Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD)

Antisocial personality disorder is a disorder that leads people to do harmful things without feeling remorse. Additionally, someone with antisocial personality disorder might be disrespectful, aggressive, impulsive, and/or manipulative. For people with this condition, this often leads to them hurting the people around them, which can lead to issues maintaining relationships.

The symptoms of antisocial personality disorder are:

Physical aggression toward others
Reckless or impulsive behavior
Disregarding rules and norms (including laws)
Feelings of anger or superiority
Manipulative tendencies
Lack of responsibility for actions
Lack of remorse.

Antisocial personality disorder often leads to other issues such as substance use disorder, abuse, and suicide.

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)

Those with borderline personality disorder often have dramatic mood shifts, difficulty managing their emotions, and trouble maintaining relationships. Additionally, borderline personality disorder often leads to self-harming and suicidal behavior.

Symptoms of borderline personality disorder are:

Fear of abandonment
Unstable or intense relationships
Unstable sense of self
Rapid mood changes
Reckless behavior
Repeated self-harm or suicidal behavior
Persistent feelings of emptiness
Issues managing anger
Temporary paranoid thoughts

Often, people with borderline personality disorder will not realize that there are healthier ways to relate to others, which can often necessitate therapy so they can live their lives to the fullest.

Histrionic Personality Disorder (HPD)

People with histrionic personality disorder generally have a distorted self-image, a strong desire for others' attention, and a lack of stability in their emotional state. This will often lead them to behave in ways that are aimed at being noticed, such as wearing flashy clothing or doing something inappropriate for the situation. Aligned with this, the self-esteem of people with histrionic personality disorder depends entirely on others' views of them, which can lead to difficulties in maintaining relationships.

The symptoms of histrionic personality disorder are:

Feelings of discomfort when not the center of attention
Seductive or provocative behavior
Unstable and shallow emotions
Use of appearance and speech to draw attention
Dramatic emotions
Being easily suggestible
Considering one's relationships deeper than they are

Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD)

Narcissistic personality disorder is characterized by how it affects the way people with it see themselves, and how that results in them treating themself and those around them. It can be particularly dangerous because these views can make them struggle with feeling rejection or failure. It often means that those with it will have an unhealthy drive to make themself feel and seem important or skillful.

The symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder are:

An exaggerated sense of self-importance
Fantasies of having or deserving things like power or beauty
Belief in superiority
Need for admiration
Sense of entitlement
Willingness to exploit others
Lack of empathy
Frequent envy and arrogance

Cluster C Personality Disorders

Avoidant Personality Disorder (AVPD)

Those with avoidant personality disorder have an extreme fear of rejection and often have a lack of self-esteem. These things often lead people with avoidant personality disorder to avoid social interaction out of fear that they will experience these feelings. Though this may sound very similar to social anxiety disorder, avoidant personality disorder does not necessarily involve feelings of anxiety around social situations; it's more centered around having low self-esteem.

Symptoms of avoidant personality disorder can be grouped under:

Poor self-image
Overwhelming concern about criticism or disapproval
Reluctance to get involved with others
Extreme anxiety in social settings
Fear-driven self-consciousness in social settings
Tendency to exaggerate negativity
Reluctance to try new things

This can make it incredibly difficult for those with avoidant personality disorder to form relationships, as their fears will often drive them away from those around them.

Dependent Personality Disorder (DPD)

Those with dependent personality disorder feel that they lack the ability to make choices without outside assistance, sometimes even about minor decisions. Often, they will feel helpless, unable to take care of themselves, and submissive. Often, they will have trouble making everyday decisions, like what they want to wear for the day or what to eat for breakfast, if they don't have anyone to reassure them. People with dependent personality disorder are also more likely to have difficulties in their relationships, and other mental health conditions, and even have a higher likelihood of experiencing abuse.

The symptoms of dependent personality disorder are:

Difficulty making everyday decisions
Starting tasks without others' reassurance
Intense fear of not being able to take care of themselves
Doing things they're uncomfortable with to receive others' support
Needing others to take responsibility for parts of their life
Avoiding conflict in relationships
Feeling uncomfortable when alone

Obsessive–Compulsive Personality Disorder (OCPD)

Thought to be the most common of personality disorders, obsessive-compulsive personality disorder is characterized by an overwhelming desire for organization, perfectionism, and control. This desire for control can lead those with obsessive-compulsive personality disorder to try to control the people around them, the situations they're in, and even themselves. Note that obsessive-compulsive personality disorder is different from obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD); those with OCD experience obsessions (frequent intrusive thoughts) and respond to them with compulsions (repetitive behaviors), and people with OCPD don't have to experience either of those.

