BPD Ptsd vs bpd

[Hojay]

I am a little fuzzy on the symptoms displayed in PTSD vs Borderline Personality Disorder.

PTSD, especially of the complex variety, seems to display itself a lot like BPD: anger, raging, quick mood changes, panic attacks, secrecy, isolation vs fear of abandonment, controlling one's environment to minimize stressors. These are generalizations, of course. Not everyone with PTSD displays those things, but they are common symptoms I've come across on this forum.

BPD looks to have all of the above symptoms, excluding, as far as I've understood, the flashback element.

I guess the cause of these two disorders may be a great distinction, though from what I've read, BPD is usually caused by some sort of trauma as well...

Well, I know none of us are diagnosticians, but maybe someone can shed some light on distinctive symptoms?

I'm merely curious, not trying to diagnose anyone. Diagnosing a cluster of symptoms like BPD seems a bit of a reach to me, so just trying to get some insight. Thank you!

 

[EveHarrington]

Bipolar moods happen because of a chemical imbalance.

Not necessarily so with PTSD mood swings.

Believe you me, I’ve had to educate a lot of people about this.

I’m VERY suceptible to mood swings but they are ALWAYS due to outside influences. People say my excitement is mania. (Not even close.)

 

[Hojay]

Ugh, yes, I can imagine how frustrating it is to have to constantly educate people about something you live with every day. Thank you for your input! The chemical imbalance makes a lot of sense. It seems independent largely of time and circumstance.

Any insight on the same question but regarding PTSD vs Borderline? Maybe I should start a new thread for that?

 

[Sideways]

Bipolar is a mood disorder and while brain chemisty is one potential cause, so are genetics, hormones and environmental factors (such as abuse!).

The big difference between bipolar and ptsd is the centrality of mood to bipolar. It’s not really mood swings, like you get with ptsd. It’s far more extreme swings between deep depression and mania, and mania is much much different than just ‘elevated mood’. The ‘swings’ in mood aren’t back and forth like you might get with PTSD, where a trigger may snap a person into a sudden mood. With bipolar, the mood changes persist for long periods of time without respite.

The list of ‘symptoms’ you’ve noted (anger, raging, quick mood changes, panic attacks, secrecy, isolation vs fear of abandonment,controlling one's environment to minimizestressors.) are not particularly synonymous with bipolar. In fact, raging, quick mood changes, panic attacks, secrecy, control and minimising stressors don’t really have anything to do with bipolar...at all.

 

[Hojay]

Thank you @Ragdoll Circus. You're right to point out that those symptoms have nothing to do with bipolar. That's because I, silly goose, was writing bipolar instead of borderline the whole time. I kept thinking "BPD, don't write bipolar, same short, VERY different disorder, don't write bipolar." What did I do? Write bipolar throughout. What I meant to ask was the symptomatic discrepancies between PTSD and borderline. I'm sorry to have wasted your and Eve's time. It's late where I live...it's been quite a day. :(

 

[shimmerz]

Bipolar, Borderline and PTSD - What's the difference?

 

[Friday]

@Hojay You can hit report post, or open a help ticket, and ask that the title be changed from Bipolar to Borderline.

 

[Sideways]

@Hojay Lol, my dog had me up at 4am this morning and I could just have easily done exactly the same thing!

 

[Hojay]

@shimmerz thank you for that article! I'll give it a good read and also google some more.
@Friday good idea, I'll open a help ticket and have the title changed!
@Ragdoll Circus hehe, puppies, gotta love 'em even at 4 am. I'm rarely this tired, but when I am, I seem to like to confuse major psychiatric disorders.

Apologies!

 

[Lucycat]

I was diagnosed with CPTSD here in Scotland. But from the out, my therapist told me if I lived elsewhere I might get the diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder. He describes the symptoms as the same. Both stemming from trauma. But 'Borderline' is less acceptable and to some, considered untreatable. I would rather wear the label of CPTSD. I have had treatment and can cope far better than before. I accept that cure is not an option, but that is true for many disorders.

 

[EveHarrington]

Not everyone with borderline has a traumatic past.

 

[lostforgottensoul]

I am a little fuzzy on the symptoms displayed in PTSD vs Borderline Personality Disorder.

I have both PTSD & BPD and will be advising of my experience and my experience alone.

PTSD, especially of the complex variety, seems to display itself a lot like BPD: anger, raging, quick mood changes, panic attacks, secrecy, isolation vs fear of abandonment, controlling one's environment to minimize stressors. These are generalizations, of course. Not everyone with PTSD displays those things, but they are common symptoms I've come across on this forum.

They do indeed have a lot of cross over symptoms and many times I cannot tell if something is a PTSD thing or a BPD thing. Many times it doesn't matter as it's a synptom that I am working on. Other times it helps to know what sort of concepts to apply. But mostly it doesn't matter as many PTSD things help BPD and visa versa.

PTSD is more of a hyper arrousal. Being in fight/flight/fear mode all of the time. Thus why you have a lot of what you are describing. With being hyper arroused 24/7 can come rage, quick mood changes, for me a constant state of annoyance. Isolation, for me, is a PTSD alone thing. As is panic attacks.

BPD, on the other hand, is a deregulation of emotions. Emotions (all emotions) are dialed to their most extreme. Anger becomes rage (and for me blind rage explosions), sadness becomes suicidal thoughts. I am sure happiness is dialed causing some hyper arrousal but I have only experienced bad emotions (anger, sadness, those types of emotions) dialed up. But deregulation of emotions is the best way to describe BPD for me. This is why DBT is such a great therapy for BPD. For me anyway. It helps you regulate those dialed up emotions. Seriquel XR (extended release) 200mg has been a godsend for me for those dialed up emotions. It deadens them and makes them more even. Not on a normal level but much closer. So I am not riding the extreme emotional roller coaster near as much.

My therapist says I am not the "typical BPDer", though, as most are very manipulative. I have been told I was being maniluptive but it was never conscience and I am sure that was BPD but I am not manipulative on the level that a "typical BPDer" is. So, that is why I am thinking if the DSM follows the ICD with CPTSD, both diagnosis will be dropped and CPTSD put into it's place as the "complex" part holds the deregulation piece of it. So, this is how they can relate.

But, that's my best explanation of how they differ. But, they have many cross over symptoms and it can be confusing.