International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10)
The International Classification of Diseases (ICD) is published by the World Health Organization and included mental health disorders for the first time in 1948. The ICD-8 was implemented in 1968 and was descriptive and operational, but sported a confusing plethora of categories and allowed for rampant comorbidity. The ICD-10, the current version, was revolutionary and incorporated the outcomes of numerous collaborative studies and programs. However, an international study carried out in 112 clinical centers in 39 countries demonstrated that the ICD-10 is not a reliable diagnostic tool as far as personality disorders go.
Borderline Personality Disorder Patient Therapy Notes
Do is a 26-year-old female diagnosed with borderline personality disorder. She struggles with maintaining a stable sense of self-worth and self-esteem, and her confidence in holding onto men is low. She has had six serious relationships in the past year, all of which ended due to violent fights over trivial matters. Do admits to physically assaulting three of her ex-partners and has suicidal ideation, which sometimes manifests in minor acts of self-injury and self-mutilation. She also struggles with drug use, shopping addiction, and binge eating.
Brain Injury, Head Trauma, Personality Disorders
Head trauma can cause temporary narcissistic behaviors and traits, but it cannot induce a full-fledged personality disorder. People with brain injuries may acquire traits and behaviors typical of certain personality disorders, but head trauma never results in a long-term personality disorder. Medical conditions can activate a narcissistic defense mechanism, and certain disorders, like bipolar disorder, are characterized by mood swings that are not brought about by external events. The biochemistry of narcissistic personality disorder is not well understood, but there seems to be some vague link to serotonin.
Narcissists Hard to Spot
Narcissistic personality disorder is difficult to isolate with certainty, and it is important to distinguish between inherent traits and reactive patterns. Narcissism is considered pathological only when it becomes a rigid personality structure with primitive defense mechanisms and leads to dysfunctions in one or more areas of life. Pathological narcissism is the art of deception, and the narcissist projects a false self to manage social interactions. Victims of narcissists often find themselves involved before discovering the narcissist’s true nature, and the narcissist emits subtle signals even on a first or casual encounter.
Normal Personality and Personality Disorders
Personality is a complex pattern of deeply embedded psychological characteristics that are expressed automatically in almost every area of psychological function. Personality traits are enduring patterns of perceiving, relating to and thinking about the environment in oneself that are exhibited in a wide variety of social and personal contexts. Our temperament is the biological genetic template that interacts with our environment. Our character is largely the outcome of the process of socialization, the acts and imprints and edicts of our environment and nurture, and how they work on our psyche during the formative years, 0 to 6 and in other lists. Personality disorders are dysfunctions of our entire identity, tears in the fabric of who we are.
Narcissists Hate Women, Misogynists
Narcissists view women as objects and use them for both primary and secondary narcissistic supply. They fear emotional intimacy and treat women as property, similar to the mindset of European males in the 18th century. Narcissists frustrate women by teasing them and then leaving them, and they hold women in contempt, choosing submissive partners whom they disdain for being below their intellectual level. The narcissist projects his own behavior and traits onto women.
Narcissism: Multiple Personality Disorder/Dissociative Identity Disorder?
Narcissistic personality disorder is not a form of dissociative identity disorder (DID) because the false self of a narcissist is not a full-fledged personality, as happens in DID. The false self is a mere construct, a reactive pattern, and lacks many functional and structural elements. DID alters have a date of inception, but the false self is a process without a cut-off date. Narcissism is a total, pure solution of self-extinguishing and self-abolishing, while other personality disorders are diluted versions of self-hate and perpetuated self-abuse.
Schizoid and Paranoid Narcissist
Narcissistic personality disorder is often diagnosed with other mental health disorders, other personality disorders such as borderline, histrionic or antisocial. This phenomenon of multiple diagnosis in the same patient is called co-morbidity. Narcissists are often paranoid and some of them are schizoid. The narcissist depends on people, but hates them and despises them. A minority of narcissists choose the schizoid solution.
Narcissism Myths: Suicide, Types, Crises
Narcissists come in different types, with cerebral and somatic being the most common. All narcissists share certain traits, such as pathological lying and lack of empathy. Narcissists are not interested in people as such, but they love to have an audience as long as they provide them with narcissistic supply. Narcissists rarely commit suicide, but they react with suicidal ideation and reactive psychosis to severe stress. Narcissists prefer to find alternative sources of supply, and they are creative in doing so.
Abolish Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) in DSM V?
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) is criticized for its inadequate classificatory model and diagnostic criteria, which are vague and equivocal. The DSM-5 committee proposes to abolish some personality disorders and merge them into a single diagnostic category, using a dimensional approach that reflects reality better. The DSM-5 is expected to address the longitudinal course of disorders, genetic and biological underpinnings, and effectiveness of various treatments. The DSM-5 is expected to be a significant improvement over the DSM-4 in addressing personality disorders.