BPD & Why It's So Hard to Change - Default Patterns
1,887Order The Borderline Personality Disorder Workbook by Dr. Fox: https://goo.gl/LQEgy1
Default patterns for those with BPD, or BPD traits, are negative response patterns that you’ve developed overtime through experiences, thoughts, feelings, or memories that cause beliefs, which drive behaviors. Because they tend to be automatic, you may not be aware that you’re engaging in a pattern until you’re dealing with short-term and long-term consequences.
Not all default patterns are negative, some may be positive and you can tell by the consequence. Negative patterns have a higher likelihood of negative outcome, and positive patterns have a higher likelihood of positive outcome. Cocaine when your anxious or sad leads to addiction, negative consequence – to name one; mindfulness and deep breathing when your anxious and sad leads to increased behavioral control, clearer thinking, and better reasoning, positive consequence.
Many default patterns tend to be problematic in those with BPD when they’re trying to change. Your body and brain operates on homeostasis, this is the relatively stable state of usual functioning. In other words, it’s what your body and brain have become used to. When you try to do something different, learn a new skill, say an adaptive skill like deep breathing or mindfulness, your brain and body pushes back due to the dissonance, or unstable impact to disrupting its usual functioning. This is often why BPD behaviors and patterns are so hard to unlearn and replace. I said hard, not impossible.
So how do you change your Default patterns? First, you need to know what they are, identify them. When your core content gets activated what is your go to thought or behavior? There’s sometimes more than one. This sequence is your default pattern.
Second, recognize that there is a payoff for these default patterns or you wouldn’t have developed them as defaults. Problem is that there are short-term rewards with long-term payoff. Such as using drugs to cope, may feel great in the moment but the stressor always wins out creating greater problems for you in the long-run.
Lastly, find an adaptive strategy to replace your earliest behavior once your core content is triggered. Practice this behavior as often as possible, so it can become a default response and then when you get triggered use it and use it often.
If you’re interested in learning more about your BPD default patterns you can check out my BPD workbook. I hope you found this video helpful.
Daniel J. Fox, Ph.D., is a licensed psychologist in Texas, international speaker, and award winning author. He has been specializing in the treatment and assessment of individuals with personality disorders for over 15 years in the state and federal prison system, universities, and in private practice. His specialty areas include personality disorders, ethics, burnout prevention, and emotional intelligence.
He has published several articles in these areas and is the author of:
The Borderline Personality Disorder Workbook: An Integrative Program to Understand and Manage Your BPD. Now Available, you can order it now at: https://goo.gl/LQEgy1
Antisocial, Borderline, Narcissistic and Histrionic Workbook: Treatment Strategies for Cluster B Personality Disorders (IPBA Benjamin Franklin Gold Award Winner): https://goo.gl/BLRkFy
Narcissistic Personality Disorder Toolbox: 55 Practical Treatment Techniques for Clients, Their Parents & Their Children: https://goo.gl/sZYhym
The Clinician’s Guide to Diagnosis and Treatment of Personality Disorders: https://goo.gl/ZAVe9v
Dr. Fox has given numerous workshops and seminars on ethics and personality disorders, personality disorders and crime, treatment solutions for treating clients along the antisocial, borderline, narcissistic, and histrionic personality spectrum, emotional intelligence, managing mental health within the prison system, and others. Dr. Fox maintains a website of various treatment interventions focused on working with and attenuating the symptomatology related to individuals along the antisocial, borderline, narcissistic, and histrionic personality spectrum (www.drdfox.com).
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/DrDanielFox
Dr. Fox’s website: http://www.drdfox.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/appliedpsychservices/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrDanielJFox1
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdfox/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drdfox
Amazon Author’s Page: amazon.com/author/drfox
Thank you for your attention and I hope you enjoy my videos and find them helpful and subscribe. I always welcome topic suggestions and comments.