Paranoid Personality Disorder Help

zombiehellmonkey · Joined: 27 Sep 2008 Posts: 195

Contrary to psychiatric and mainstream psychology practice and belief, this condition can be successfully removed by a NLP practitioner - there is NO need to take harmful drugs and give the pharmaceutical companies more money!

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Descriptive diagnosis per American DSM-IV-TR

According to the DSM-IV-TR, this disorder is characterized by a pervasive distrust and suspicion of others such that their motives are interpreted as malevolent, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by four (or more) of the following:

* Suspects, without sufficient basis, that others are exploiting, harming, or deceiving him or her
* Is preoccupied with unjustified doubts about the loyalty or trustworthiness of friends or associates
* Is reluctant to confide in others because of unwarranted fear that the information will be used maliciously against him or her
* Reads benign remarks or events as threatening or demeaning.
* Persistently bears grudges, i.e., is unforgiving of insults, injuries, or slights
* Perceives attacks on his or her character or reputation that are not apparent to others and is quick to react angrily or to counterattack
* Has recurrent suspicions, without justification, regarding fidelity of spouse or sexual partner.

The traits, behaviors and characteristics

* Do not occur exclusively during the course of a mood disorder accompanied by psychotic features nor other psychotic disorders.
* Are not due to the direct physiological effects of a general medical condition.

International description per ICD-10

The ICD-10 lists paranoid personality disorder as F60.0 Paranoid Personality Disorder.

This personality disorder is characterized by at least 3 of the following:

(a) excessive sensitivity to setbacks and rebuffs;
(b) tendency to bear grudges persistently, i.e. refusal to forgive insults and injuries or slights;
(c) suspiciousness and a pervasive tendency to distort experience by misconstruing the neutral or friendly actions of others as hostile or contemptuous;
(d) a combative and tenacious sense of personal rights out of keeping with the actual situation;
(e) recurrent suspicions, without justification, regarding sexual fidelity of spouse or sexual partner;
(f) tendency to experience excessive self-importance, manifest in a persistent self-referential attitude;
(g) preoccupation with unsubstantiated "conspiratorial" explanations of events both immediate to the patient and in the world at large.

Includes:

* expansive paranoid, fanatic, querulant and sensitive paranoid personality (disorder)

chunxueping · Joined: 24 Jun 2007 Posts: 749 Location: Beijing, PRC

Hey I got all this....

I caught it in a prison cell in the old days...

pensggs · Joined: 24 Jan 2007 Posts: 361

ZHM,

Thanks for doing the research on my behalf.

Someday, I will write a book on 'Surviving PPD'.

I note with interest your 'above average interest' in psychiatry and psychological matters. ?Is it your profession or your interest.

Xue Ping,

If only I could laugh with you in your prison cell.

A person with PPD lives in a prison of their own making; and those around them have to watch their descent into the 'voids of humanity' without any tools or ability to help them.

Today, I am burying a 'friend'; whose life is one filled with purpose. She was taken away from us suddenly but lives within all those her life touched. A life filled with purpose, ideals and 'real care' for the Mother Earth and Humanity. She lived and worked as she preached. Today I 'kow-tow' to her in her passing.

zombiehellmonkey · Joined: 27 Sep 2008 Posts: 195

chunxueping · Joined: 24 Jun 2007 Posts: 749 Location: Beijing, PRC

pensggs · Joined: 24 Jan 2007 Posts: 361

Thanks ZHM

I studied psychiatric nursing for three years, therefore, I recognised the various terms used.

When one lived with a PPD, and the symptoms is part and parcel of the person, it was accepted as 'normal'. One do not designate it as a 'disorder'.

Surviving PPD to me is arranging my whole personal and working life and expectations around that person, surviving as my own person, and protecting the family against the worst effects of the personality disorder.

The only regret I had was I thought that 'it was normal', and managed the problem rather than seek help for the person with the PPD.

One term used by one of my son. 'A most intelligent, eccentric person, without insight that he had ever known'.

Therefore, Xue Ping, I cannot laugh with you.

