Today we’re gonna talk about: What is a Personality Disorder?
I’m Angela Howard and my passion is to break the stigma of mental health issues among fellow Christians. If you’re new to my channel please subscribe and don’t forget to click on that notifications bell so you don’t miss out on new content.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health 9.1% of US adults have a personality disorder. (https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/personality-disorders.shtml) That’s a sobering statistic.
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with a personality disorder you might feel overwhelmed. What does this mean for my life? How am I supposed to react? Personality is the way that we think, feel, and behave that makes us different from other people. It’s awesome that we are all unique individuals—this is a good thing. It’s what makes life interesting. According to the American Psychiatric Association, a personality disorder is a way of thinking, feeling and behaving that deviates from the expectations of the culture, causes distress or problems functioning in day to day life, and those issues last over time.
Ok, that was a mouthful, so let’s break it down a bit. There are actually 10 specific types of personality disorders. What all of the disorders have in common is that the symptoms and struggles are seen over a long period of time. It’s not a struggle you have for a year and then bounce back from it. These symptoms usually pop up in the late teens years or early adulthood and create a lot of problems with relating to other people, functioning socially, and emotionally, and in the ability to control ones behavior.
You might be thinking that these are just issues that everyone has or that your problems are really just bad relationships. I would encourage you to ask yourself these key questions:
- Are these problems that I’ve been having since I was a teenager or young adult? If so, these are engrained patterns.
- Do you have consistent conflicts, confrontations, and relationships struggles in your daily life? If so, then the way you think, feel and relate to other people is causing you and others significant unhappiness.
- Are you struggling to start or maintain relationships?
If you are having difficulty changing these unwanted patterns, reach out for help from a mental health professional. We’ll talk more about specific disorders and treatments in upcoming videos. But today, whatever you’re going through, remember what it says in Romans 5:5…
Scripture:
“..hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” Romans 5:5
Question:
What questions do you have about personality disorders? Comment below, and I’ll do my best to answer your question.
Please subscribe for videos on our Youtube Channel for our amazing resources. I’ll be sharing great tips and encouragement for whatever your facing—whether you’re fighting mental illness or have a loved one who is.
Resources:
Connect to a counselor: https://hisheartfoundation.org/request-a-counselor-referral/
