Personality Disorder Q & A

What are Personality Disorders?

Your personality encompasses the feelings, thoughts, and behaviors that define you and make you different. Aspects of your personality evolve as you go through life, creating positive changes that reflect the person you have become.

A specific pattern of dysfunctional and detrimental thoughts, feelings, and behaviors defines personality disorders. These personality and behavioral patterns stay the same over time and cause problems in all aspects of their life.

The signs of a personality disorder usually appear in late adolescence or early adulthood. Without treatment, these disorders can last a lifetime.

What are the different types of personality disorders?

There are currently 10 different types of personality disorders, which are all significantly more complex than the brief descriptions that follow:

Paranoid, Schizoid, and Schizotypal

• Paranoid personality disorder makes you believe that other people are lying to you, deceiving you, or intending to cause you harm. As a result, you may try to control people or have angry outbursts.

• Schizoid personality disorder causes people to stay detached from others. They seldom engage in activities just for fun and may express inappropriate emotions.

• Schizotypal personality disorder causes unusual beliefs and thoughts. For example, you may have superstitions or fantasies that define your reality and drive peculiar speech and behavior.

Antisocial, Borderline, Histrionic, and Narcissistic

• Antisocial personality disorder leads people to act impulsively and disregard or violate the rights of others, sometimes engaging in unlawful behaviors.

• Borderline personality disorder typically causes people to have a poor self-image and unstable emotions and relationships. Additionally, they may not have goals or a sense of direction.

• Histrionic personality disorder is characterized by needing to be the center of attention, even if that means being overly dramatic or behaving badly or outrageously to get attention.

• Narcissistic personality disorder causes a lack of empathy and an exaggerated sense of self-importance and entitlement. People with this disorder may have fantasies of unlimited power or success and believe they're powerful or special.

Avoidant, Dependent, and Obsessive-Compulsive

• Avoidant personality disorder is characterized by extreme shyness and being overly sensitive to criticism. People with this disorder may avoid jobs and relationships due to a fear of disapproval or rejection.

• Dependent personality disorder includes people who can't make decisions and fear being alone. As a result, they try to get others to take care of them.

• Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder shares some qualities with another mental health disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). For example, people with this personality disorder need order and perfection.

However, personality disorder is different, as it causes problems that don't affect people with OCD. For example, people with obsessive-compulsive personality disorder lack empathy and base their self-worth on their job.

How are personality disorders treated?

Your provider recommends one of several types of psychotherapy that effectively treat personality disorders, such as:

• Psychoanalytic therapy

• Dialectical behavior therapy

• Cognitive behavioral therapy

• Group therapy

Therapy can help you gain insight about your disorder and learn ways to manage or change your behavior patterns.

If you have signs of a personality disorder, call Adrian Counseling and Psychiatric Clinic or book an appointment online today.