Yup. Thanks so much for pointing me to this diagram. However, I have read quite a bit of material to this effect...so I am pretty much well versed (grammar?) on how this dynamic works. But thanks for the effort. I appreciate it. :-)
I think I fit somewhere in the middle of all that.
It's interesting that you've listed antisocial personality disorder under social disconnection. I've spoken to members at medhelp who have been diagnosed with such and to be honest, they sound way more socially connected than me. While I'm not sure hanging out with murderers is the best thing a person could be doing, they still have social networks and in some respects they seem 'tighter', more connected than many other people. Maybe that is more of a gang mentality? I perceive alcoholics and others as being lonelier and more isolated.
One of my therapists once said that one 50 minute therapy session per week was a luxury (and I guess for many people it is). I felt quite insulted by this because from my perspective it felt like coming out of solitary confinement for 50 minutes once a week and being told that that was all the social contact I deserved and that even that was a luxury. It's kind of interesting that in today's society I felt that isolated and alone. That socially disconnected.
I care about others and about being and feeling connected.
My understanding of bpd is that anxiety is a core component (for me anyway). I was told that trying to contain that anxiety is like trying to hold a glass of water in a vessel that is cracked and broken.
For me I would consider putting the information in a flow diagram. Anxiety leads to difficulty with social tasks which leads to social disconnection which leads to depression.
This persons husband seems to have a good relationship with at least one other person, the pastor. I guess we can become quite secure in some relationships though. And I guess without the pressure or stress of children, etc that relationship can remain largely uncontaminated. Or perhaps it is that the person is more containing??
I feel more stressed at home, less stressed, say when talking to my doctor.
Do people with AvPD split? I expect the primitive defense mechanisms would apply to that disorder too.
I guess the big question is, what does one do to overcome those social difficulties?
Glad this kind of worked. I think I will do it more. Allows me to create material that can be referenced in other discussions.
With regard to antisocial personality disorder - that is complicated. I suspect I chose the wrong description. The key to ASPD is that those folks don't react to relationship disruptions or the threat of disruptions the way that most folks do. (Their cortisol levels don't go up at all).
On the other hand, there was very interesting discussion in the American Journal of Psychiatry proposing a new way of thinking about borderline personality disorder suggesting that the key biological correlate of BPD may be an inability to regulate emotion or self-soothe which may be linked to deficient endogenous opiates (those neurotransmitters that are responsible for the "runner's high").
I enjoy reading expert's blogs, etc. They can be hugely informative. I agree that having a specific location for the material would also be helpful. I also really love diagrams and teaching stories and dialogues. Dialogue also makes my day feel as though it has some forward momentum. :)
Maybe those endorphins are why I severely over-trained all the time. self-medicating.
