Product Description

Customer Reviews (8)

Excellent !
This book is full of vital information for therapists treating people with DID.
Well worth every penny !

A Thorough Guide for Clinicians
I find this book well-researched and written. It provides an extremely thorough overview for clinicians about what was known at the time of its writing about the diagnosis and treatment of Multiple Personality Disorder (currently called Dissociative Identity Disorder) as well as the history of trying to understand DID. Psychotherapists like me who don't specialize in DID need to recognize this condition and its symptoms in order to refer clients to those with sufficient experience to treat it or to get consultation for doing so if we must. I believe that understanding this condition can also help us understand the separate ego states that most people have, which store our responsiveness to emotionally impactful experiences, and the idea that personality is not necessarily unitary (consider the object relations school of psychoanalysis, for instance).

Contrary to other reviewers who have said the author is disrespectful of women or that he suggests all those suffering DID must be integrated, the author is humble about these issues. He states that more women than men may be diagnosed with DID because men suffering the disorder may more often find themselves encountering the criminal justice system instead of being treated in mental health settings. (I would add that more girls than boys are, unfortunately, sexually abused, which may help account for more women suffering such severe trauma that they develop DID.) He also suggests that full integration is not as valuable a goal as is helping clients achieve higher functioning and better communication across the personality system. He adds that therapy is considered only partially done once someone with DID has achieved apparent fusion and much work needs to be done in mourning and in accommodating oneself to the stresses of living in the world with a wider variety of coping mechanisms than dissociative ones alone.

educational
I wanted to read this book, because I read " Thanks for the Memories " by Brice Taylor first. The more education on this subject the better... because awareness about this problem is growing. This book gives some important insight and much needed answers !

I run a large website for people with multiple personalities
I found Dr. Putnam's book to be helpful in very real ways.Not only did he go into the anatomy of the disorder -- and there were plenty of things I disagreed with given my insights into my own experiences with myself and other multiples -- but he went into helpful methodologies for exploration and treatment.He was respectful that multiples do not need to integrate.He mentioned that not all entities in a multiple's head are human-identified.These were critical to me.I don't expect that any one book would get "everything right" for such a complicated, unusual, and ill-understood mental landscape.What I do expect is that people who write about it write from either a wealth of experience, clinical understanding, personal experience, or bountiful qualifications that they are merely stating their opinion.Dr. Putnam has a wealth of observational and clinical experience to share, and his own personal experience with people he is helping.I take each individual statement as a possibility within the wide and deep realm of multiple personality, but I do not apply his individual statements to individuals.Individuals and their expressions of multiple personality vary widely.I have my own perceptions and insights and share them at kinhost.org.Dr. Putnam gives me a book I enjoy arguing with -- and quoting.I would venture to say there's no better book for a clinician to familiarize themself with the phenomenon and possible ways to explore it from a clinical standpoint, but I would also tell you that your experience of any one individual with multiple personalities is not easily reflected by ANY one book.Read away, but then be prepared for any individual multiple to go "out of bounds".

Is MPD real?
Weell, Dr. Putnam "confirmed" a diagnosis of MPD on me in the '80's through his "brain-wave tests".Many painful years later, I realized the "MPD" had been created by the desire to please a "therapist" who wanted a multiple to rival Truddi Chase.
Putnam's book is a handbook on how to be a multiple--read it and become--it is readable and logical to someone who is looking for MPD.Reading it again after many years, I found it's logic inconsistent and scientifically doubtful. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Terrific psychological nugget!
As a practicing psychologist I found that managed care insidiously pulled me away from looking at the personality conflicts behind psychological problems, huge mistake!This book reminds the therapist that it is imperative to understand one's irrational beliefs and defenses protecting self esteem.

Reinventing your life
A great book to help understand why we behave in selfdefeating ways and how to recognise these habits and apply change

Now I get it
I have a personality disorder and I've found it difficult to change.This book explained why and gave me a concrete method to effectuate change.I read the lay version "Reinventing Your Life" but I found this version more useful.After almost 5 years of therapy with a competent therapist, I felt like a cognitive therapy failure.Now I know that cognitive therapy can work, but not the way I expected it to--not the way it works for many people.No "Ten Days to Self Esteem" for me.I have to work harder, at a deeper level, in order to get better.This book gives practical advice on how to achieve the change I want.

Practical and Useful Guidelines
I highly recommend this illuminating and comprehensive guide. Young's ability to integrate various theoretical orientations and provide a clinically systematic, straightforward method for working with maladaptivetraits is astonishing. This book rocks.

For a more conversational stylethat can be used for client homework, check out his companion book,"Reinventing Your Life." ... Read more

Product Description

Avoidant Personality Disorder (AvPD) is an extremely widespread, devastating disorder that generally goes unrecognized or misrepresented by what little scientific literature there is on the topic. Therapists are left mystified about how to diagnose and treat it, and patients and other sufferers are at a loss as to what is wrong and how to go about correcting it.

The Essential Guide to Overcoming Avoidant Personality Disorder is the only book available to guide both patients and those trying to help them. This thorough and much-needed volume explores the development of AvPD and presents a holistic view of its causes from the psychoanalytic, cognitive-behavioral, and interpersonal perspectives. It offers an extensive section on diagnostic criteria that will be useful to sufferers and therapists, and it discusses the various therapies for AvPD. Finally, and perhaps most critically, the book provides a section intended as a guide for psychiatrists—and a self-help guide for sufferers—including a day-by-day, one-step-at-a-time, monthly guide on how to overcome AvPD.

Customer Reviews (3)

Interesting and compassionate treatment of a neglected diagnosis
Interesting treatment of an interesting topic which has received very little attention (in the form of works accessible to laypeople). Discusses reasons for this neglect, including the tendency of many professionals to lump AvPD together with Social Phobia (along with the author's reasons why he believes this is a bad idea.)

Uses many case studies to illustrate examples of what he's talking about, although sometimes digresses into using examples from his personal/professional life in what seemed like a slightly strange way to me (if nothing else I thought he could have simply described the incidents as belonging to an anonymous client.) This is something he's done in several of his previous works as well. (I have not read either of his works on Avoidant Personality Disorder so I cannot compare this work to them, or say whether it is simply a case of hardcover "rechauffée".)

Is generally good about not aggressively pathologizing subjects (although it does creep in a little) and not pulling any political punches in how to locate "blame"; also makes the important distinction that having some of the symptoms of AvPD does not by definition mean one has the full-blown "disorder" (the mental health profession is long overdue for dimensional vs. categorical diagnoses IMO).

