Resources

A client shared this book with me recently, and I am really excited to have it as a resource. I recommend this book to all of my clients participating in treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder. Written by a woman who has experienced BPD herself, it is right on target with what it is like to experience the emotional intensity states of BPD. This book is about much more than suicide prevention. It is about the many self-management skills that you can learn to use to feel more in control of your symptoms. It is completely compatible with the STEPPS program format that we use in our BPD treatment group.

Another fantastic resource discovered by one of my clients! One of the most distressing traits of many people who experience Borderline Personality Disorder is the overwhelming feeling of self-loathing or self-hatred. The results of these negative beliefs about one's self are typically depression, anxiety, and self-destructive behaviors. This book is a fantastic guide to how to stop the self-judgment and nurture a more realistic, affirming sense of self. The skills taught in this book truly address the BPD symptoms of "unstable sense of self" and "chronic feelngs of emptiness", and the subsequent destructive behaviors. We share book with many of our clients, not only those dealing with BPD.

One of the first books written for the general public about Borderline Personality Disorder, it was first published in 1989. In 2010 it was completely revised and updated to reflect new understandings about the nature of BPD and validated treatment approaches. It is a book that we often recommend clients pick up and read to see if what they read "fits" with their experience of life and relationships. The beginning and end chapters are particularly strong, while the chapters on "borderline society" are less relevant. The STEPPS and STAIRWAYS treatment manuals that structure our therapy approach at Tidelands, as well as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy and Schema Therapy are all noted in the treatment section and are integrated into treatment at Tidelands.