QUESTION:

I have been in therapy for years. I haven't practiced self-mutilation behavior in 2 years--in spite of situations that could certainly lead me to it. One thing I would point out--when I was my sickest I did not feel like a person. I would have described myself as a BPD, a walking diagnosis. Now I am a person with BPD. It is a small, but very important distinction. There is enough bias against us from outside without us adding to it ourselves.

DR. HELLER'S ANSWER:

I admire what you've done. I couldn't agree more about what you wrote regarding the bias. I disagree with you however on one point: it's not a small distinction - it's a huge and vital one. I spend so much of my time telling people that they aren't BPD or aren't ADD any more than they aren't pneumonia or strep throat, but they have them.

What's exciting for you is because of your understanding regarding this issue you are moving dramatically forward in your recovery. It's very hard to recover from something you are, but possible to recover from something you have!

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