Makes an admirable attempt unlike many mental health professionals to focus not only on childhood experiences within the context of the parent-child triangle (hangover of Freudianism?) while neglecting peer/sibling relationships and/or larger interpersonal realities. Does not, however, really refer to larger political let alone cross-cultural factors (as when he "diagnoses" a Greek-American man based entirely on a letter without taking into account the family expectations that often exist within that group). Also has the courage to critique the sacred cow of cognitive-behavioral therapy, and make a plea for the integration of (pure) insight-based modes of healing into treatment. (In the context of the former makes the argument that cognitive therapy implicitly blames the patient, since it locates the source of the problems in his/her cognitive processes--I would go one further, however, and say that virtually *all* therapy since Freud has made that implicit judgment about clients since he [Freud] made his fateful decision to declare his patients' descriptions of being molested as subconscious wish-fulfillments [conceptualized thru the Oedipal Complex] rather than literal accounts of sex abuse [or metaphorical representations of extreme boundary violations]).

Also makes the unorthodox (to me) suggestion that in some cases pharmacotherapy is *not* indicated, as well as some interesting suggestions for treatment, as when for example he writes that for many avoidants, the advice to "do your own thing" should be avoided, since it often has a tendency to encourage them to continue pursuing isolating and/or idiosyncratic behavior patterns which contribute to their suffering.

Technicalities:

Would have liked it if he had devoted more than two sentences to passive-aggressive avoidants (especially since he has already written a book on passive-aggression.)

Would have been nice if table of contents had included subchapter titles/listings (perhaps a cost-cutting decision on the part of the publisher?).

Uses the German word "Anlage" oddly, without capitalizing the first letter or italicizing it or putting it in quotes (editors?), which can induce some people probably not to realize it's a foreign word.

The word "lose" is spelled "lyse" several times throughout the text.

Also uses the word Zen seemingly to refer to *all* Buddhist practice(s), in the context of discouraging an overly withdrawn approach to the world (did this in a previous book as well). While the point is well-taken it is perhaps somewhat injudicious to true Buddhist practice, Zen or otherwise, since it (to me) conflates much of what these disciplines offer with their popular (mis)conceptions.

Misuses the word "disinterested" (like most people nowadays) when he means "uninterested" (disinterested means neutral or objective).

As a final note I would love to see this author tackle some other diagnoses, in particular either Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) or PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder)-I think his insights and writing styles could be very useful to many people, myself included.

A nuts-and-bolts guide
This book thoroughly describes Avoidant Personality Disorder, goes into its causes, and outlines the various therapeutic approaches currently in use for helping overcome it. Numerous case histories fruitfully unveil the essence of this serious and widespread problem, distinguish it from Social Phobia, and illustrate real-life examples of how individuals triumphed over their relational anxiety through therapy and self-help approaches. There is much new material including an original and excellent chapter on sexual avoidance and a day by day/monthly guide for coping that can help avoidants reduce their anxiety and start down the road to coming out of isolation. Worth every penny.

some useful (overpriced) information
This book isn't what I expected. I will say that there are definitely some helpful insights in here, but the majority of the book is just one long case study after another (after another), and an overview of the different kinds of therapies used to treat AVPD. There really isn't much new information, just elaborations on the same old stuff that anyone who is familiar with the disorder would already know. In some instances it just feels like he's reaching for material. For example, he includes a (negative) Amazon.com customer review of his last book, and spends a page and a half discussing how the reviewer's negative response to his book showed that the reviewer was exhibiting anger-related avoidant behaviors. Maybe this review will make his next book.


The only sections of the book that I found useful were his discussion of the cognitive-behavioral aspects of the disorder (paranoid thinking, over-generalization, and worst-case scenario thinking), and AVPD's co-morbidity with other disorders, but he only offers a few paragraphs of discussion on each one. Also, the case studies get to be pretty tedious. I found myself skimming them after a while.

I would only recommend this book to someone who hasn't already bought and read "Distancing." I don't think many other readers will get much from it, and I'm pretty sure most of them would regret shelling out the 40 bucks.


... Read more

Product Description
A complete patient guide for borderline personality disorder. Few psychological problems carry the negative connotation accompanying borderline personality disorder (BPD). The most common element of BPD is an exquisite sensitivity to life events that may manifest in periodic loss of control. This loss of control may lead to actions that can be damaging to oneself and others. The authors have written this volume to help people with BPD take control of this disorder. Filled with practical strategies and the research and theory behind them, this book provides patients with the necessary tools for working with this innovative program. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

great resource
This workbook is a great resource because it requires the borderline reader to internally work through the various issues associated with borderline personality disorder.The workbook addresses all of the main borderline characteristics used to define a borderline patient.However, if you have already spent a lot of time in therapy, as I have, it will not tell you anything you haven't already learned.At the same time, if your insurance won't cover the visits to therapists, etc., this is an EXCELLENT resource because it addresses all the things we addressed in group therapy.

no self-help book
However much this book might appeal to you, the schedules in the book are not to be done on one's own, which i found quite frustrating. the book reminds me of 'how to reinvent your life' byYoung. Anyway if you want a self-help book, for as much as bpd can be self-managed, i suggest "the angry heart".

Totally disappointing.
The authors divide this workbook into chapters relating to each specific DSM diagnostic criterion for BPD. This is commendable and initially appealing and inviting. However,upon further examination,there is no substance to the preparatory reading material in any of the chapters. There is nothing unique in this workbook relating to specific issues of BPD. The very few cognitive distortions that are explained and dealt with are nothing that can't already be found in any of the available workbooks that deal with general issues of depression and anxiety. Moreover, my biggest contention with this volume is that the worksheets in each chapter are EXACTLY identical! There is absolutely no spontenaity or creativity on the part of the authors. Borderlines,who are especially prone to becoming bored easily, would find this workbook uninteresting,cumbersome,and tedious to work with. ... Read more

Product Description

Symptoms of personality disorders may seem to differ widely, but all personality disorders are characterized by entrenched patterns of thinking and behavior. Chances are, if you have a personality disorder, you face feelings of uncertainty about your future and experience ongoing conflicts with your loved ones every day. These patterns may seem impossible to change, but if you're ready to overcome your symptoms and create a more balanced life, you can.

The Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Workbook for Personality Disorders is packed with exercises and worksheets that enable you to put an end to the self-defeating thoughts that hold you back. Based in cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), a proven-effective treatment for personality disorders, this workbook can help you reconnect with life by teaching you a set of key skills for overcoming difficulties associated with the eleven most common personality disorders. You'll learn stress reduction, relaxation, and emotion regulation techniques, and how best to communicate and cope with others while keeping your personality-disorder-related behaviors in check.

