The treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) has continuously evolved over the years. Before 1970, BPD was believed to be untreatable, but by 1990, the disorder was categorized as a personality disorder with its own set of criteria.
It was only at the turn of this century that Borderline Personality Disorder was determined to be a treatable mental illness. Treatment of the personality disorder typically involves a combination of therapy and medications that target both specific symptoms of BPD (such as mood and impulsivity) and social and vocational functioning.
During the past decade, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) established recommendations for how to treat Borderline Personality Disorder. Itai Danovitch, MD, director of addiction psychiatry clinical services at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles and supervising psychiatrist at Clearview Treatment Programs in Venice Beach, explains the core principles of BPD treatment highlighted by the APA guidelines and BPD experts.
