MHM Magazine

22 | MENTAL HEALTH MATTERS | Issue 1 | 2022 MHM Practitioners are often called upon to identify and refer patients to specialist mental health services for more serious conditions, such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. This can be a daunting prospect for GPs with limited knowledge of mental health and one of the most challenging and misunderstood conditions is personality disorder (PD). An individual’s personality can refer to the collection of characteristics or traits that develop as we grow up and which make each of us an individual. These include the ways we think, feel and behave. By the time we reach our early twenties, many of us have developed some sense of our own personality. We have our own ways of thinking, feeling and behaving. These patterns of relating to ourselves and the world usually remain consistent over our life and across different environments. In a small percentage of people, parts of their personality develop in ways which make it difficult for them to live with themselves and/or other people. Their ability to learn from their experience and adjust based on things that happen to them is limited. Some of these patterns of behaviour may have been present from childhood and early teens. For example, they may find it difficult to: • Make or keep close relationships • Get on with people at work • Get on with friends and family • Keep out of trouble • Control their feelings or behaviour • Listen to other people Life can feel more difficult for people who have a personality disorder and so they’re more likely to have other mental health problems such as depression, anxiety and/or substance abuse problems. The extremes of behaviours seen in people with personality disorders is something we can all recognise and identify in ourselves, but these traits are amplified in patients with personality disorders. This can sometimes present as a challenge in treatment when the comorbidities are focused on and the underlying personality disorder is missed or undiagnosed. It can also be difficult to determine whether a trait has reached the realm of disordered or is part of typical functioning. The specific symptoms vary depending on the type of personality By Cassandra Govender Clinical Psychologist London, United Kingdom cassy.g@hotmail.co.za PERSONALITY DISORDERS THE ABC OF