Borderline personality disorder, or BPD, is an extremely challenging mental health condition that can be very difficult to recognize, diagnose, treat and, perhaps most of all, live with if someone you love is suffering from it. That’s because in the world of psychology, it’s still a relatively new condition. According to excerpts published by the National Institutes of Health, it wasn’t even described for the first time until 1938. Even then, it took decades afterward to be recognized. Fortunately, we know much more about it now. Below is a quick borderline personality disorder test to determine whether or not you should take additional steps.
SoCal Empowered is an inpatient Orange County mental health facility that helps people between the ages of 18 and 65 deal with all different types of very difficult mental health challenges. A BPD test is an important start for those who are worried about themselves or a loved one. However, it’s also one step in the overall approach to getting a handle on this condition. Successful treatment is possible if the correct steps are taken and the proper amount of diligence and focus are applied both by the person suffering from it and his or her support network.
As such, we invite you to read through the 10-question borderline personality disorder test below. As mentioned above, it’s usually a loved one who seeks out help in this regard, so this BPD test is geared towards those close to the person who may be suffering. If you find yourself nodding your head more often than not, you should contact one of our Orange County mental health professionals immediately to discuss your situation. The sooner you get started on dealing with this problem, the better.
A Brief Borderline Personality Disorder Test
Read through the questions included in the BPD test below as well as the accompanying descriptions in order to get a better handle on where you and your loved one stand.
1. Do you find yourself constantly walking on eggshells?
When you’re around your loved one, do you find yourself constantly tense, nervous and afraid to say the wrong thing because doing so may set this person off? Does this tension arise even before bringing up something completely innocuous? Can you feel this tension come and go without recognizing any type of pattern or predictability? If so, that could be an indicator of a potentially serious problem.
2. Does your loved one experience instantaneous and massive emotional swings?
Do you find that the person you’re concerned about will go from being full of love, serenity and happiness one second to sudden and intense rage and fury the next? Does this happen often enough that you recognize it on a regular basis? Wild emotional swings is one of the common symptoms of borderline personality disorder, and its presence is always notable on any BPD test.
3. Is there a complete lack of nuance with the person you love?
Some people are black-and-white by nature, meaning that there is no middle ground in which anyone or anything can exist. One component of any BPD test is whether or not a person thinks in this manner. For instance, if a person in your loved one’s life – which could even be you at times – is either “the best person ever” or “totally evil” depending on the day and circumstances, that could be a red flag.
4. Does it feel like what you say means nothing to your loved one?
Do you ever get the feeling, when talking to your loved one you’re concerned about, that no matter what you say or how you say it, it’s going to be twisted and contorted to fit what feels like a preconceived narrative on his or her part? If you mention to the person that the sky is blue that day, does he or she jump on you and accuse you of refusing to notice the white in the clouds solely to challenge his/her character? If that sounds familiar, you need to talk to a mental health professional.
5. Is gaslighting a regular part of your interactions?
Encyclopedia Britannica describes gaslighting as, “an elaborate and insidious technique of deception and psychological manipulation, usually practiced by a single deceiver, or ‘gaslighter,’ on a single victim over an extended period.” Does that sound like something that happens with your loved one? Does he or she make up wild ideas and accuse you of them, for example? If so, your concern may be well-placed.
6. Is your loved one’s anger particularly scary and/or intense?
Everyone gets angry. We all have our moments where anger gets the best of us. Perhaps we say something we shouldn’t or we even do something regrettable. However, there’s a difference between “normal” anger and anger that’s intense enough for a loved one to seek out a borderline personality disorder test. Does your loved one get so angry that it scares you? Does he or she make threats to harm you or him/herself or others? That’s one of the differences to watch for.
7. Is your loved one increasingly paranoid?
Have you noticed that your loved one is increasingly paranoid? For instance, does he or she tell you about massive conspiracies that are in place against him or her? Does he or she intensely distrust almost everyone, including those people who are or were once close to him or her? Extreme paranoia isn’t just one of the more common symptoms of borderline personality disorder, as it can mean a lot of things, but it is a problem regardless that warrants a deeper look.
8. Does your loved one seem to have an extreme fear of abandonment?
One of the most common items on any BPD test is a question regarding fear of abandonment. That’s because it’s one of the most common symptoms of borderline personality disorder. Does your loved one express regular, even irrational fear of losing you or others suddenly? Does that fear lead to conduct that’s in itself potentially problematic? Seek the advice of mental health professionals if this is happening.
9. Do you often feel manipulated?
The sense of being manipulated in one way or another can be difficult to detect the first time, but after a pattern emerges, it becomes much more easily recognizable for most people. Do you find your loved one doing things that are purposely manipulative? That could be because of the fear of abandonment described above, but it is also a problem that needs further exploration. Before the emergence of any sort of borderline personality disorder test or diagnosis, people suffering from BPD were often referred to as “manipulative” characters.
10. Do other relationships tend to unravel?
Another common reason that loved ones will look for some sort of BPD test is because they notice that the person they’re worried about seems to suddenly have relationships all but disintegrate. That person may utterly respect and admire another person, but suddenly, he or she despises that same person without warning. If that’s happening to someone you love, take the next step and get help.
How To Respond To This Borderline Personality Disorder Test
The borderline personality disorder test above is not meant to be any sort of diagnostic measurement. Everyone who may even feel the need for a borderline personality disorder test in the first place should understand that every person is different and every situation is different. However, what we do hope is that this quick and straightforward borderline personality disorder test, or questionnaire, provides you with some insight as to what may be happening with you or with someone you love. Getting help and working towards improved mental health always starts somewhere, and for you or a family member, perhaps this is the place.
How SoCal Empowered Can Help
As we’ve discussed more than once, borderline personality disorder is a complicated matter to handle, even for mental health professionals, as it appears in several specific forms. If the borderline personality disorder test above gives rise to concern, you need to take the next step. Our Orange County mental health professionals at SoCal Empowered understand the ins and outs of this difficult condition, and we’re here to help.
We offer several different types of treatments for mental health disorders, and it’s from this base of knowledge and experience that we’ll help you move your situation forward. There is no risk for you in doing so, other than of course to do nothing, which could only make matters worse. Our borderline personality disorder test is a starting point, but from there it all depends on the steps you take. A conversation with an experienced professional can and will at the very least help clarify what may need to be done.
If you’re concerned about yourself or someone you love after reading through this borderline personality disorder test, then all you need to do is contact us. We’ll always start by listening to your situation and then provide you with recommendations for moving forward. If we think a stay with us is the best step, we’ll say so, but if not, we’ll tell you that as well. You’ll hear what you need to hear from us in an empathetic manner instead of what you may want to hear.
If staying with us is the best step, we’ll even work with your insurance company to determine coverage before you commit to anything so you can proceed with a clear vision of what to expect. We are an in-network mental health provider for several well-known insurance companies, and we work with several other insurance carriers as well. Contact us today – it’s time to get this situation handled.