Re; my recently departed friend, would not like me to be unhappy. For her funeral, instead of black, a flash of pink is requested in memory of her. And 'pink' is her favourite colour; as well as mine. So now everytime I wear 'pink', I will remember her goodness.

I remember somewhere 'Do not be sad that someone is gone, be happy that you have known them' ????A Buddhist saying.????

Quote from a Buddhist poem by Thich Nhat Hahn

Walk and touch peace every moment
Walk and touch happiness every moment.
Each step brings a fresh breeze
Each step makes a flower bloom
Kiss the Earth with your feet
Bring the Earth your love and happiness
The Earth will be sefe
When we feel safe in ourselves.

zombiehellmonkey · Joined: 27 Sep 2008 Posts: 195

Pengss, do you ever go shopping at Asda or similar place? Sometimes, I am perusing the aisles, and suddenly find as I push my trolley that one of the wheels refuses to cooperate. By the time, that I have discovered the fault, I can't be bothered to go all the way back to get a functional trolley, instead I decide to use some extra effort to correct the trolley's path and to keep it on the path that I want to travel. By the time I get to the bakery section, with the sweet scent of freshly baked bread, my attention is diverted to that troublesome wheel instead of enjoying and deciding on which tasty loaf to buy.

Although the term Paranoid Personality Disorder originates from an American Psychiatric Association Publication, the description of symptoms are precise. Psychiatry will list most things as disorders, thats how psychiatrists remain employed, and how pharmaceutical companies continue to sell their drugs. The great thing about the mind, is that you don't need drugs to heal it, although psychiatry will try to convince you that a mental problem is due to a hormonal imbalance or other such lie.

Paranoia is a good defence mechanism, it can protect us from hurt and deceit, stop us from stumbling into a trap. If you take the military for instance, their whole structure is built upon paranoia. They have barbed wire fences to stop people coming in and sabotaging equipment, and set up watchtowers with guards on twenty-four hour vigils. Radars scan the skies, while gun turrets and air defence systems are on stand-by. If it weren't for paranoia, all these systems would be compromised, and we know that would be a disaster because the military's job is to defend the country from invaders!

But for whatever reason, these defence mechanisms are in place, due to some incident that may have affected us in the past, and we may not even remember them, but we know, inside us that their function is to protect us, so we place our implicit trust in these systems and allow them to do their job. Paranoia is much like the military, with its soldiers and tanks, we created them at a time we deemed necessary for our own safeguard, and gave them the order to defend us, and they do this job outside of our awareness, and perhaps we don't remember the reason why we set these defences up in the first place, but no doubt they are there, even if they may be intimidating or be perceived as threatening to others, that perhaps is not our intent.

So we can begin to make progress, if we begin to realize what exactly are we defending in ourselves. What it is that we choose to protect, and whether there are other ways for ourselves to recognize potential threats and dangers. The mind is most flexible to do these things, we just have to set it in motion, and realizing that parts of us can cause us problems with relating to others, already sets us on a path for self improvement, and allowing us to live life with less imposition by and on ourselves.
_________________
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pensggs · Joined: 24 Jan 2007 Posts: 361

ZHM,

A good explanation of defense mechanism necessary for survival. Human beings are equiped with this 'mechanism ' for their survival.

However, the word 'paranoia' is when this mechanism goes into overdrive and becomes a 'disability' so that the person's family life, career and self development are hampered by PPD

For example,

1. When the person had the qualification but refused to use this qualification to exit from a job he hated because he was insisted that 'if he was became too successful' all others at work will be jealous of him and will desire to harm him.

2. When he sleep with two knives by his bedside, and coshes under the bed, because he was afraid that in his sleep, someone will attack him.

3. When he tells outsiders that the financial success that surrounded him, was his good fortune of having 'a rich mother' ( instead of the hard work of his wife and himself ) because others might be jealous of his 'success' and goes out of the way to harm him.

4. When there is continuous accusations of his wife's infidelity. On the last count, there were well over 20, including incestious relationship with the siblings. Every man was a 'threat' and desired to deprive him of his 'wife'.

