Does Angelina Jolie have a Personality Disorder?
By
PsychReel
This blog will cover topics like Angelina Jolie’s personality disorder, what are personality disorders, borderline personality disorder, symptoms of BPD, and different ways to cope with BPD along with answers to frequently asked questions.
Does Angelina Jolie have a Personality Disorder?
Yes, Angelina Jolie seems to have Borderline personality disorder but before we delve deep into Angelina Jolie’s mental health-related struggles and her borderline personality disorder, we need to understand what are personality disorders.
What are personality disorders?
Personality refers to how a person thinks, feels, and acts in ways that set them apart from others. Our personalities are deeply influenced by our experiences, environmental factors, genetic material, etc. The personality of an individual is known to be rather consistent over time.
A personality disorder refers to the issues in thought patterns, emotions, and actions that fall out of the spectrum of acceptable cultural and social norms and causes distress or impairment in functioning, relationships, and other aspects of life over time.
People with personality disorders often face trouble with their perceptions of situations and this impacts their work, relationships, studies, etc.
You might not recognize you have a personality disorder since your style of thinking and acting appears natural to you. You may also blame others for your difficulties.
Personality disorders typically start in adolescence or early adulthood. Personality disorders come in many forms. During middle age, some types may become less noticeable.
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a condition that leads to difficulty in regulating emotions. People with BPD may behave in an erratic manner. They seem unable to create and maintain connections. People with BPD often act in an impulsive manner and can also engage in self-harming behaviors. People with a history of childhood trauma are more likely to develop BPD.
You may have a strong fear of abandonment or instability if you have borderline personality disorder, and you may find it difficult to tolerate being alone. Even if you wish to have meaningful and lasting relationships, excessive anger, impulsiveness, and frequent mood swings may push others away.
It’s also worth noting that BPD is rather common. BPD affects about 1.6 percent of the adult population in the United States, but the number might be as high as 5.9 percent, with women accounting for over 75 percent of those diagnosed.
Signs and symptoms of BPD
Although borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms can manifest in a variety of ways, mental health professionals have identified a few typical ones. Furthermore, the symptoms must have been present for a long period (usually since puberty) and influence a wide range of aspects of your life.
Few common symptoms of BPD are listed below:
- Abandonment issues
People with BPD are frequently scared of being abandoned or alone. Even seemingly insignificant situations might generate major worry, such as a loved one arriving home late from work or departing for the weekend. This can lead to desperate attempts to maintain contact with the other person. You could beg, cling, start fights, track your loved one’s location, or even physically stop them from leaving. This behaviour, unfortunately, has the unintended consequence of driving others away.
- Relationship issues
Individuals with BPD face issues with respect to their relationships with others and also relationships with themselves. They often report feeling either extremely amazing relationships or terrible ones with no in-between which is due to their extreme swings from an idealization of the other person to extreme anger or hatred for the other person.
- Unstable sense of self
People with BPD do not have a stable sense of self. There are issues with their self-concept and they might feel great about themselves at time but also dislike themselves. They are often confused about what they reay want with respect to their life. They also tend to change careers, sexual orietnations, values, religious faiths, lovers, friends, etc.
- Self-destructive behaviors
People with BPD are known to have erratic behaviors which also include dangerous and reckless actions like splurging their money, eating uncontrollably, rash driving, unsafe sex, substance use, alcohol, etc.
- Unstable mood
BPD also results in mood swings and extreme shifts of emotions. A person with BPD might feel great one minute and really down in the dumps the next minute. Things that seem small and insignificant to others might mean a lot to people with BPD and bring up an extreme emotional response.
- Feelings of emptiness on a regular basis –
People with BPD frequently describe themselves as feeling empty, as if they have a hole or void inside them. You may feel as if you’re “nothing” or “nobody” at its most extreme, which is unsettling, so you may try to fill the gap with drugs, food, or sex. Nothing, though, feels completely satisfactory.
Causes of borderline personality disorder
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is thought to be caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors, according to doctors. BPD can be caused by a variety of factors, including:
- Traumatic experiences
People who have been sexually, emotionally, or physically abused are more likely to develop BPD. Neglect, mistreatment, or being separated from a parent are all factors that increase the risk.
- Genetics
Borderline personality disorder is a genetic condition that runs in families. You’re more prone to get BPD if you have a family history of it.
- Brain differences
The regions of the brain that control emotion and behaviour don’t communicate effectively in people with BPD. These issues have an impact on how the brain functions.
How to diagnose BPD?
There is no medical test that can confirm a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder (BPD). To rule out health disorders that could be causing your symptoms, your provider may do a physical check or request a blood test. After many discussions with you, healthcare providers diagnose BPD. Your healthcare professional may also speak with members of your family or friends.
Questions regarding your symptoms, relationships, activities, and mental health history will be asked throughout the interviews. BPD is frequently associated with other mental health issues. Your healthcare physician will collaborate with you to gain a complete picture of your symptoms and overall health.
