Dr. Marsha Linehan of the University of Washington in Seattle created a program that has been effective in treating Borderline Personality Disorder -- Dialectical Behavior Therapy. However, it's not an easy program for Borderlines to grasp and takes years to show positive results.
This month's American Journal of Psychiatry announced a new alternative psychotherapy treatment for Borderlines called mentalization based therapy (MBT). This new Borderline treatment focuses on helping an individual separate out what thoughts and feelings are theirs, and what thoughts and feelings are others'.
Now there's a concept. I used to tell my Borderline partner that he had screens over his ears. I would say one thing and he would react as if I had said something else -- and he'd be angry at what he thought I'd said. It was a no-win, crazy-making situation.
And trying to tell a Borderline that their perceptions aren't correct is like trying to tell a blind person that a lamp is on in the room. The Borderline simply can't see it. You said what you said -- or did what you did -- and the Borderline knows why you did it -- and you deserve the rage, you spawn of the devil.
The good news for Borderlines is that this MBT program actually is fairly successful, in much less time than DBT.
The Borderline program is 18 months of mentalization based therapy, followed by 18 months of maintenance mentalizing group therapy, for a total of three years worth of treatment.
Compared to how long it takes for DBT to take hold, this is good news.
Now if we can only convince our Borderlines that they need it . . . .
What do you think about this new treatment? Think it would work? Take a moment to comment below.
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