QUESTION:
Dear Dr. Heller,
I have a couple questions about Passive Aggressive Personality Disorder. A couple of months ago a military doctor told me I had PAPD. I have no idea what that is. Because of this I was discharged from the military. I have been trying to find out what it is on the web but have not had much luck. I have also been diagnosed with Boarderline Personality Disorder. Manic depressive disorder runs on my mom and dad's sides of the family. When I look up the symptoms, I seem to have a lot of them. Are they related? Can I ever get an accurate diagnosis? I was told I had BPD when I was 14. I was on Paxil for a while but was told I can get off of it. I am totally confused about all of this. I am only 18 years old. Could you please give some information.
Thank you.
ANSWER:
The official criteria are in the DSM IIIR, not the DSM IV. They can be found in my
first book "Life at the Border". It basically involves persistent hostility by
nonviolent means such as complaining that tasks are too hard or the individual
"forgot". I believe this diagnosis stems from a decision (usually made in
childhood) that "I'll get even with you, I'll stay mad at you the rest of
my life". Forgiveness is crucial to overcome this diagnosis.
There is no reason why an individual cannot have both the BPD and the passive aggressive
disorder. The BPD is a medical problem that needs medical treatment as well as counseling.
Bipolar (manic-depression) is likely more common in those with the BPD, and I believe both
are forms of epilepsy (nerve cells firing inappropriately and out of control).