What is Borderline Personality Disorder?

Borderline personality disorder is a mental health disorder that impacts a person’s ability to regulate their emotions, especially anger. This results in extreme mood swings, unstable personal relationships, and impulsive actions.

They often have negative feelings about themselves and have a hard time managing daily tasks, work or school, personal obligations, and other events in life. People with BPD also have an intense fear of being abandoned by friends or family.

BPD and other personality disorders often begin in teens or young adults and may be related to troubling life experiences or stressful events. An estimated 1.4% of U.S. adults experience BPD, and most are women. Symptoms frequently decrease over a patient’s lifetime and may disappear entirely.

What's the Difference Between BPD and Bipolar Disorder?

Bipolar disorder can also cause significant mood swings, so there may be questions about how to tell them apart.

People with borderline personality disorder have changes in mood and behavior in response to stress or interactions with other people. Bipolar disorder has moods that last longer and aren’t reactive. Bipolar also includes changes in energy and activity, whereas BPD does not.

Treatment centers that provide high-quality mental health treatment and other treatment programs can address borderline personality disorder and other mental health conditions, along with co-occurring disorders like substance abuse. What’s most important is to get the treatment you need as soon as possible.

What Causes BPD?

Borderline personality disorder can be the result of specific life experiences, as well as genetics and differences in how the brain operates.

As with many mental health issues, having family members who have borderline personality disorder can increase your risk of developing it. There may be differences in the brain in the areas that control emotional regulation and impulses.

One of the biggest risk factors is having traumatic experiences, such as child abuse and trauma. A large percentage of those with BPD experienced emotional, sexual, or physical abuse as a child. Other circumstances associated with BPD include being separated from your mother or having poor attachment to her, inappropriate boundaries in the family, and parental substance abuse.

TOUR OUR ADDICTION TREATMENT CENTER IN MASSACHUSETTS

Are you looking for mental health or addiction treatment in Massachusetts? Take the first step toward recovery by exploring our rehab with a personal tour. At Elevate Recovery Center, we specialize in comprehensive mental health and substance abuse treatment for men and women.

Schedule a Tour(877) 592-2102

The Signs and Symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder

There are a variety of symptoms that are signs of BPD. Some of the symptoms may include:

  • Frantically trying to avoid real or imagined abandonment by loved ones or friends
  • A distorted and unstable self-image that affects opinions, moods, values, and goals
  • Self-destructive behaviors, including suicidal threats and attempts
  • Chronic feelings of boredom or emptiness
  • Unstable relationships that alternate between extremely positive and negative feelings
  • Impulsive and reckless behavior
  • Periods of intense depressed mood, anxiety, or irritability
  • Inappropriate and uncontrollable anger, often followed by guilt and shame
  • Dissociation, or feeling disconnected from reality
  • Stress-related paranoid thoughts that can lead to psychotic episodes

You don’t have to live as a prisoner to your symptoms. Our treatment team helps clients develop practical strategies to manage symptoms and improve their ability to live a happy, healthy life. The borderline personality disorder program at Elevate Recovery Center can give you the supportive environment you need to overcome BPD.

How BPD is Diagnosed

While borderline personality disorder may start in the late teen years, your personality continues to evolve until adulthood. As a result, mental health issues like BPD are generally not diagnosed until you are 18 or older.

A mental health professional can diagnose adult clients by getting a full medical history, including family histories of medical conditions and mental health issues. A doctor will also do a medical exam to rule out any physical causes of the symptoms.

The counselor will also get a list of symptoms by interviewing the client and may talk to family and friends to get more insight into the client’s behavior. From there, they will decide if the BPD symptoms are in line with the diagnostic criteria in the DSM-5.

We Accept Most Insurance

We Accept Most Insurance

We accept most health insurance plans to cover the costs of addiction treatment and mental health care. We believe that financial concerns should never stand in the way of the transformative support you deserve.
Verify Insurance

What Other Illnesses Can Co-Occur with BPD?

Borderline personality disorder often co-occurs with other mental health issues, such as depression, anxiety, PTSD, eating disorders, or substance use disorder.

