QUESTION:

What is the Borderline Personality Disorder?

DR. HELLER'S ANSWER:

In my opinion it is a form of epilepsy - brain cells firing inappropriately and out of control - in the brain's "cornered animal response" limbic system area. There is a chronic instability causing inappropriate mood swings, chronic anger, emptiness, boredom, emotional pain, and rejection sensitivity. This is likely due to problems in the serotonin neurotransmitter system and improves with serotonin increasing medications like Prozac and other SSRI's.

Under stress the limbic system goes into "hyperdrive" and the individual's brain misinterprets reality. They misinterpret motives, jump to the wrong conclusions, develop dysphoria (anxiety, rage, depression and despair), paranoia and if the seizure spreads to the temporal lobes cause dissociative symptoms like deja vu, unreality, etc. This is likely due to abnormalities in the dopamine system and responds to dopamine blocking medications, which I generally prescribe as needed.

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