Product Description
Understanding and Treating Borderline Personality Disorder: A Guide for Professionals and Families offers both a valuable update for mental health professionals and much-needed information and encouragement for BPD patients and their families and friends. The editors of this eminently practical and accessible text have brought together the wide-ranging and updated perspectives of 15 recognized experts who discuss topics such as

• A new understanding of BPD, suggesting that individuals may be genetically prone to developing BPD and that certain stressful events may trigger its onset
• New evidence for the success of various forms of psychotherapy, including Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), in reducing self-injury, drug dependence, and days in the hospital for some groups of people with BPD
• Pharmacology research showing that the use of specific medications can relieve the cognitive, affective, and impulsive symptoms experienced by individuals with BPD, as part of a comprehensive psychosocial treatment plan
• New resources for families to help them deal with the dysregulated emotions of their loved ones with BPD and to build effective support systems for themselves

Yet much remains to be done. Research on BPD is 20 to 30 years behind that on other major psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Despite evidence to the contrary, much of the professional literature on BPD continues to focus on childhood trauma, abuse, and neglect as triggers for BPD—to the detriment of both patient and family.

Families of people with BPD must deal with an array of burdens in coping with the illness, often without basic information. The chapters on families and BPD give voice to the experience of BPD from the perspective of individuals and family members, and offer the hope that family involvement in treatment will be beneficial to everyone.

Above all, this book is about the partnership between mental health professionals and families affected by BPD, and about how such a partnership can advance our understanding and treatment of this disorder and provide hope for the future. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Highly Recommended for Clinicians
This book contains practical guidelines for treating Borderline Personality Disorder. Dr. Gunderson is one of the handful of top experts in the country who truly understand how to treat BPD.

I highly recommend this book to clinicians seeking broader, accurate understanding of this highly treatable disorder.

Thank you!

Tami Green
www.borderlinepersonalitysupport.com

Review of"Understanding and Treating Borderline Personality Disorder
A very good technical resource for those dealing with a family member who has BPD.

Brillant
Ce collectif est utile et réconfortant à la fois. Avec beaucoup de simplicité, d'empathie et d'humanité, les auteurs laissent la parole aux spécialistes et aux patients confrontés au trouble borderline. Clair, professionnel, argumenté, en un mot brillant, " Understanding and treating Borderline Personality Disorder " fait toute la lumière sur une maladie encore méconnue en France.
A lire absolument.

Useful
Useful book for families trying to figure out what is going on with their child.

The best general introduction to BPD
There is a terrible glut of misinformation on BPD.Many books on the subject are seriously flawed, and the Internet is worse than useless.Searches for BPD are more likely to reveal "hate sites" put together by estranged ex's than anything with a scholarly or clinical basis.

I strongly recommend this book to anyone affected by this terrible disorder.It is balanced, readable, and based on the best available research.Gunderson and his co-authors discuss the nature of BPD and treatment options without demonizing either those who suffer from BPD or those who care for them. ... Read more

Product Description
Kiera Van Gelder's first suicide attempt at the age of twelve marked the onset of her struggles with drug addiction, depression, post-traumatic stress, self-harm, and chaotic romantic relationships-all of which eventually led to doctors' belated diagnosis of borderline personality disorder twenty years later.

The Buddha and the Borderline is a window into this mysterious and debilitating condition, an unblinking portrayal of one woman's fight against the emotional devastation of borderline personality disorder. This haunting, intimate memoir chronicles both the devastating period that led to Kiera's eventual diagnosis and her inspirational recovery through therapy, Buddhist spirituality, and a few online dates gone wrong. Kiera's story sheds light on the private struggle to transform suffering into compassion for herself and others, and is essential reading for all seeking to understand what it truly means to recover and reclaim the desire to live.

The Buddha and the Borderline is a masterpiece.
--Perry D. Hoffman Ph.D., president of the National Education Alliance for Borderline Personality Disorder (NEA-BPD)

Destined to become a classic in the growing literature on borderline personality disorder.... Seriously funny, authentic, and sublime in its wisdom.
--Blaise Aguirre, MD, medical director of the Adolescent Dialectical Behavior Therapy Residential Program at McLean Hospital in Belmont, MA

A must-read for people with this disorder, their families and loved ones, and mental health professionals.
--Robert O. Friedel, MD, author of Borderline Personality Disorder Demystified ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

Exceptional, Revealing, and Humorous
I'm 40 pages from the end and have had trouble putting this book down.The experiences shared in this book would be helpful to many by putting into words the challenges of someone living with Borderline Personality Disorder (not the same as bi-polar, but often confused to be the same) as well as those of loved ones.Recovery is possible, managing the symptoms is possible, regaining some sense of normalcy is possible; skills and understanding are the biggest factors it seems to this end.The humorous and insightful descriptions of the situational and emotional challenges are numerous.There are some life experience descriptions that might make this book inappropriate for the majority of teenagers/young adults.

Insightful read
Very well written. Remarkably honest and insightful. The author shares her personal journey, and it is VERY personal. Regardless of what your background is on mental health, this book will probably expanding your understanding of the human aspects of mental illness.

worth reading
This book presents an interesting view of mental illness and opens the door to more insight

Supurb
Fantastic book, well written, easy and enjoyable to read. I can't say enough about how good the book is and how much it has helped me relate to BPD and how it affects my life. I would recommend it to anyone who might have or may be in relationship with someone who has BPD.

Rare account
many terms regarding BPD( Identity diffusion,chaos,promiscuity ,self destructive urges fusion,fear of engulfment and others) come to life here because of the author's rare ability to look inside and the courage to tell the rest of us.It is a rare account the will enlighten even seasoned psychiatrists.I tip my hat off to you,Kiera for your insight, courage and generosity! ... Read more

Product Description

It’s Not You . . . It’s THEM!

Have you ever hung up with your boss and felt like you were nine years old again? Do you get a pang in the pit of your stomach when you see a certain “friend’s” number on your caller ID? Do you find yourself frequently apologizing to a family member even though you know you’ve done nothing wrong? If any of these scenarios sound familiar or you have ever felt bullied, manipulated, guilted, or threatened in a relationship, you could have a PDI!

PDI, or Personality Disordered Individual, is a psychiatric term used to identify those people with whom we must interact and who can make us feel miserable in the process. PDIs make “toxic” people look like Santa Clause and often have unique attitude problems and behaviors that we must deal with but do not enrich, improve, enhance, boost, encourage, motivate, or inspire us. Day in and day out, they make us miserable!

Stan Kapuchinski, M.D., has encountered numerous PDIs and their victims in his private psychiatry practice for more than twenty-five years. In Say Goodbye to Your PDI, he sheds light on five types of personality disorders and teaches:

• How PDIs ensnare us into repeatedly dealing with them

• How to spot a PDI at work and in our personal lives

• Coping mechanisms to handle PDIs who we cannot eliminate from our lives

• Techniques and advice on how to get rid of a PDI for good

Say Goodbye to Your PDI will help you stop your misery and will help you deal more effectively with the users, the manipulators, the smooth talkers, and the guilt-trippers out there.