ZHM, This is not normal 'defense mechanism'. This is PPD.

zombiehellmonkey · Joined: 27 Sep 2008 Posts: 195

Dear Pengss,

I appreciate your reply, and thank you for sharing your knowledge with me - I hope you will continue to share your thoughts and insights on the subject.

I will tell you about a roommate of mine who was putting up shelves in his room. His room was getting rather cramped and messy, as he had a large collection of course books and no where to put them, so I suggested that he put up some shelves so he would have more floor space and at the same time feel more comfortable inside his room; he thought this was a good idea, so he went to the DIY store and bought some wooden shelves, and borrowed a toolbox from his parents. Later in the week, when he had some spare time, he asked me to come over and help him put the shelves up.

When I turn up, he has already drilled the holes in the wall, he wanted me to help him hold the shelf up while he screwed the brackets into the wall. No offence to my friend, but to be honest and I only mean it in the nicest way, the guy is incompetent with tools, whether from lack of experience, or lack of judgement, he seemed to be unable to pick the right tools for the job. I noticed that he seemed to be struggling to get the screw into the wall, and then I noticed he was using a chisel instead of a screwdriver!! I asked him why he was using a chisel, and he told me that there were only cross head screwdrivers in the toolbox which wouldn't fit the screw. We put the shelf down and I took a look at the screw... The screw he was using was a wood screw, so I asked him if there were any more screws in the box, and he looked around in his toolbox while, and after a few minutes, he found some cross head screws which we could use with the screwdriver he had.

Now, I share this story, because I don't believe that any emotions or actions can be considered to be a disability - each one when applied in the appropriate situation can be useful. Inside us, we have a range of emotions and feelings that enable us to behave and function in a variety of situations that we may encounter during our life, they are the tools that we respond with, but often in the case of Paranoid Personality Disorder, the person is choosing the wrong tool, and while that tool might be useful in another situation, it is not helping them achieve their objectives in life.

A spy for example, may use paranoia to his advantage and become very successful because of it, but the everyday person has no need to be paranoid of friends, family, close acquaintances. Most PPD sufferers are consciously aware that their paranoid fears are unfounded, and when asked about it, know deep inside that they are being ridiculous, yes it is ridiculous! And this is the reason, why I believe that PPD can be cured. With PPD, the problem can be attributed to two causes - one would be to do with an earlier experience in life, and secondly the other is to do with a fear of change, in each person, it may be weighted on oneside more than the other. Whatever the cause, most subjects know that however unwarranted their fears, a part of them will uphold that belief by creating an internal model to fit that mode of thinking.

Therefore, it is not external stimuli to which they are responding, but a flawed internal model of the world around them. Now, we all create internal models of our reality, that is how we perceive and understand our surroundings. Now the great thing I've found with those with PPD is that many of them will have at least one very close friend - they might not have many friends, but they will have one person who they implicitly trust. I talk to them, and I ask them, this person who you really trust, and open yourself up to, how is he any different from those who you don't trust - now don't answer me immediately, but I want you to think about that, when you first met this person who you put your total trust into, how does is this person able to gain that while others can't? Now take a look at those who you perceive as hostile, and your close friend, what sets them apart? and maybe, you'll find that they aren't so different after when you weigh them side to side like that, and maybe that trust for whatever reason you feel unwilling to share, you can start to share with others too.
_________________
Coming to Hong Kong? Join my expat group for fun and networking! http://www.meetup.com/expats-HK/

pensggs · Joined: 24 Jan 2007 Posts: 361

ZHM

This conversation has been very enlightening for me.

Prior to your posting of this subject PPD, I did not put a 'name' to the behaviour of the person concerned. I knew it was not within the range of 'normal' behaviour and attitude but it was part and parcel of the person whom I loved. When you lived with a person with PPD for two thirds of your lifetime, this become 'normal' to you.

I could not 'change' that person, so I learnt to cope with PPD. 'Coping' became a 'Way' of everyday life. There are 'many costs'; personal, social, financial, and psychological costs involved.

