tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8339764994253890828.post3507840777312986821..comments2023-10-23T15:51:26.770-04:00Comments on borderlinePhD: Beyond Remission, Beyond StigmaborderlinePhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08681276079795586997noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8339764994253890828.post-63050016686775228582010-07-29T21:06:12.361-04:002010-07-29T21:06:12.361-04:00wow--what a great set of exchanges. great blogs--a...wow--what a great set of exchanges. great blogs--all of your work has helped me a great deal. i have read a great deal about bpd, related traits, and such and in times of low stress, i am a ok and able to thrive. however, when i am stressed out my ability to adapt and relate is severely altered. i finished a master's and have trouble finishing my phd. it is not for the status but i want to be a more independent researcher and contribute work that might be modestly meaningful. i thank you for such candid exchanges. i read the news and see people with bpd mentioned in relation to violent crimes. i am so grateful to you--i moved to nyc to get help but there was such a void in understanding how people living with bpd function and thrive. thank you. i can not tell you how grateful i am--i found out about bpd this year and it has been so humbling and hopeful at the same time. i hope to stick with dbt and live a life worth living (as linehan would say!)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8339764994253890828.post-92123176132206202592010-07-25T18:07:53.917-04:002010-07-25T18:07:53.917-04:00Great blog Lisa in reference to Kiera's great ...Great blog Lisa in reference to Kiera's great work :) I really like your idea about exploring neurodiversity as well. <br /><br />I agree with both of you that the term or label "Borderline" is one that forwards stigma, and not only in the eyes of others or mental health systems, but in ways that leaves those with this diagnosis internalizing that very stigma along with all the accompanying shame.<br /><br />Much like those of us who are lesbian, bi, gay, or transgender have experienced, at some point in our lives, homophobia, so too have many of us, for a time in our lives, internalized those negative and shaming messages.<br /><br />These are exciting times for BPD advocacy I think. I am, myself, just starting a new website and iniative that I am calling, simply, Beyond Borderline Personality. Notice I'm dropping the "disorder" as you so cleverly and aptly did in your wonderful memoir.A.J. Maharihttp://beyondbpd.canoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8339764994253890828.post-41656531589970261902010-07-25T15:36:17.013-04:002010-07-25T15:36:17.013-04:00Thanks for the props Lisa! It's always import...Thanks for the props Lisa! It's always important to put references in context, and in that presentation, i am addressing 300+ psych/ med students who are training in DBT and BPD. I don't believe i stated the term borderine shouldn't be used but that it exists within the dialectic of "I am / I am not" a borderline. and the use of it needs to be done carefully. I will have to watch the video again, however, as it's been a while since i gave the talk! <br /><br />I do know that I never encourage clinicians to call a person with BPD a "borderline"--it's the psychiatric equivalent of a white person calling a black person a nigger. but as black people, homosexuals, cripples, alcoholics and others know, reclaiming the language is an effective way of taking the wind out of others' sails and regaining voice and power. <br /><br />In my book, i refer to myself and others as "borderline" very consciously, and everyone close to me feels comfortable using the term, as it's part of our shared language. I live with another "borderline"in my buddhist community and we work with the disorder as both a separate experience (a disorder) and as a common manifestation of suffering. With six people in our house and a larger community (Sangha) who have now read my book and known me for many years, the word "Borderline" has not only become common, but is infused with a depth and level of understanding i've never experienced anywhere. <br /><br />I'd never get rid of the term, and argue against the movement to change to label. (but that's another topic!)<br /><br />When I've educational work at conferences in the past, I printed up stickers to wear that said "proud to be a borderline" and people would literally walk away when they saw me wearing one. but other people started picking them up and wearing them too :) <br /><br />I suppose the issue for me is always both/and rather than either/or. I am a borderline and I am not. Others are not allowed to call me that/and they are not. Claiming and reshaping the word by embracing it seems to be the fastest to reducing stigma but as the name can still perpetuate the stigma, it requires a dual approach. <br /><br />This is a great topic Lisa! Thank you for opening up a great discussion. Merinda Epstein has written on this topic as well from a gender perspective-- definitely worth taking a look! Links here:<br /><br />http://www.takver.com/epstein/articles/emperors_new_clothes_themhs_2006%20.pdf<br /><br />http://www.takver.com/epstein/articles/borderline_personality_disorder.htm<br /><br />http://www.sistersinside.com.au/media/papermepstein.pdf<br /><br />In borderlinehood,<br />KieraKiera Van Gelderhttp://buddhaandborderline.comnoreply@blogger.com