What Happens if Borderline Personality Disorder Goes Untreated
Suppose someone exhibits the signs of BPD but isn’t aware of the symptoms or actively decides not to seek treatment. Over the course of this person’s life, they might experience the following.
Relationship Trouble
People with BPD have a black-and-white view of the world: Things (and people) are either good or bad, and how someone with BPD is feeling can change almost instantly.
Relationships in particular can be problematic. David Ryan Hooper, PhD, a clinical psychologist in private practice and an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of Illinois at Chicago, says people with BPD commonly have a love-hate approach to others. One day, a person with BPD might view their partner, friend, or family member as the best person in the world. The next day, he or she might do a 180 and decide that the “best person in the world” is now the worst.
Some of this can be traced back to the fact that people with BPD tend to fear abandonment. For instance, they might cut off communication with a loved one if they feel they’re at risk of being left behind.
This, of course, can lead to lots of interpersonal conflict and chronic difficulties with relationships, Dr. Ackerman says. Hence, relationship turmoil, divorce, and trouble maintaining positive relationships with family and friends can be common among people suffering from BPD.
Job Loss
The impulsive behavior that comes with BPD can also affect someone’s ability to maintain a steady job.
“Their life is in disarray,” Dr. Hooper says. The symptoms of BPD can be severe and debilitating, to the point where being unable to regulate emotions can “almost certainly wreck their life,” Hooper adds. “What you begin to see is a life described as instability.”
But that doesn’t mean everyone with BPD will fall into this camp. “There are some people with BPD who function quite well,” Ackerman says. “I wouldn’t say the diagnosis alone means someone might not be able to hold a job or get married if they wanted to.” (For example, Marsha Linehan, PhD, the creator of dialectical behavior therapy [DBT] and a professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Washington in Seattle, has acknowledged having BPD herself.)
Self-Harm
Many people with BPD harm themselves, such as by cutting, to try to deal with their overwhelming feelings. Some may even attempt to take their own lives.
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