Ask a therapist > Diseases & Personality Disorders > Would mood stabilizers be helpful for someone suffering from BPD along with DBT?

Would mood stabilizers be helpful for someone suffering from BPD along with DBT?

While I haven’t been medically diagnosed with BPD, I have been doing a lot of research on it over this past month and have found that I align with the majority of the symptoms commonly present in someone with BPD. I have diagnosed chronic depression, ADHD, and anxiety but up until I read more into BPD I always felt there was something else going on that I couldn’t explain. I felt like something clicked when I read more into borderline personality disorder. It was like unlocking a realization of a part of myself that I could finally pin down and make sense of why. I’ve been seeing a therapist about once a month for about 5 years. However, I feel like once a month is not enough. But my therapist has a large clientele and gets booked out really fast so it’s almost impossible to get more sessions. I’ve been struggling a lot recently. I just got terminated from barber school for poor attendance, my part time job has been struggling to keep up with a recent company wide raise that now affects scheduling because they don’t have enough money for everyone. So I need to get a new job, and I’m scared to tell my mom that I got dropped from barber school (I’m 22 still living at home with my parents which is a whole other can of worms) anyways... This year has definitely started off rough but I know I can push through it. I just need some extra help right now. Sorry this was so long, but it was kind of therapeutic in a way being able to type out what’s going on. I’m looking forward to hearing from a counselor soon! Thanks

Asked by B

Diseases & Personality Disorders

Answered

01/23/2021

Hello B,

I'll be happy to address your question about use of medications as part of treatment for borderline personality disorder.

Sometimes mood stabilizers can be helpful to individuals with borderline personality disorder. This is because people with BPD often have intense mood swings that they have trouble controlling and that cause problems for themselves and others. You don't say if you've ever tried antidepressant medications. Most doctors will try antidepressants first before adding in or switching to mood stabilizers because antidepressants also have some mood stabilizing effects, and certainly help chronic depression. It would be best to see a psychiatrist or psychiatric APRN (Advanced Practice Registered Nurse) for a complete assessment and discussion of what medications might be helpful to you. You would need to call your health insurance company & find out what psychiatrists or APRNs are taking new patients in your area. It may take awhile to get in as these professionals have large caseloads. While most family doctors feel comfortable prescribing antidepressants, they tend to refer out if other classes of psychiatric medications are involved due to the expertise required. So if you think you may need mood stabilizers in the future, it's probably best to establish a relationship with a psychiatric prescriber now.

Five years is a long time to stick with therapy. Kudoes to you for doing everything that you can to help yourself grow and develop. If you feel that once per month isn't enough for you, you could investigate trying a different therapist who can see you more frequently. While I don't treat persons with BPD online, there are many therapists who do. You can also do some self-help by looking up materials on Dialectic Behavior Therapy which is the best evidence-based treatment for BPD right now. There are a lot of YouTube videos on DBT and you could start there. While medications can take the edge off dealing with borderline personality disorder, the major treatment is therapy incuding learning skills for self-soothing, emotional regulation, learning to tolerate uncomfortable feelings, managing impulsivity, etc. There are some places that have intensive outpatient DBT programs, but I am not sure where these might be in Utah, and all insurances vary in what services they cover.

Wishing you the best. Kim Walsh, PsyD, MSCP

Dr. Kimberly Walsh

Psychologist