce tension, from About.com's Guide to Stress Management, Elizabeth Scott.
Progressive Muscle Relaxation (or PMR) is a great exercise for reducing tension and teaching your body how to let go and relax. Learn the steps of PMR from your About.com guide to stress management, Elizabeth Scott.
Learn more about the relationship between psychological trauma and physical health from the National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.