Stan Kapuchinski, M.D. , writes the widely read column “Ask Dr. K.” A board-certified psychiatrist, Dr. Kapuchinski has served as assistant processor of psychiatry at the University of Connecticut and special psychiatric consultant in Queensland, Australia. His expertise on human relationships has made him a sought-after commentator for hundreds of television and radio outlets.

Customer Reviews (20)

review of book
This book, {"Say goodbye to your PDI"}, was a very helpful book for me.
I am unfortunate enough to have two adult daughters who are borderline narcissists / sociopaths.I have had to sever all communication with them,as thay make my life a living hell.Believe me, not an easy thing to do with your own flesh and blood.Any book which helps me to understand and come to terms with personality disorders is helpful to me, and this book is one of them. Thank you.

Easy to understand snap-shots of each Personality Disorder
Great book to easily help you identify others with personality disorders and how to deal with the issues you're likely to encounter with those individuals.

Most textbooks give pretty dry descriptions of the personality disorders and can make understanding the subtle nuances of each quite complicated. This book gives easy to understand, real life descriptions of the disorders and can clear up any fuzzy areas you might be having for each one.

I found it especially helpful with Histrionic and Borderline personality disorder descriptions - it really gives you a good idea of the personalities so that you could more readily pick them out in a crowd.

The book isn't really meant for practitioners but is supposed to help laymen (regular folks) identify the personalities of difficult people in their life and how to best address the problems they (the personality disordered person) causes. However, because of it's easy to understand descriptions with examples, along with information on how to best address and deal with the issues particular to each, I believe it is a great handbook for practitioners as well. (I say this as both a licensed healthcare practitioner and doctoral clinical psychology student).

Whether you're just a regular Joe or Jane looking to identify and deal with a problem person in your life, or a healthcare or psychology practitioner seeking a better understanding around personality disorders this book is great. I recommend it to both.

This Little Book is a Life Saver
The "friend in need" whose repeated requests for help/money are breaking the bounds of a normal friendship, the serial-cheating boy/girlfriend who has you convinced that it's all your fault, the charasmatic boss who tries to entice you to bend the rules, and then tries to blame you if you do. They are all here in this little book. "Say Goodbye to Your PBI" is an invaluable tool in helping the ordinary person recognise the danger signals thrown off by a PBI, gives a simple to understand readout on what really motivates them (and what motivates you to stick with them), and provides practical steps to break the relationship in a healthy (for you) and productive way.I have recommended this book to so many people, and it really has changed lives.Thank you, Dr. Stan Kapuchinski!

Eye opening!
O.k., now I don't feel narcissistic saying "it's them, not me!"Very insightful book that gives a realistic view of the PDI and how to easily spot one in your life (or maybe more than one!).Dr. K did a great job in demonstrating the behaviors, reactions, entrapment and how to deal with these folks and keep your own sanity.A must read.

knowledge
In plain words it outlines behavioral disorders that your partner or friend may display.It gives you an understanding of what you're up against.. Good read.. ... Read more

Product Description
While personality disorders traditionally have been conceptualized only in adults, it is not uncommon to encounter children and adolescents with the classic diagnostic signs. Youngsters with personality disorders may come across as strikingly arrogant, defiant, and manipulative, yet their demeanor typically masks devastating experiences of vulnerability and pain. This groundbreaking volume offers a framework to make sense of childhood personality disorders, distinguish them from more frequently diagnosed childhood conditions, and respond appropriately to the challenges this population presents. Interweaving neurobiological, psychodynamic, and developmental perspectives, Efrain Bleiberg presents an effective treatment model grounded in research and extensive clinical experience. All therapists working with children and adolescents will find vital insights and strategies in this lucidly written book.

The author first explores the nature and clinical presentation of childhood personality disorders. Diverse theoretical and empirical literatures are integrated to show how a combination of constitutional vulnerability, attachment difficulties, and trauma may impair the child's capacity to interpret and respond to the world in human, meaningful terms. Elucidated are the processes by which specific personality disorders develop when children--and caregivers--become trapped in rigid, maladaptive patterns of feeling, coping, and relating. The book then takes the clinician step-by-step through offering multimodal interventions that incorporate individual psychotherapy, family treatment, and pharmacotherapy. Compelling case vignettes and transcripts bring to life the inner worlds of these frightened young people and the clinicians who work with them, showing how treatment can help achieve intrapsychic change, free inhibited development, and modify the child's family context. Emphasizing the importance of the therapeutic alliance, the book gives particular attention to ways that therapists can understand and work with their own emotional reactions in highly charged clinical situations.

Providing a unique, research-based approach to working with a notably difficult-to-treat population, this book belongs on the desks of psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, and other clinicians working with children and adolescents. Rendering complex ideas accessible, it will also be an invaluable resource for graduate-level students and trainees in these fields.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Excellent resource for the practitioner
I have thoroughly enjoyed my reading of this book. I am largely a youth and family counselor and have found this book enormously useful in assisting me to frame treatment for many of the adolescents that I am blessed to work with.

Bleiberg gives us an in depth look into the patterns and cycles that form in the minds of these young men and women with the apparent onset of severe personality disorders. My memories of working my internship in a youth detention center came back clearly. While the book does a great job in opening our eyes to the formation of severe personality disorders, I find the material extremely helpful in treating a good majority of all the kids that I work with.

I am a big follower of Attachment Theory and appreciate the authors like viewpoint. His explanation and construction of narcissistic traits and features is well worth the cost of he book in itself.

If you work with adolescents, this is a must for your library of resources.

EXCELLENT, WELL THOUGHT OUT BOOK
This book presents an excellent and thought-provoking discussion of a controversial subject. I have been a practicing child psychiatrist for 23 years. As a group, we child psychiatrist are reluctant to diagnose personality disorders in children and adolescents. There are many reasons for this. As we become primarily prescribers of psychotropic medications, which are helpful in many cases. we may have developed a bias toward diagnosing Axis I disorders which frequently do respond to psychotropic medications. This is not the case with personality disorders.

i particularly appreciated the authors use of the term "dramatic" personality disorders because these individuals lives are filled with drama, often precipitated by their own behavior and emotional reactions.Like adults with personality disorders, these children do not function well in any environment and always blame others for their distress and dysfunction.

As the authorr thoughtfully pointed out, they lack reflective capability. I thought the vignettes were excellent in making the author's point; he chose examples that are familiar to any provider involved in the care of these severely disturbed youth.

I have not finished the book yet as I find myself re-reading parts over and over again. Thanks for an excellent reference for those of us on the front line.

