Corrections & Mental Health

 Nineteenth Century, “borderline” described a condition that was “fuzzy” between two different psychiatric problems.  Bordered on or overlapped with schizophrenia and non-schizophrenic psychosis. “Wastebasket diagnosis”  Category 1: neurosis, patients aware of reality but had emotional problems (i.e., depression, anxiety).  Category 2: psychosis, patients who had unusual thoughts/experiences (hallucinations) not based on reality. These patients were diagnosed with disorders such as schizophrenia.

 Psychiatrist used the term “borderline” for patients who had a hard time seeing both the good and bad qualities in people who led unstable and chaotic lives.  Problems not serious enough to be labeled psychotic, but too troubled to be neurotic.

 Borderline Personality disorder- A person with borderline personality disorder often experiences a repetitive pattern of disorganization and instability in poor self image, mood, behavior, and personal relationships.  Can cause distress with friendships and work

 Fear of being abandoned  May have trouble with anger (have an outburst, or scared of anger that they avoid it)  Have difficulty trusting others  Manipulative  Frequent shifts of lonely depression to irritability and anxiety  Unpredictable and impulsive behavior such as: excessive spending, gambling, promiscuity, gambling, substance abuse, shoplifting, over- eating, and self-damaging actions.

 A mental health professional experienced in diagnosing and treating mental disorders  1. psychiatrist  2. psychologist  3. clinical social worker  4. psychiatric nurse  Thorough medical exam can help to rule out other possible causes of symptoms.

 Unsure of the exact and precise causes-not fully understood????  Factors: Genetics, Biological, Environmental, and brain abnormalities.  Genetics- Inherited among family members  Biological- 60% of research suggest the risk of developing BPD conveyed through genetic abnormalities. These abnormalities appear to effect the functioning of brain pathways that control the behavioral functions and emotion information, processing, impulse, and cognitive activity.

 Environmental- poor parenting, early separation from parents, emotion/physical/sexual abuse, incest.

 A pervasive pattern of instability of interpersonal relationships, self-image, affects, and marked impulsivity beginning by early age adulthood. Present by in a variety of context as indicated by five (5) or more below:  1. Frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment  2. A pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships characterized by alternating extremes idealization and devaluation

 3. Identity disturbance, markedly and persistently unstable self-image or sense of self  4. Impulsivity in at least two areas that are potentially self-damaging  5. Recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, threats, or self-mutilating behavior  6. Affective mood instability

 7. Chronic feelings of emptiness  8. Inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger  9. Transient, stress related paranoid ideation or severe dissociative symptoms  Must have 5 out of 9 criteria

 BPD rarely stands alone. Typically co-occurs with other disorders (i.e., Bipolar, depression, substance abuse)  BPD affects 1-2% of the population  Estimates 10% of outpatients and 20% of inpatients who present for Tx have BPD.  More females are diagnosed with BPD than males, 3 to 1.

 Women's co-occuring disorder are usually linked with major depression, anxiety d/o, or eating d/o. Men are linked with substance abuse or anti-social personality disorders  75% of patients self-injure  Approximately 10% of individuals with BPD complete suicide  Up to 80% of people with BPD having suicidal behaviors

 Major Depressive- 60%  Dysthymia- 70%  Eating Disorder- 25%  Substance Abuse- 35%  Bipolar Disorder- 15%  Antisocial- 25%  Narcissistic- 25%

 % of those diagnosed are women.  Affects 6-10 million of Americans- or about the size of New York City (twice that of Bipolar and Schizophrenia).  33% of youth who commit suicide have features or traits of BPD; this number is 400 times higher than the general population and young women with BPD have suicide rate of 800 times higher.

 Common dangerous and fear inducing feature of BPD are self harming behaviors (cutting, burning, hitting, head banging, hair pulling).  Physical self harm generates a sense of relief to alleviate emotional pain.  This occurs by stimulating the production of endorphins. The release of the endogenous opiates produced by the brain provide a reward to the “self-inflicting” behavior.

