Overcoming Borderline Personality Disorder

A Family Guide for Healing and Change

By: Linda A. Dimeff PhD, Valerie Porr MA

Narrated by: Donna Postel

Length: 15 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

Overcoming Borderline Personality Disorder is a compassionate and informative guide to understanding this profoundly unsettling - and widely misunderstood - mental illness, believed to affect approximately six percent of the general population.

Rather than viewing people with BPD as manipulative opponents in a bitter struggle, or pitying them as emotional invalids, Valerie Porr cites cutting-edge science to show that BPD is a true neurobiological disorder and not, as many come to believe, a character flaw or the result of bad parenting. Porr then clearly and accessibly explains what BPD is, which therapies have proven effective, and how to rise above the weighty stigma associated with the disorder.

Offering families and loved ones supportive guidance that both acknowledges the difficulties they face and shows how they can be overcome, Porr teaches empirically-supported and effective coping behaviors and interpersonal skills, such as new ways of talking about emotions, how to be aware of nonverbal communication, and validating difficult experiences. These skills are derived from Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Mentalization-Based Therapy, two evidence-based treatments that have proven highly successful in reducing family conflict while increasing trust.

©2010 Valerie Porr (P)2017 Tantor

Amazing, gives answers to complex situation

Amazing, gives answers to complex situation . . . . . . . . .

A little intimidating

This helped me understand better; but, I didn't like that the person with BPD is said to be incompetent.
Narration was a little bit grating.

Complicated topic delivered w/superb coaching concepts

Allows you to guide your loved one in a way she can accept. Reenforces our own hurt, frustration and anger we feel with a partner with BPD ... while explaining her behavior without you having to accept and or enable them. Let’s “her be her” but with stability and a layered foundation with the hope they can or will change. Numerous good chapters ... especially 12 and 13! Stay with it.....to the end of the book! 😊. All the best in your journey!

Great for those with BPD too!

I have BPD, and I'm finding this book to be helpful. The explanation of how BPD is biologically based helps with some of the feelings of shame and self blame I have had problems with. I'm only part way through the book, but I can't wait to see what the rest of it has because even just the beginning has been so useful for me.

Some gems

A bit long and some parts repetitive (about having compassion for the loved one with BPD… you would think that a person came to a book for help because they already have compassion) I’m not saying cut this out completely, but it doesn’t need to take up such a large percentage of the book.
I found some of the examples of “typical” bpd behavior to be helpful and validating. I also liked some of the examples of how to navigate situations. However, I found some of the examples of to be maybe over-managing unless it’s a parent-child relationship

One of the most helpful books of the topic

As someone who spent my whole life not knowing what was wrong with me, I found this book to be very helpful in understanding my own reactions. My partner also has BPD, so this book was doubly helpful as it gave me many tools to understand what I need but also what she needs and to help our interactions be more productive.

More for parents of borderline children

Most of the examples assume a semi-patronizing tone that might be applicable to parents with borderline children, but offered little advice to people in other family relationships where the same tone/stance would be more patronizing.

Also, too full of anecdotes and mnemonics for my taste. In my opinion it would have been better to use that time to dive deeper into DBT.

Trash

Not worth the time or money. The book is more of a personal rant than what the title suggests. Disappointed especially when it is written “by” an MA and a PhD.

Tough read

This was a tough read. It offered little hope to the individual suffering from BPD. If you are looking to feel better about a diagnosis, this is not the book for you.

good explanation of BPD but not practical Solution

she did a good job explaining how the person with BPD feels and reacts. the book was not helpful because there were no practical solutions that people could use in day-to-day situations. understanding BPD won't help as much as knowing what to say and not to say