Brilliant!
Dr. Bleiberg's writing particularly shines in his use of clinical examples. He is a close listener, perspicacious observer, and gifted in his ability to truly understand the inner experiences of his patients-sometimes before his patients see what he sees. I look forward to his (I hope, forthcoming)second edition that will no doubt include the advances in neuroscience that have contributed to our understanding of reflective functioning.

Well done-a masterpiece
Simply put, this work demands a place on the bookshelf of every compatent practicioner.For many years I have cleaned out libraries and the clinical guides belonging to colleauges and never have I found a book so comprehensive and insightful as Bleibergs.I had the privilege of meeting Dr. Bleiberg and i must say that he is as eloquent and knowleadgeable as the book presents him to be.Bleiberg is one of the premier psychiatrists and his rich knowledge of his field is obvious

An inteligent model for treating personality disorder!
I, together with collegues, have been working on a model of understanding severe personality disorder in children and adolescents for almost two decades. We have always planed to write a book on the implications of our ideas for treatment. We never succeeded. We never had the clinical experience to take on the task of the kind of comprehensive treatment model which we envisioned as the only approriate one for this group of seriously handicapped youngsters.

Where we fell short, Bleiberg succeeded. This is a truly important contribution. It covers the entire spectrum of treatment strategies from psychopharmacology to psychoanalysis and does so within a single coherent frame of reference that could easily guide clinical interventions for most difficult patients.

Bleiberg is a child psychiatrist, psychoanalyst of great seniority. This book reflects exceptionally well on his rich experience as clinician-teacher-researcher. He has provided what is, above all, a practical guide. It is a wise book with hundrends of deep insights into difficult clinical problems and practical suggestions on how to managhe them. It provides a clear understanding of treatment challenges. The book is a must for all practitioners. ... Read more

Product Description
Covering the range of clinical presentations, treatments, and levels of care, Borderline Personality Disorder: A Clinical Guide, Second Edition, provides a comprehensive guide to the diagnosis and treatment of borderline personality disorder (BPD). The second edition includes new research about BPD s relationship to other disorders and up-to-date descriptions of empirically validated treatments, including cognitive-behavioral and psychodynamic approaches. Compelling new research also indicates a much better prognosis for BPD than previously known.

A pioneer in the field, author John Gunderson, M.D., director of the Borderline Personality Disorder Center at McLean Hospital, draws from nearly 40 years of his own research and experience. This background is now complemented by the added clinical and research experience of Paul Links, M.D. The guide begins with a clear and specific definition of BPD and provides an in-depth description of multiple modalities of treatment, including pharmacotherapy, family therapy, and cognitive-behavioral therapies. Gunderson outlines therapeutic approaches for multiple settings, such as hospitalization, partial hospitalization programs, and outpatient care. Complementing the well-organized treatment guide are a series of informative sidebars, recommending specific do s and don ts for disclosing the diagnosis, discussing medications, meeting with families, and managing suicidality.

A synthesis of theory and practical examples, Borderline Personality Disorder: A Clinical Guide, Second Edition, provides a thorough and practical manual for any clinician working with BPD patients. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

BORDERLINE PERSOLALITY DISORDER
What ever any psychiatrist fantansizes,there is no escape from thesepatients.So,better be prepared.I cannot think of a volume which packs so much useful and practical information,by one of the top experts on the illness.i recommend this book without hestation,to any busy clinician.

Consider the Source
I know that this is an ad hominem blurb . I worked at Maclean Hospital for many years. People's (patients and staff's) response to Gunderson's cruelty is commonplace . He has most recently been portrayed in the book Mount Misery through the character "Heiler." John Gunderson is well known for his arrogance and cruelty by legions of Maclean staff and patients through the years. You have my condolences to anyone for having endured his company. My advise is to not take him personally. He's been like that with most everybody since he started in 1969. Simply ask virtually anyone who has met him (colleague or patient.)

John Gunderson
Having met John Gunderson in person, I would describe his tactics as those of a sadist or misogynist rather than those of a doctor of psychology. The man seems to enjoy nothing more than distressing his patients, almost for sport. I've more seen him smile maniacally over a patient whose confidence he has shaken to the core using a barrage of unsettling and prying tactics designed to accuse, belittle, and shame the patient--often to the point of tears. Once the patient, usually female, is manipulated to the height of a tearful outburst, he then remarks with smug satisfaction that he has evoked a 'typical response of BPD.'

What he has in fact done is verbally abuse a human being, but he seems to have no qualms with that. This man is irresponsible and reprehensible. He has merely repackaged 'hysteria' in his book, whose pages he has written on the pains of hundreds of patients for whom he has probably caused more harm than good. He has no sympathy for the human condition, and he is in my opinion a blight on the profession. This man is no expert. He is a malevolent buffoon.

The gold standard
If you know about Borderline Personality Disorder, you know that Gunderson is the standard-setter. After years of research, Gunderson demonstrates repeatedly that he has a command of the subject matter unsurpassed by other professionals. His conceptual model is also more helpful than others (e.g., DSM-IV-TR).

A "must have" for anyone in this field
I just got this book and have not read it cover to cover - probably never will, but that's not what I got it for.Rather, for me (as a practicing clinician and supervisor) it is the kind of book I will refer to frequently as needed - it contains a goldmine of up to date synthesis, overview, summary, commentary, advice, nifty tables, etc. in just about any area related to treatment of the Borderline Disorder and beautifully organized and accessible.All that and it combines empirical and theoretical issues very smoothly.It could certainly be read profitably front to back by someone wanting a course in the subject. As an added bonus I have already found it very useful in putting together an insurance review! ... Read more

Product Description
A psychotherapeutic workbook that clinicians can use with those newly diagnosed with borderline personality disorder to provide basic information about the disorder and to suggest ways for clients to manage the disorder. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Knowledge is Power!
My daughter was diagnosed with many different mental disorders before a doctor figured out she had BPD. Then from there was many different and failed medicines that caused more pain than help. Finally when I saw this on Amazon I saw a ray of hope. This workbook is pivotal in changing my daughter's chances of living as normal as one can with BPD. It helps you see why you do what you do, why you want to do what you do and how you can overcome those defining moments. Counseling is expensive and we can't always afford it, but this workbook has opened doors for my daughter and brought a welcomed knowledge. An important tool, along with meds, some counseling and prayer she WILL overcome. Thank you! ... Read more

Product Description

Cognitive Behavior Therapy of DSM-IV-TR Personality Disorders is a timely addition to clinical practice, as personality disorders have received steadily increasing attention in recent years and Cognitive Behavior Therapy is now the most widely practiced theoretical orientation. Thoroughly revised from the first edition, the book offers an overview of the field, with significant updates to reflect the most recent advances in CBT in the treatment of personality disorders. Invaluable as both a text and a professional reference, it emphasizes developmental psychopathology and integrative CBT treatment conceptualizations. It provides busy clinicians with the most effective practical clinical strategies - illustrated with compelling case material - that they need to work effectively with personality-disordered individuals.