 Medications: Most effective when used in conjunction with psychotherapy.  Reduces symptoms of BPD, does not treat BPD itself.  Medications serve to improve chemical processes required for optimal brain function. Anti- psychotic and Mood Stabilizers most useful.  Anti-depressants:  1. Nardil (phenelzine  2.Prozac (fluoxentine)  3. Zoloft (sertraline)  4. Effexor (venlafaxine)  5. Wellbutrin (bupropion)

 Anti-Psychotics:  1. Haldol (haloperidol)  2. Zyprexa (olanzapine)  3.Clozaril (Clozapine)  4. Seroquel (quetiapine)  5. Risperdal (risperidone)  Mood Stabilizer:  1. Lithobid  2. Depakote

 3. Lamictal  4. Tegratol  Anxiolytics (Anti-anxiety):  1. Ativan (lorazapam)  2. Klonopin (clonazpam)  3. Xanax (alpazolam)  4. Valium (diazepam)  5. Buspar (buspirone)  Anxiety to treat anxiety symptoms, not BPD.  Caution for SUD; benzodiazepines

 Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT)  Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)  Schema-focused therapy  Mentalization Based Therapy  Transference Focused Psychotherapy  General Psychiatric Management  Systems Training for Emotional Predictability and Problem Solving (STEPPS)

 A modification of CBT for the treatment of chronically suicidal and self-injurious individuals with BPD.  DBT differs from traditional CBT in its emphasis on validation. The therapist and patient work on “accepting” uncomfortable feelings, thoughts, behaviors v.s. struggling with them.  Once an identified thought, emotion, behavior is validated, the process of change no longer appears impossible, and the goals of gradual transformation becomes reality.  DBT focuses on developing coping skills.

 1. Decrease the frequency and severity of self destructive behaviors  2. Increase motivation to change  3. Teach new coping skills  4. Provide treatment environment that emphasizes the strengths of both individual and their treatments.  5. Enhance therapist’s motivation to treatment the client effectively

 A form of treatment that focuses on examining the relationship between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.  Explore patterns of thinking that lead to self destructive actions and the beliefs that direct these thoughts, people can modify their patterns of thinking to improve coping.  Involves homework  Can be used in a variety of disorders such as mood disorders, anxiety, personality, eating, sleep, and psychotic, and substance abuse.

 An integrative approach to treatment that combines the aspect of cognitive behavioral, experiential, interpersonal, and psychoanalytic therapies into one model.  Focuses on self-defeating, dysfunctional, and negative patterns/thoughts & feelings that have been an obstacle for accomplishing goals in life.  3 stages:  1.assessment phase- identify schemas  2.emotional awareness & experiential phase  3. behavioral change phase

 Mentalization Therapy- The process by which we makes sense of each other and ourselves, implicitly(implied, indirect) and explicitly(direct, demonstrated, nothing implied).  The object of treatment is that BPD patients increase mentalization capacity which should improve affect regulation and interpersonal relationships. 

 Highly structured, twice-weekly modified psychodynamic treatment. It views the individual with borderline personality D/O as holding unreconciled and contradictory internalized representations of self and significant others. The defense against these contradictory internalized views leads to disturbed relationships with others and with self.  The distorted perceptions of self, others, and associated affects are the focus of treatment as they emerge in the relationship with the therapist (transference).  The intended aim of the treatment is focused on the integration of split off parts of self and object representations, and the consistent interpretation of these distorted perceptions is considered the mechanism of change.

 BPD Is one of the top reported disorders prison inmates are diagnosed with linking the disorder with criminal behavior.  25-50% of inmates in prison suffer from BPD, mostly in women  Prison based mental health care is problematic because the lack of resources, difficulty in making referrals, scarcity of good mental health providers, and the inappropriateness of prison as a setting for care.

 It is not uncommon within forensic mental health services for regional secure units to actively exclude patients with a primary diagnosis of personality disorder because they do not consider this to be their core business.  In many parts of the country there are no specific services and when services are offered they tend to be individualistic.  In general, people with BPD have difficulty controlling their emotions and distorted perceptions of themselves and others. The result is impairment in functioning at home, work, and relationships. These impairments all too often can lead to a life of incarceration.

 Thanks for listening!