scholarly journals Implementation of a Mobile DBT App and Its Impact on Suicidality in Transitional Age Youth with Borderline Personality Disorder: A Qualitative Study

Author(s):  
Tobias Schiffler ◽  
Radhika Seiler-Ramadas ◽  
Siniša Štefanac ◽  
Sandra Haider ◽  
Hanna Maria Mües ◽  
...  

Contemporary performance and accessibility are features that enable mobile devices to be increasingly beneficial in the context of optimizing the treatment of psychiatric disorders. Smartphones have the potential to effectively support psychotherapeutic interventions among adolescents and young adults who require them. In the present study, the use and subjective influence of a smartphone app with content from dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) was investigated among transitional age youth (TAY) with borderline personality disorder, focusing on suicidality and non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), in a natural setting. A longitudinal qualitative approach was used by means of individual semi-structured interviews, where participants were asked about their experiences and associated emotions before and after a testing period of 30 days. A total of 13 TAY with a diagnosed borderline personality disorder between the ages of 18 and 23 were included. Six overarching themes were identified through qualitative text analysis: (1) experiences with DBT skills, (2) phenomenon of self-harm, (3) feelings connected with self-harm, (4) dealing with disorder-specific symptoms, (5) prevention of self-harm, and (6) attitude toward skills apps. In general, the provision of an app with DBT content achieved a positive response among participants. Despite a small change in the perception of suicidality and NSSI, participants could imagine its benefits by integrating their use of the app as a supportive measure for personal psychotherapy sessions.

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Biskin ◽  
Joel Paris

The treatment of patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD) has changed significantly over the past 25 years. The previous therapeutic pessimism about BPD treatment outcomes has become more optimistic with the development of a variety of specialized psychotherapies that have been shown to reduce self-harm, suicidality, and health service use as well as improve overall psychopathology. Dialectical behavior therapy was the first evidence-supported treatment, but it has been joined by mentalization-based psychotherapy and a variety of other treatments. Several common factors, including structured treatment approach, are likely important in the effectiveness of these treatments compared with unstructured comparators. Pharmacotherapy serves a more limited role in the treatment of BPD due to many methodological issues in the research and a lack of replication of studies. Judicious and rational use of pharmacotherapy is discussed, as well as suggestions for improving accessibility to specialized psychotherapies through the development of stepped care models. Improving access to care for patients with BPD, throughout all age groups, remains an important next step. This review contains 2 figures, 1 table, and 47 references. Key words: borderline personality disorder, dialectical behavior therapy, mentalization-based treatment, personality disorder, pharmacotherapy, psychotherapy, self-harm


Author(s):  
Carla Chugani ◽  
Ashley Seiler ◽  
Tina Goldstein

This article presents a qualitative investigation of the perspectives and experiences of recovery from borderline personality disorder from six individuals who were treated with comprehensive dialectical behavior therapy. Data were collected via semi-structured interviews, transcribed, and coded using a six-step analysis process. Six primary themes emerged: (1) belief about recovery, (2) current experience of self, (3) facets of recovery, (4) motivating factors, (5) external supports to recovery, and (6) characteristics required for recovery. Overall, the findings took a dialectical form in which participants often described conflicting experiences (e.g., feeling recovered while also continuing to experience heightened emotional sensitivity). We conclude that the themes presented in this article represent broad domains related to the meaning of recovery from BPD, and recognize that the relative importance of each domain is best determined by the individual.


Crisis ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Jacqueline M. Frei ◽  
Vladimir Sazhin ◽  
Melissa Fick ◽  
Keong Yap

Abstract. Psychiatric hospitalization can cause significant distress for patients. Research has shown that to cope with the stress, patients sometimes resort to self-harm. Given the paucity of research on self-harm among psychiatric inpatients, a better understanding of transdiagnostic processes as predictors of self-harm during psychiatric hospitalization is needed. The current study examined whether coping styles predicted self-harm after controlling for commonly associated factors, such as age, gender, and borderline personality disorder. Participants were 72 patients (mean age = 39.32 years, SD = 12.29, 64% male) admitted for inpatient treatment at a public psychiatric hospital in Sydney, Australia. Participants completed self-report measures of coping styles and ward-specific coping behaviors, including self-harm, in relation to coping with the stress of acute hospitalization. Results showed that younger age, diagnosis of borderline personality disorder, and higher emotion-oriented coping were associated with self-harm. After controlling for age and borderline personality disorder, higher levels of emotion-oriented coping were found to be a significant predictor of self-harm. Findings were partially consistent with hypotheses; emotion-oriented but not avoidance-oriented coping significantly predicted self-harm. This finding may help to identify and provide psychiatric inpatients who are at risk of self-harm with appropriate therapeutic interventions.


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