Customer Reviews (1)

Integrating spirituality and psychotherapy
This is a helpful addition to your resources. It is important to have something like this to give you ideas on proper interventions. ... Read more

Product Description
The Personality Disorders Treatment Planner provides all the elements necessary to quickly and easily develop formal treatment plans that satisfy the demands of HMOs, managed care companies, third-party payers, and state and federal review agencies.

• Saves you hours of time-consuming paperwork, yet offers the freedom to develop customized treatment plans for clients with personality disorders
• Organized around 32 main presenting problems, from antisocial-malevolent and borderline-petulant to histrionic-appeasing, obsessive-compulsive, paranoid-fanatic, and others
• Over 1,000 well-crafted, clear statements describe the behavioral manifestations of each relational problem, long-term goals, short-term objectives, and clinically tested treatment options
• Easy-to-use reference format helps locate treatment plan components by behavioral problem or DSM-IV™ diagnosis
• Includes a sample treatment plan that conforms to the requirements of most third-party payers and accrediting agencies (including JCAHO and NCQA)

Customer Reviews (1)

Absolutely essential!
If you write treatment plans then you must have this book.Well organized and easy to follow for any mental health professional.It saves me time and allows me to customize my treatment plans for my clients' individual needs.If you own the DSM-IV, this book is the perfect companion.Regardless of theoretical orientation this book will help you to satisfy the demands of managed care.It is indispensable and, in today's world of managed care, this book is the ultimate time saver. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume presents a fully integrated developmental approach that not only differentiates between varying etiologies of the narcissistic and borderline disorders but also provides a detailed guide to effective treatment. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Narcissism Unveiled
If you want to learn more about pathological narcissism, borderline conditions and other low-organization personalities - this book is for you. Essentially a textbook, it is a surprisingly interesting read (case studies intersdpersed). Some professional jargon and the book's bias in favour of psychodynamic theories may make best as a second read about narcissism. Sam Vaknin, author of 'Malignant Self Love - Narcissism Revisited'.

Worth every penny
One of the best I have ever read--and have the pleasure of owning--on the subject. I refer to it time and time again. Comprehensive, insightful, and lucidly written. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

The "bible" of Axis II
Since graduate school, this book has been a mainstay of my practice. I give it as a gift often, to clinicians of all stages of development. The Structural Analysis of Social Behavior (SASB) technology contained herein makes order out of the seemingly arbitrary diagnostic categories of the DSM-IV. The interpersonal framework is capable of capturing nuance and complexity and provides amazing predictive power in anticipating what otherwise might seem totally irrational behavior.
L.S. Benjamin is a true genius of the healing arts. Her breadth and depth are amazing.
This material takes some investment to master, but it will be richly rewarded.

Work of art
benjamin is a wonderful theoretician, therapist, writer, and lecturer--a true asset to the field. here, she tackles personality disorders with skill and confidence. these methods work! particularly helpful to me were the strategies for handling the intensity of patients with borderline personality disorder. she takes the notion of emotional containment to a whole new level and provides practical, patient-honoring, and self-respecting ways of conveying empathic boundaries. a very matter-of-fact approach that manages intensity in a compassionate yet firm way. one of the best books--if not THE best book--available for treating personality disorders.

A book by and for the psychotherapist/scientist-practitioner
Benjamin is a rare clinician: one equally as comfortable in the researcher's as well as psychotherapist's chair. Put bluntly, her book is a tour de force. Regardless of theoretical orientation, psychotherapists will better understand the necessary relationship elements that provide healing for persons who fit Axis II pigeonholes. While initially difficult to grasp, SASB is unbelievably practical, and provides guidance in those moments of clinical despair (that both patient and therapist can experience). Particularly useful, in my view, is her discussion of both the origin of one's introject (self-system) and the wishes/fears people with different Axis II disorders bring to the interpersonal table. In my experience, patients find her model a structure of sanity, amidst a culture of faith healers, repressed memory practitioners, and tarot card readers. Rating: "A PERFECT 10." ... Read more

Product Description
Author Lynn Melville believes that people caught in abusive relationships -- whether Borderline or not -- are stuck in the middle of the Grief Cycle. They are unable to move forward to acceptance of the reality of the abuse they're receiving, because their abuser continues to change, back and forth from the person who acts like they love them -- to the person who hurts them.

Melville began writing Breaking Free from Boomerang Love for herself, words to help her stay focused on reality. Over time, her writing began to change into letters to others who were still stuck in abuse.

Written in a daily affirmation style, readers will re-feel and finish the grieving of their pain, laugh and then watch their denial disappear, achieve a new strength to stand up for themselves, and re-connect and reach for guidance from the God of their understanding. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (24)

MUST read if you're in a relationship with a BPD/NBPD
This book has been a salvation for me and I often carry it with me.Being the partner of a NBPD husband, this book has given me so much comfort.Reading the short verses and the drawings help lift me up when I'm down... if you are in the situation, you MUST read this!!!I wish they made a pocket version.

OUTSTANDING !!!
It's as if Lynn Melville's book "Boomerang Love" was written specifically for me ! I finally got out of a 22 month relationship with a BPD and this book helped me SO much to understand why my BPD partner was the way she was - from the Jekyl and Hyde personality, the lies, the broken promises, lack of values, moral compass &conscience to the love me / hate me treatment, impulsive spending, using sex to get what she wanted and the insatiable need for attention - its ALL here! I just wish I had found this book eighteen months ago and saved myself SO much heartache. Fortunately for me, after going back to the BPD WAY too many times, I finally got out before I bought the ring and built the house I was planning - now she is someone else's problem as within a week she had moved on to another victim. Lynn has done a TREMENDOUS job of detailing what its like to live with a BPD and offers, in a very thoughtful, supportive way, the knowledge that I needed to figure things out and make the break. THANK YOU LYNN MELVILLE !!!!!!

THIS IS AN EXCELLENT BOOK.
IF YOU ARE DEALING WITH A BPD DISORDERED LOVED MATE\LOVED ONE THEN THIS BOOK IS A MUST READ.IT WAS WRITTEN BY THOSE WHO HAVE GONE BEFORE.WITH THEIR POINT OF VIEWS.AMAZING INSIGHT.PRACTICAL ADVICE FROM REAL WORLD VICTIMS OF BPD'S. I WAS ABOUT TO MARRY A WOMAN WHO WAS ABUSIVE.SHE WAS ACTIVELY CHEATING ON ME & JUST ACTING TERRIBLE.BEYOND ALL THAT I FELT COMPELLED TO HELP HER & MARRYING HER.WHEN THE BOOK ARRIVED, I PUT OF READING IT UNTIL I WAS READY.WHEN I WAS READY, A WHOLE NEW PERSPECTIVE OPENED UP TO ME. IT WAS LIKE A CONTINUOUS DUTCH UNCLE TALK THAT I NEEDED BADLY.

