What are Personality Disorders?

Although personality disorders are not diagnosed until an individual is over 18 years-old, there is significant evidence that suggests that traits can begin to develop in adolescence. A personality disorder is characterized by long-standing patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving that deviate from cultural and societal norms. This can cause significant distress and impairment in daily functioning. The formation of personality disorders is unclear, but they are thought to be a combination of genetics and environmental factors that are present throughout childhood (i.e. abuse or neglect). 

Warning Signs of Personality Disorders in Teens can include:

  1. Difficulties with establishing and maintaining interpersonal relationships with others.
  2. Intense mood swings and emotional reactions that are disproportionate to the situation itself. 
  3. Difficulties with emotional regulation, which contributes to impulsive and/or reckless behaviors.
  4. Difficulties with trusting others and typically viewing themselves as the victim due to distorted perceptions of themselves.
  5. Detachment from reality and paranoia
  6. Self-harm engagement or suicidal gestures/attempts. 

How ROWI can help:

  1. Comprehensive assessments and evaluations to identify warning signs of development of a personality disorder.
  2. Individual therapy sessions with licensed therapists that are trained in specific treatment that addresses personality disorder behaviors (i.e. Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)), as well as exploring and processing past traumatic events that may be contributing to a development of a personality disorder.
  3. Group therapy to provide support from peers and teaching of coping skills/distress tolerance to manage symptoms of personality disorders.
  4. Family therapy sessions that provide psychoeducation to parents to help support their child as it pertains to implementing coping skills/distress tolerance skills to manage the effects of problematic behaviors. 
  5. Collaboration with other healthcare providers and schools to help the client and their family find appropriate additional resources. 

Each ROWI client receives a treatment plan that will support them in meeting their goals. Programs are individualized in order to meet each client and family where they are at in the process. Contact us to learn more and to get support for your teen struggling with personality disorder symptoms.