BPD child and gender abuse

BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER AND GENDERED ABUSE: PATHOLOGIZING WOMEN'S RESPONSES TO OPPRESSION Student’s Name Institution of Affiliation Course Instructor Date Introduction Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), which was described in the DSM-III in 1980, is a multifaceted illness this paper is going to consider involving emotional dysregulation and self-identity issues. More than three-quarters of BPD patients are women, and this has raised many eyebrows over the possibility of selective gender diagnosis. Previous studies have also shown that abuse is significantly related to BPD and that negative earlier experiences may play a part in forming BPD. This essay seeks to ask whether BPD may be over-pathologizing some of the ways women are responding to gendered abuse and systematic oppression. It concerns itself with the question of whether the criteria for diagnosing BPD could pathologize women's responses to trauma. Thus, discussing the fields of gender, trauma, and BPD and their coverage in contemporary culture and diagnostics, the essay seeks to contribute to the comprehension of how women with BPD are seen and treated. Historical and Diagnostic Context of BPD The Evolution of BPD Diagnosis Diagnosis of BPD has grown in different ways since its inception in 1980 with the help of DSM-III concerning other global shifts in mental health models, gender perspective, and understanding of trauma. Originally, BPD represented a group of patients with such syndromes that failed to be classified according to the existing, rather strict diagnostic criteria and occupied the intermediate area between neurosis and psychosis (Perrotta, 2020). In DSM-III, BPD was described with criteria reflecting affective and behavioral impulsivity and unstable interpersonal relationships and self-image. This operationalized definition was more definite than the earlier, undefined descriptions of personality disorders. Nevertheless, the descriptive sanity of the DSM-III did not grapple with the fact that female patients comprise over 70% of all BPD patients (Lambert, 2020). This created a discursive possibility about whether the criteria constituted might pathologize female responses to trauma. In the DSM-III-R published in 1987, more detailed descriptions were given while retaining the core criteria, and again, not much attention was given to the gender split. The version published in 1994, the DSM-IV, aimed at correcting the previous mistakes regarding personality disorders by adopting a richer paradigm. It enriched the diagnostic criteria by including early trauma and problems with attachment to parents, but the representation of men remained insufficient. Diagnostic criteria persisted in their criticism for potentially medicalizing signs of women's reaction to trauma. Many clinicians and researchers began to pay attention to the question of how the experience of being a woman or coping with trauma might interact with the course of BPD. In the early twenty-oughts, there was a move towards more trauma-informed approaches to diagnosis. The DSM-IV-TR (Criterion Text Revision), published in the year 2000, drew attention to the consideration of trauma in the context of personality disorders (Sefa, 2020). However, it made no massive change to the criteria for BPD. The latest version of DSM, the DSM-5, published in 2013, made significant changes regarding the characterization of PDs, including BPD. This was dimensional rather than categorical, acknowledging the normal and abnormal personality range. That is why the authors of DSM-5 did not transform BPD's most central features significantly but offered clinicians a more versatile approach to assessing personality disorders. This change recognized that symptoms of BPD were multiple and nuanced, requiring a form of treatment that was not one size fits all. The diagnostic criteria may still be gendered and do not consider the role of oppression and trauma in women's mental health. There is a push towards further research that is more intersectional, and this considers how abuse that is gendered and other aspects of society might have played a role in the BPD's development or manifestation. Gender Disparities in BPD Diagnosis Gender disparities in the diagnosis of BPD have raised concerns for a long time, while more than 70% of people who receive this diagnosis are women. The mentioned gaps brought to question whether some of the criteria for diagnosing BPD are gendered patterns in response to trauma and oppression of women. Most of the BPD symptoms, including mood swings, acting impulsively, and being in conflict with others, are frequently regarded as stereotypically 'feminine,' so women are more likely to be diagnosed (Glover, 2021). A study done on women with BPD showed that they have a significantly higher history of childhood trauma like physical, sexual, and emotional abuse than men with the same disorder. This apparent link between trauma histories and BPD diagnosis suggests that the disorder might at least in part represent women's ability to survive the ongoing effects of gendered violence. Some scholars' opinion is that BPD diagnosis can reinforce these trauma-related reactions, as in the Western culture, women's suffering is frequently silenced or devalued. On the other hand, men may have tendencies of underdiagnosis of BPD or wrong diagnosis of other disorders such as ASPD due to unjustified expectations from the male sex role on the aspects of emotions and Interpersonal conduct. This further shows how there might be bias in the diagnostic process insofar as men and women with similar deeper psychological issues might report in gendered ways that result in diagnoses that are different. The male-predominant nature of BPD diagnosis proves that the current mental health treatment is insufficiently trauma-sensitive and gender-inclusive. The Relationship Between Childhood Abuse and BPD Evidence Linking Childhood Abuse to BPD The connection between the experience of abuse during childhood and BPD has been researched and proved, showing that it is highly likely that abuse can cause BPD. Childhood physical, sexual, and emotional abuse are usually seen as essential precursors in people diagnosed with BPD. This association speaks volumes about how early trauma serves as a blueprint when it comes to emotional and psychological well-being and should logically make us question the ways BPD is both defined and, subsequently, implemented in clinical practice. According to the research done, several studies show that clients with BPD have high levels of long-term Child Abuse as compared to other clients. Steele et al. (2019) documented the details of a meta-analysis that revealed that up to 30-90% of people with BPD had histories of abuse or neglect as children. This high prevalence indicates that childhood abuse is not an additional contributing factor but rather a pivotal factor that forms the basis of the development of the disorder. The symptoms such as emotional dysregulation, unstable sense of self, and fear of abandonment of BPD may indeed stem from trauma reactions that resulted from chronic abuse during childhood. Such a correlation proves the role of trauma-sensitive treatment in addressing BPD and, therefore, the necessity of further development and implementation of such an approach. This is why many symptoms of BPD are considered signs of defense strategies that the person built up in reaction to the constant emotional suffering as a result of childhood trauma, including self-harm, mood swings, and difficulties in interpersonal relationships (Perrotta, 2020). The effects carried by trauma on neurobiology are hence noteworthy when noting that the adverse effects of childhood abuse are said to impune the alteration of the brain structures, with particular emphasis on the functions concerning emotions and stress. This implies that any form of abuse, whether physical, emotional, or sexual, defines behavior and may affect the development of the brain and thus confuse the already complex issue of emotion and psychological health. Theoretical Models The psychodynamic model is one of the vital theories that have been employed in an attempt to understand the correlation between childhood abuse and BPD. This model proposes that early trauma leads to a break in the formation processes of the cohesive self-structu...