Perpetuating myths and stereotypes about an entire group of people
As a borderline person who spent a year and a half in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, I take great offense when people say that you should run screaming from borderlines, and that relationships with a borderline person are necessarily turbulent, unhappy, and something to be gotten out of.When I found a therapist who said BPD could be managed, even "cured," and that she would stick with me throughout the treatment (as opposed to getting sick of me and firing me as a client because I was too great of a suicide risk), I began to get well.I was able to enter into a healthy relationship with someone who was NOT codependent.I note that another reader said that the only way a borderline could have a relationship was with a codependent, similarly self-loathing person.This just perpetuates the notion that we can't get better, we can't be sane, and we are people who should fundamentally be avoided.The stigma around this disorder causes a lot of people who are genuinely suffering and seeking help to be turned away by therapists and partners over and over again.According to this book and the user comments, it's all about saving yourself from becoming involved in a relationship with a borderline, something to be avoided AT ALL COSTS!Is there a book out there that suggests avoiding any other mentally ill people, shutting them out, getting away from them?No.If you're schizophrenic, bipolar, or have OCD, you're allowed to have relationships, but if you're borderline, you should be treated like a leper.Where is the logic in this?BPD can be very successfully managed.I used to be in and out of the hospital at least once a year, but that hasn't happened in four years now.Why?DBT.Please, please, if you are in a relationship with a borderline, consider suggesting DBT to them, and make sure they know you support and love them.We can be wonderful, vibrant, talented contributors to society.Why not attempt to love us and support us in finding effective treatment, rather than listening to this book and abandoning us?This just perpetuates a cycle that can, in fact, be ended.

A Must Read for those who love a BPD
Each page of this book brings new revelations to those of us who have been involved and even still love a significant other or parent with BPD.It brings mental relief because the author so clearly defines what terror, pain, bewilderment and exhilaration we have been through.She provides guidelines in each chapter of how to be good to ourselves and reach out for spiritual support.The checklists alone are worth the read as you say "yes" outloud to line after line of perplexing BPD behaviour that you have never had detailed before and you thought you were the only person going through it.

God bless all of us who love the BPD, as the author says, "we are the best of the best", the most giving, forgiving, understanding and loving people who have commmitted their hearts to loving these afflicted people.God bless the BPD's as well, whose suffering we cannot understand and who we do not hold entirely responsible for the harm they bring to us.They did not ask for the emotional burden and pain they battle every day.We can get away if we must, but they never can.

... Read more

Product Description
The New Personality Self -portraitis the only guide to personality types based onthe American Psychiatric Association'sjust-published official diagnostic system -- the DSM-IV -- and written by one of today'sleading personality researchers. A long-timebacklist bestseller in its previous edition, it has nowbeen completely updated to include all thefascinating new information about how we become who weare-and how we can change. The self-test inThe New Personality Self -portrait isalready used extensively in mental health andbusiness settings. It reveals a profile so personal,so accurate, that it's as individual as afingerprint. Readers discover their unique mix of 14distinct personality styles -- and learn how thosetraits impact their relationships, work and homelife. Fascinating case histories show each style inaction, with tips on how to live and work withevery type, and exercises for turningvulnerabilities into strengths -- plus warnings about whenindividual differences develop into personalitydisorders. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (37)

THE MOST INTERESTING BOOK I'VE EVER READ.
Herbert Pardes M.D. in his praise for this book said:
"YOU CANNOT READ THIS BOOK WITHOUT ATTAINING A DEEPER AND CLEARER UNDERSTANDING OF YOURSELF AND OF THE PEOPLE YOU CARE ABOUT".

It's an easy read, and I personally can't say enough about this book.

It's also recommended by:

1)Professor and M.D. of Psychiatry and Dean, Cornell University Medical College.
2)Professor, M.D., and Chairman, Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.
3)M.D. and Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.
4)Professor, M.D.,and Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Baylor College of Medicine
5)M.D. and author of Dreams of Love and Fateful Encounters.
6)M.D. and author of The Difficult Child

It's the only book that I've read that I didn't get rid of after reading.I will keep it and refer to it for many years to come.

best price and good delivery
very nice delivery. brand new book that i ordered and paid for. it comes w/the good packaging. happy about it.

The New Personality Self-Portrait:Why You Think, Work, Love and Act the Way You Do
This book was recommended via my psychiatrist....who I've known for many years, treating me for acute depression...and I'm now going forward to understanding me.(250 shock treatments is not an easy road).I gave this book to a friend who said "Can I keep it"??? absolutely not!!!But I'm planning to purchase a few more copies...I'd like to see this book as "mandatory" for anyone with any type of personal/emotional problems.Note to author:You've been a great help. Thanks.

VERY INTERESTING!!!!

I was very facinated with the test in the beginning of the book.I had my family tske it and was really amazing how it made their personality come out.It really was amazing. I recommend it to anyone who likes psychology and learning about other personality types!!!

fast shipping
I got this book fast, just two days after I oldered; the book is brandnew. This book is really help you understand yourself. ... Read more

Product Description

The purpose of this book is to provide understanding of the relationship between childhood trauma and serious mental illness.Dr Colin Ross, one of the most respected North American authorities on Multiple Personality Disorder, writes that his MPD patients have taught him that virtually all psychiatric symptoms are potentially trauma driven and dissociative in nature.He believes that MPD research will shift the paradigm of psychopathology in the direction of a general trauma model, and away from the two dominant schools of twentieth-century psychiatry, the psychoanalytical and the biomedical. The Osiris Complex is a collection of case histories illustrating the clinical roots of the paradigm transformation Dr Ross anticipates.

Contrary to prevalent opinion, MPD patients do not have more than one personality; the so-called different personalities are fragmented components of a single personality, abnormally personified and dissociated from each other. Adult patients exhibit core symptoms: voices in the head and ongoing blank spells or periods of missing time.The voices are the different parts of the personality talking to one another and to the main, presenting part of the person who comes for treatment.Periods of missing time occur when aspects of the personality take turns being in control of the body and memory barriers are erected between them. Patients also experience symptoms such as depression, anxiety, eating disorders, substance abuse, sleep disorders, sexual dysfunction, psychosomatic symptoms, and symptoms that mimic schizophrenia. MPD patients have experienced the most extreme childhood trauma of any diagnostic group and therefore exhibit the psychobiology and psychopathology of trauma to an extreme degree.The good news is that once diagnosed, the MPD patient can be brought back to health.

