Examples Of Borderline Personality Disorder In The Media

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Borderline Personality Disorder in the Media
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is portrayed throughout the media with the stigma that all people that possess this disease are suffering as an impulsive monster. The media often attacks the idea of any mental illnesses and portrays it to their viewers/readers as the affected person being “psycho” or “crazy”. However, contrary to common thought, the representation of this illness throughout the media is incorrect (Hollywood). The fact that 14 million adults in the United States suffer from BPD makes it ignorant to keep this idea in the media.
Unfortunately, Movies, books, and social media can lead us to think that Borderline Personality Disorder is a disease that can’t be cured. In the book
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“In fact, this myth is so common that it is found not only in the media, but also in some academic medical books and research literature” ( Survival Guide, 30). More often than not, many doctors and people assume that because people with this disorder often make suicidal attempts, that they are doing this as a way to seek attention. Although it would make sense to make this assumption, people with BPD often have a strong desire to help people and a feeling of “needing” or “craving” a relationship with other individuals. An example of this behavior would be the well-known behavior of Anakin Skywalker. He is often said to have possibly had BPD because of his ”Frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment: He was separated from his mother while still young, and he doesn’t even have a father As he matured, this turned into a fear of losing Padme “(Rith-Najarian). Because of this, it is incorrect to assume that they are seeking attention. These feelings that they have are very strong and they are not trying to “manipulate” others. Their actions are sincere in accordance to their feelings. Simply assuming things about these BPD patients leads to inaccurate …show more content…
Although most personality disorders are more common in women, the myth that men never get Borderline Personality Disorder is incorrect. People often believe this because of the theory that sexual abuse can cause BPD. “It can also create the excessive preoccupation with sexuality and a damaged self-image that are characteristic symptoms of women with BPD” (Borderline Personality Treatment). Despite the fact that it seems correct to make this assumption, studies have shown that men and women can both be diagnosed with this disorder. There are many reasons women may get diagnosed with BPD more than men, often because of “gender-role” stereotypes. Many clinicians may just notice it more often in woman and fail to notice it in men. This would be a correct assumption because BPD has many features that are more acceptable for woman in today’s

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