# Personality Disorders



## SistA HazeL (Aug 10, 2008)

I was reading up on this months ago. Found it very interesting as it was my first time to hear/read about such thing. I saw I have aspects of Avoidant Personality Disorder. Totally describes me.


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## Guest (Dec 23, 2008)

Everybody has the the traits of various personality disorders to a degree-including narcissism for instance, they arent classified as a disorder unless they have a noticable disabling effect on someones life over a sustained period of time and appear with a cirtain number of various other features which fit the DSM criteria.


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## Terri (Dec 19, 2006)

3333


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## egodeath (Oct 27, 2008)

Terri said:


> > which fit the DSM criteria
> 
> 
> These are just based on averages not uniqueness.


Right...

Anyways, to clarify what Spirit said, the symptoms of a personality disorder are not unique to people affected by said disorder; someone exhibiting the symptoms of antisocial personality disorder wouldn't be diagnosed with the disorder unless they had a real recurring and socially disruptive problem. For example, everyone feels depressed sometimes, but they aren't diagnosed with major depressive disorder (not a personality disorder, but still a valid example) unless they suffer from multiple symptoms listed in the DSM, including recurring episodes of severely depressed mood, with each episode lasting at least two weeks. The line between "disordered" and "normal" is thin and many people have maladaptive personality traits, but the clinically accepted diagnostic criteria are clear.


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## Guest (Dec 24, 2008)

egodeath said:


> Terri said:
> 
> 
> > > which fit the DSM criteria
> ...


Right...saved me five minutes of my life , thanks!


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## Terri (Dec 19, 2006)

3333


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## egodeath (Oct 27, 2008)

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## egodeath (Oct 27, 2008)

You have a point, but there's difference between Depersonalization disorder and Axis II (Personality) disorders.

The diagnostic criteria for DPD is:

1) Persistent or recurrent feelings of being detached from one?s mental processes or body; as if an observer
2) During depersonalization, reality testing is intact
3) Depersonalization causes significant distress, and impairment in social, occupational, or other functioning
4) Depersonalization is not related to another disorder, substance use, or general medical condition (Section 300.6, DSM-IV-TR, APA)

Since reality testing remains intact, people suffering DPD act normally, so the only symptoms are internal and, therefore, subjective. While concepts such as "reality" and feeling "normal" may be hard to define and are different for everyone, there is usually a clear distinction between feeling depersonalized and not. People may feel a little bit depersonalized once in a while or as the result of another disorder, but that is different from chronic depersonalization characteristic of DPD. Personality disorders, on the other hand, have outwardly visible behavioral symptoms, so they are more easily diagnosed. There is definitely a lack of understanding of DPD and much is left to be learned about the disorder, but there are established criteria for diagnosing DPD.


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## Guest (Dec 24, 2008)

Terri said:


> Yes, but you are still looking at it as a frame of reference, how many people do you hear moaning about the lack of understanding RE: depersonalization, what is the exact criteria for that?


Terri, I think we have to have references for things in life in order to clarify things and know what we are dealing with.Of course I dont buy into these lables and of course they are just generalised, they dont trully define a person or their experience in their uniquness, I agree.I have a diagnosis with much stigma attached to it-and I personaly dont fit much of the criteria for it any longer anyhow and I know it doesnt define me as a person-it includes none of my good traits and qualities for starters!  I am not trully a lable to be defined and neither are you and neither is anyone here. Noone can put us in a box.


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## elcapitan (Mar 6, 2009)

i have been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, personality disorder problems (incl. avoidant, borderline). and i'm in therapy for that, amongst other things.

as dp/dr are symptoms of anxiety and people with avoidant personality disorder suffer primarily from anxiety, you probably do have a lot of avpd traits, as might most dp/dr sufferers.

as some have said personality disorders are things that you've had throughout your life. they are a specific cluster of traits that start with genetics and upbringing.

then you reach crisis point when these problems deeply inhibit your social, work or study life in some way for a number of years.

if this the case for you, as it may well be,
you should speak to your family doc, to get you referred to a psychiatrist, to diagnose you, and provide/refer you onto the appropriate treatment.


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