Symptoms of obsessive-compulsive personality disorder can be grouped into:

Actions or beliefs that can't be easily overcome
Oversensitivity to criticism and failure in themselves and others
Need for complete control and order
Excessive doubt and indecisiveness
Perfectionism
Excessive dedication to productivity

Diagnosis of Personality Disorders

Diagnosing personality disorders can be difficult, as those with personality disorders will often not realize anything is wrong with their behaviors. This means that, when someone with a personality disorder seeks help for their mental health, it is likely because of a secondary condition like anxiety or depression, or from issues that stemmed from their personality disorder. People with personality disorders also often get referred to receive help from those around them, who have a better sense of the issues caused by the behaviors of those with personality disorders.

To diagnose someone with a personality disorder, mental health professionals will often ask questions about areas in which their personality disorder might have impacted them, such as in work or relationships. Additionally, they will often consult the people around the person with the personality disorder, including their family and friends, to determine how the disorder may have affected others. Mental health professionals might also evaluate the physical and mental health of the person with the personality disorder, and may additionally compare their symptoms to the standards of the American Psychiatric Association. They also might refer the person getting a diagnosis to cognitive and personality testing to determine the way they think of the world.

Despite this wide variety of methods, it can be incredibly difficult to test for personality disorders. There is a lot of overlap between symptoms of different personality disorders, and personality disorders can often be overshadowed by things like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, or anxiety. This has led personality disorders to be widely underdiagnosed.

ID: Two men sit in a therapy session, the therapist sitting in a chair and the patient lying on a couch. The therapist takes notes on a clipboard.

Seeking Help

If you believe that you or someone around you may have a personality disorder, it's important to seek help, as personality disorders can cause harm if untreated. Trust Mental Health is an organization dedicated to providing therapy that is sensitive to your experiences and background. With therapists from a range of different cultures and therapy in eighteen different languages, you can be certain to find someone who will understand you for who you are.

Therapists at Trust Mental Health are well-prepared to meet you or the person you are referring to on the journey to living a fulfilling life with a personality disorder. With skills in dialectical and cognitive behavioral therapy, these therapists can help you manage the ways in which your personality disorder might impact your life.

3 Key Points:

Personality disorders are characterized by 'long-lasting, disruptive patterns of thinking, behavior, mood and relating to others'.
There are ten different personality disorders, which can be grouped into Cluster A personality disorders (described by eccentric or unusual behaviors), Cluster B personality disorders (described by dramatic or erratic behaviors), and Cluster C personality disorders (described by feelings of severe anxiety or fear).
Diagnosing personality disorders can be very difficult because of a multitude of different factors, but there are many methods for diagnosis

FAQs:

What causes personality disorders?

There has not been enough research into personality disorders to determine their exact causes. However, research has determined that factors that might contribute to the development of personality disorders are genetics, changes in the brains of those with personality disorders, abuse or trauma in childhood, and cultural factors.

How long have we known personality disorders are a thing?

Personality disorders have actually been theorized about as early as ancient Greece, at which point they were categorized as abnormal personalities according to the classifications Greek doctors applied via humoral theory (studies of how different 'fluids' within people's bodies affected their temperament). However, it wasn't until the late 18- and early 1900s that European psychologists developed systems of understanding personality types as 'normal' and 'abnormal'. These were classified based on certain factors and hypothesized to be a result of childhood experiences. In the mid-1900s, statistics were applied to these personality types, allowing us to develop our understanding of personality disorders to what it is today.

What is the most diagnosed personality disorder?

Borderline personality disorder and antisocial personality disorder are diagnosed a relatively equal amount, which is the most out of any personality disorder. However, obsessive-compulsive personality disorder is currently hypothesized to be the most common personality disorder in the United States, with between 3 and 8% of the population being thought to have it. These statistics do change between countries, however; for instance, in Norway, research determined that avoidant personality disorder was the most common.

Personality Disorders: An Overview