When looking at treatment programs for BPD, it’s important to ensure they can offer a treatment plan that can comprehensively treat all mental health conditions and substance use disorders. Having integrated, effective treatments is essential to long-term recovery.

With effective treatments, you can prevent repeat hospitalizations and other complications that may happen when you struggle with multiple disorders.

Evidence-Based, Effective Treatments for BPD

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a serious mental health condition that requires a comprehensive, structured treatment approach. At Elevate Recovery Center, we provide evidence-based outpatient treatment through a combination of therapy, medication, and lifestyle support to help individuals manage the emotional intensity and relationship difficulties associated with BPD.

Day Treatment and Other Outpatient Program Options

While some individuals may begin treatment in a residential setting to stabilize intense symptoms, most long-term care happens through outpatient programs. Day treatment offers 30–40 hours of weekly programming and provides a high level of support while allowing patients to return home in the evenings. Our other outpatient treatment options range from 5–20 hours per week and include flexible scheduling to accommodate each individual’s needs.

Elevate Recovery Center’s outpatient programs include individual therapy, group therapy, family counseling, medication management, and skills training to help patients develop long-term strategies for managing symptoms and building healthy relationships.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Mental Health Support in Psychotherapy

As a trusted BPD treatment center, Elevate Recovery Center emphasizes the importance of consistent talk therapy and ongoing counseling sessions as the foundation for healing. These sessions help patients identify triggers, build self-awareness, and practice healthy coping skills in a safe environment.

In addition to clinical care, we also encourage the development of a healthy lifestyle, which includes regular sleep, exercise, and nutrition support — factors that can significantly improve a person’s life. Whether through DBT treatment or other therapeutic approaches, our goal is to help individuals stabilize their emotions and strengthen their overall well-being.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is one of the most effective forms of psychotherapy for individuals with mental health conditions like borderline personality disorder. At Elevate Recovery Center, DBT is integrated into therapy sessions to help patients gain greater control over their emotions, reduce self-destructive behaviors, and improve their relationships.

Through DBT, patients learn key skills such as mindfulness, emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. These tools are particularly beneficial for individuals struggling with intense mood swings, impulsivity, or difficulty managing stress. DBT is often provided in both individual and group therapy formats, giving patients opportunities to apply these skills in supportive, real-world settings.

Combined with other therapeutic modalities, such as psychodynamic psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and trauma-informed care, DBT helps patients build a more stable emotional foundation and improve their overall mental health and quality of life.

We use multiple evidence-based therapy models to support lasting recovery from BPD. Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is central to many of our treatment plans, teaching skills such as mindfulness, emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. These tools help individuals manage mood swings, cope with stress, and navigate challenging situations more effectively.

Family Involvement For Adolescents, Adults, and Older Adults

Family involvement is a critical part of recovery at every age. For adolescents, it helps build self-esteem, provides social context for healing, and ensures consistency between home and treatment. In adults, family engagement can support the regulation of difficult emotions, boundary setting, and relapse prevention. For older adults, family therapy may help navigate long-standing relationship patterns, provide insight into generational trauma, and strengthen support systems during later stages of life.

At Elevate Recovery Center, we incorporate family therapy into treatment plans when appropriate, helping loved ones better understand borderline personality disorder (BPD) and intense emotions, work on relationship issues, and develop healthy coping strategies together. Family-focused care provided by compassionate professionals supports long-term recovery by reinforcing what’s learned in therapy and creating a stronger, more stable home environment.

Contact Elevate Recovery Center for Help With BPD Today

Borderline personality disorder can be incredibly disruptive to a person’s relationships, emotions, and overall well-being. Fortunately, with the right support, it’s possible to learn how to manage stress, regulate emotions, and respond more constructively to challenging situations. At Elevate Recovery Center, our clinical team has extensive experience helping individuals cope with emotional intensity, impulsivity, and other aspects of BPD. Using some of the most effective treatments available, we guide patients through each step of the recovery process, helping them build meaningful relationships and regain control of their lives.

If you’re ready to take the next step, we’re here to help you move forward with confidence. Contact us to take the first steps forward today.