Posted by Racer on September 19, 2008, at 14:04:37
In reply to How do I remove my diagnosis?, posted by Deneb on September 19, 2008, at 10:15:31
Honey, I don't think you need it removed -- I just think you need the validation that you really have worked hard, grown, and developed beyond that diagnosis. You need the validation that you have succeeded in your effort to overcome the limitations it brought to your life. And you have.
You know I care about you, and I hope you'll remember that I care about you when you read this: I believe, based on what I saw of your behavior on this site, that the diagnosis was accurate when it was made. That's honest feedback, and it's not a judgment. You have put in so much hard work, and you have been successful in overcoming an obstacle to your happiness. That's what we all hope for, and I'm sure many people look at you for inspiration because of it. I hope you're not ashamed of who you were -- that earlier Deneb is part of who you are. You know that many of us put a great deal of time into responding to you then -- we must have seen something good in you, right? We must have sensed your potential to offer you that much time, right?
I'd ask your Pdoc to document the fact that you no longer meet the diagnostic criteria for BPD. And I think I'd also recommend you discuss with her your feelings about having met the criteria in the past.
Last thought: the mental health field has finally started to cotton on to the rather obvious fact that personality disorders are actually LESS stable than many of the Axis I disorders! Depression is much more likely to continue to be a problem throughout the life-span, while many of the personality traits which make up the PDs improve over time. Real Life usually teaches most of us that certain maladaptive patterns of behavior are ineffective and detrimental to our happiness, and we take steps to adjust them in order to survive. And often, the PDs are expressions of a developmental delay in one area or another, and that area eventually catches up. Whatever it is, many -- if not most -- personality disorders are far less chronic than the previously accepted wisdom believed.
Anyway, you're a bright star, but I guess you've always known that, right? ;-)
poster:Racer
thread:852877
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20080906/msgs/852937.html