Coping with BPD
Calm the raging emotions
You’ve undoubtedly spent a lot of time fighting your instincts and feelings as someone with BPD, so acceptance might be difficult to comprehend. Accepting your feelings, however, does not imply that you approve of them or that you are willing to suffer. It simply means that you cease fighting, avoiding, suppressing, or denying your feelings. Allowing oneself to feel these emotions can take away a lot of their potency. Try to simply feel your emotions without judging or criticising them. Allow the past and future to fade away and concentrate solely on the present now. Mindfulness techniques can be very effective in this regard.
Engage in an activity that engages one or more of your senses
One of the quickest and easiest ways to self-soothe is to engage your senses. To figure out which sensory-based stimulation works best for you, you’ll have to explore. You’ll also want various tactics for various emotions. When you’re furious or upset, what works for you may not work for you when you’re numb or depressed. For example, running your hands through hot or cold water can stimulate your touch sensation, consuming mint candies can help with the taste sensation, etc.
Reducing emotional vulnerability
When you’re tired and stressed, you’re more prone to experience negative emotions. As a result, it’s critical to look after your physical and mental health.
How to Take care of yourself?
You can take care of yourself by doing the following:
Drugs that alter your mood should be avoided.
Eating a healthful, well-balanced diet.
Getting a good night’s sleep.
Regular exercise is essential.
Seek mental health interventions and therapy to deal with it.
Relaxation techniques are used to reduce stress.
Control your impulsivity and learn to cope with stress
It’s critical to understand that impulsive activities have a purpose. They’re coping techniques for overcoming adversity. Even if it’s only for a small moment, they make you feel better. However, the long-term costs are enormous.
Learning to handle distress is the first step toward regaining control of your conduct. It’s the key to reversing BPD’s damaging behaviours. When you feel the need to act out, your ability to tolerate distress will help you put it on hold. Instead of self-destructive habits in response to challenging emotions, you will learn to ride them out while remaining in control of the situation.
If you’re facing this, it may be a good idea to seek the help of a therapist or other mental health professional. You can find a therapist at BetterHelp who can help you learn how to cope and address it.
Angelina Jolie has Borderline Personality Disorder and other mental health issues
When we say you are not alone in your battle with borderline personality disorder, we actually mean it. One of the most popular Hollywood celebrities, Angelina Jolie voluntarily approached a psychiatric center because she was experiencing both suicidal and homicidal symptoms.
On our screens, Jolie seems like a powerful, talented, young woman who is perfect in all ways. But she herself has revealed that she is just like us. There are times when she doesn’t feel strong. Before she sought help, she was irresponsible and her relationships were volatile. As mentioned above, traumatic childhood experiences are one of the causes of BPD. Jolie grew up with an estranged father. Angelina’s mother thought she looked too much like the man who abandoned her, therefore she rarely provided her care and compassion, placing her in the care of numerous nannies and babysitters throughout her childhood. Angelina also mentions having obsessive crushes and doing drugs. Borderline personality disorder manifests itself in two ways: substance addiction and dependency on others.
Seeking professional help has helped Jolie to lead a normal life and have a good and long-term marriage with Brad Pitt. also, she has become a representative of mental health and awareness and she shares her experiences with people who might be going through the same thing.
Conclusion
When you’re diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, you’ve taken the first step toward managing your symptoms.
Your doctor will communicate with you to create a treatment plan that enhances your quality of life while minimizing your symptoms to the greatest extent possible. This may take some time and several modifications, so be patient and keep your doctor informed about your progress.
Surround yourself with people who will support you and learn everything you can about BPD so that you may take actions to improve your mental health.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs): Does Angelina Jolie have a Personality Disorder?
Do those who suffer from BPD have empathy?
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is characterised by emotional fragility, impulsivity, low mood, intensely unstable personal relationships, and, according to a few studies, heightened empathy.
What does a BPD episode look like?
Each episode lasts anything from a few hours to a few days, and the moods are intense and very variable. Feelings of emptiness on a regular basis. Anger that is inappropriate, severe, or difficult to control. Paranoid ideas brought on by stress.
What is splitting in borderline personality disorder?
Splitting is a psychological strategy that allows a person to cope with tough and overwhelming emotions by viewing others as good or bad, idealised or discounted. This makes it easier for them to manage their emotions, which at first appear to be contradictory.
What is a BPD relationship?
People with borderline personality disorder (BPD) tend to have issues with relationships. Due to their major symptoms with personality disorder such as mood swings and anger issues, people start to move away.
Can you be a good parent with BPD?
People with BPD can be really caring and pampering parents. They can go offtrack sometimes but in a nutshell, their parenthood is something to work upon to turn into something beautiful.
Is BPD genetic or environmental?
According to a research, BPD is 48% caused by Genetics and 58% by other factors like the environmental stressors, traumatic experiences, etc.
