The rise in mental health awareness has paradoxically brought about a wave of casualty and desensitisation — disorders are now slang words, used as casually as we would use adjectives. How often do we hear and make casual remarks such as “You’re acting so bipolar", “That’s Schizo Behaviour" or “His OCD was acting up lol"? Personality disorders in particular have strangely acquired an association of being “cool" or “unique" while the severity and day to day challenges are kept in the shadows, eating away at those who are clinically diagnosed.

Among personality disorders, Borderline Personality Disorder or (BPD) remains largely misunderstood and stigmatised, which creates conditions of compounded suffering for diagnosed individuals. BPD is a personality disorder characterised by emotional stability, stormy relationships, impulsive behaviour and an unstable sense of self. It is often confused with Bipolar Disorder; Bipolar Disorder is a Mood Disorder with long episodes of mania and depression (lasting weeks or months) with periods of stability in between, whereas Borderline Personality Disorder is marked by sudden and intense shifts in mood that can change on a daily or even hourly basis, making it far more volatile to deal with. BPD also includes a deep fear of abandonment, identity diffusion and interpersonal turbulence, causing persistent and profound distress.

During the prime years of personality development during adolescence and young adulthood, the emotional volatility in BPD can make socialisation and learning in educational settings, feel threatening.........

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