This book is important for all mental health professionals, and also for the general reader interested in psychiatric phenomena. It will play a powerful role in the social revolution necessary for the recognition of the preponderance, intensity, and hiddenness of severe childhood emotional, physical, and sexual abuse in our culture. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

Boats Against the Current
I am neither a clinical masters' student, nor am I the parent of a recovering borderline. I am a Psy.D.; a neuropsychologist who has been an MFT, an NCAC and a CADC. I have been "on the floor" with borderlines since 1991. I have observed hundreds of them and worked "in the trenches" with scores of them. I still do.

So. When I noticed in the brochure that came with my new DBT book that Dr. P. had a new book out on BPD, I figured, "Joel is a famous name in BPD; let's get that sucker." I read. I read. And I read. I kept hoping. But I also found myself trying my best not to throw it out my third-floor window.

I'm wasn't sure what was happening. "Maybe I have expectations that aren't well supported." "Maybe everything I've ever read is wrong." "Maybe I've spent almost 20 years with some other =kind= of borderline." "Maybe =I'm= the one who's nuts."

I've been down the borderline road with Sharon Ekleberry, with Teddy Millon, with Otto Kernberg, with Bill Meissner, with Aaron Beck and Art Freeman, with Bessel van der Kolk, with Judith Herman, with Michael Stone, with John Gunderson, with Jim Masterson, with Harold Searles, with Lorna Benjamin, with Neil Bockian and Valarie Porr, with Paul Mason, with Stan Greenspan, with Pia Mellody, with John Preston, with Glenn Gabbard, with Linda Dimeff and Kelly Koerner, and even with Joel's hero, the esteemed (me, =too=, baby) Marsha Linehan. I am =not- some Johnny-come-lately to this topic. I have written a dozen or more professional pieces on the matter.

This book =stinks=.

I have never ever said this before about a "clinician's book." But I simply don't know what else =to= say.

If you're a professional looking for Clues to the Mystery, this is not where you're going to find them. Paris defies almost every major theory and millennial-era, empirical convention there is on this diagnosis. He seems to understand little or nothing about the borderline spectrum, about the non-physical causes of BPD, about the nature of traumatic memories and the repression thereof (which he denies is possible), about the various degrees of borderlinism, about the co-morbidity with other personality disorders, about the obvious co-morbidity with the bipolar spectrum disorders in many BPD patients, about the "moving target" nature of BPD expression from one session to another, about the very useful psychodynamic and behavioristic -- as well as cognitive -- conceptualizations of BPD... I could go on and on.

Worse, he says one thing (often a dozen times), and then says... another, refuting what he said before (e.g.: relative to environmental vs. biogenetic factors). His emphasis is ostensibly on efficacy research into the diverse treatments out there for BPD, but there is nothing of any meaningful clarity that emerges from all his citations. In his view, one treatment is as good as any other.

And =that= is simply =not= the case.

Frankly... I stuck it out for 150 pages and skimmed the rest. But I was still dumbfounded.

If you're looking for something useful at the more or less introductory level, try =Stop Walking on Eggshells=, =I Hate You; Don't Leave Me=, or =New Hope for People with Borderline Personality Disorder=.

If you're on the way to licensure, read the best APA material, then head off into =Personality Guided Therapy=, =Cognitive Therapy of the Personality Disorders=, =Cognitive Behavioral Therapy of Borderline Personality Disorder=, =My Work with Borderline Patients=, and =Integrative Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder=.

If you're a veteran in the trenches looking for theory in depth, Otto Kernberg, Bill Meissner, John Gunderson, Jim Masterson, Neil Bockian, Judith Lewis Herman, Bessel van der Kolk and the man who saw it all coming a century ago, Pierre Janet.

But fer crissake, don't bother with this. Google "Joel Paris False Memory Syndrome" and see why.

Excellent book!
I am a student in a Counseling Master's program and I had a group presentation to do on evidence-based treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder.It has been awhile since I studied this disorder in depth, so I knew there was a lot of literature out there, but where do you start?This book was a lifesaver for me!!My presentation was during finals when I had little time, and certainly not enough time to sift through the gazillions of research studies of Borderline at my university's huge library.This book was clear, concise, and best of all it was actually easy to understand for someone that is not extremely well-versed in all of this (in other words, I am still at the beginning stages of learning the ins and outs of counseling and I still understood what was going on in this book).Also, the book was not a huge text, so I was able to read the majority of it and still get a wealth of info from it for my presentation.The book has charts/tables that go over all the major studies, and if nothing else, points you in the direction of where you should go if you have to find out more specific info (methods, procedures, specific findings of study).This is a great book to learn about the various methods of effective treatment for BPD.Borderline is a very challenging cluster of issues within one's interpersonal relationships, and this book helps to dispell where a therapist should start.Highly recommended if you need an overview of the effective treatment for Borderline!!

Excellent Overview - and Hope
This is an excellent review of what has been shown to work and what clearly does not in the treatment of this awful disease.Unlike other books on BP that are aimed at practitioners and are so dense with jargon they are unintelligible, this one is accessible to people without a psych PhD.It should be very useful to families of BP patients in assessing the effectiveness of their loved one's treatment and therapist.I particularly appreciate the author's unequivocal condemnation of psychotropic drugs, which have not been shown to be of significant help for BP patients and often make things worse.I watched the pills wrench my beautiful, talented daughter from an adolescent depression into a manic breakdown and a horrifying descent into BPD, psychosis and personality disintegration.She is now in the earliest stage of recovery, thanks to a hard-nosed therapist (trained in object relations) and large doses of brain-supporting supplements.In fact, my one disappointment with Paris' book is that it doesn't sufficiently address nutritional therapies in recovering from BPD.I assume that good data just does not exist yet.My hope is that someone will be able to correct this glaring omission in the near future.Fish oil, anyone? ... Read more

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Description

When Julie becomes so mentally ill she can no longer cope in society, she is put in a psychiatric hospital with the support of her friends. Once inside the hospital, Julie faces some terrible challenges; her main issue is trusting those in authority. She had uncontrollable reactions, such as self harming and suicidal behaviours when something is out of control, but with the help of her friends and a doctor she gradually starts to get these under more control. But the world of a Borderline is never an easy ride, and Julie portrays the tribulations that this diagnosis may cause.

Julie's journey portrays how difficult a patient's role in the hospital is when the staff are met with a talented, yet troubled young individual. How can they cope with Julie's issues without belittling her or making her feel worse?

This book will work to sympathise with those who have had similar experiences in hospital and were unable to vent out their problems. This book will also thrive is teaching mental health staff what is perhaps going through a patient's mind. This book challenges staff to look at their approach and language in the way that they treat patients, particularly those with Borderline Personality Disorder. ... Read more