There is no cure as the person concerned might be conscious of their 'problem' but admitting their 'problem' is another matter. Besides, the person suffering from PPD survive by tranferring 'responsibility' to another person. Their problem is not because of them, but it is because 'the other person' wished to do them 'harm'. All their life, it is 'others' that wished to 'harm' them. In extreme cases, this included their family members. They have no 'control' therefore, it cannot be their 'problem'.

PPD is caused by early years experience and is an extreme form of 'self protection'. It is a survival instinct gone into overdrive; when a child is born into an environment whereby there was no emotional and physical security. A person with PPD is frozen in 'fear' because of early years experience and build a high wall around themselves for protection. Every person and every situation is seen as a 'threat' and they feel insecure, undermined and under 'siege' in their daily life.

And when 'daily' life start to reinforce their belief that actually 'others' wished to harm them, these 'threats' will result in 'extreme' behaviour of 'self protection'.

I smiled when I read your account of your friend with the 'wrong' tools for the job. Coping with a person with PPD, is accepting that a person with PPD will always use the wrong 'tools' in their relation and social interaction with people.

I am a firm believer of the following Chinese saying.

'One should not have thoughts of harming another person, however, one must guard against the possibility of another person harming oneself'.

This 'motto' is very useful in business and in one's personal life. However, to follow this to the letter of the word, one can be diagnosed as PPD. The many instances where I had to defend myself were when I left myself physically, emotionally and financially 'open'. However, with each successful defence and attack of the 'aggressor' or 'adversity' ; one learns that one has 'control' of one's environment.

A person with PPD do not believe that they can have 'control'. Abdication of responsibility is part and parcel of a survival instinct in a person with PPD. Therefore, a person with PPD never 'open' themselves to 'good feelings' of overcoming 'adversity'.

With Mother's Day arriving, if any new mother is reading this. PPD is caused by early years experience. A child needs to feel 'safe and secure' to be able to 'trust' the world around them. A child needs to learn to fall and fail whilst you are there to soothe their tears. When a child cannot trust their environment and the people closst to them, they can learn coping strategies, which in extreme cases leads to PPD.

One of my joy during early autumn is watching the young swifts learning to 'fly' with Mother swifts through small holes in the glass of the windows of a broken barn. Home is behind that 'dangerous' hole in the glass and their only entry. The young swifts aerobic tactics of aiming for the hole in glass is not only entertaining but very revealing. As they approached the small hole and realised that they will hit the glass, they do a dangerous about turn. Then Mother swifts will display again the art of negotiationg that hole in the 'glass'. Ever thought of how dangerous it is for young swifts on the first day of learning. If they did not learn by dark, they are then exposed to the 'dangers' of the environment with the crows perched on the chimney tops waiting for a vulnerable and exposed young defenceless swift as 'dinner' for their young.

So ZHM, I will borrow the 'red cape' you have awarded me and use that to fly with the swifts. Honest, I am not taking the 'michael'!!!!!!

joybetluck · Joined: 25 Aug 2007 Posts: 205

Hi Penegg
What kind of help did you managed to obtain from your GP or the hospital mental health services for your husband (deduction based on your previous posts).
Has your previous psychiatric nursing experience been a help or a hindrance?
As joe public I have the impression that almost any disorder can now be corrected by popping a few pills if you managed to section the person and get them to follow a course of medication.
I believe the hardest part is getting the person to sign up for treatment and to keep to the prescription.

pensggs · Joined: 24 Jan 2007 Posts: 361

Bi, joybetluck

A person with PPD is not 'ill' and no pills will make a difference.

No amount of psychological training or psychiatric training can assist you to help a person with PPD.

When you live with PPD as the person with PPD or the person living with a person with PPD; one tends to accept PPD as the 'unique personality and characteristics' of the said person. Often one develops coping strategies in self defense and to protect oneself and one's family.

As ZHM has identified, the person is conscious of the problem but not necessary able to deal with the problem.

Self help is the only 'cure' but like all personality problems, the person involved must 'unlearn' the previously learned response which can be handicap them the whole of their life.

Also, you can only 'section' the person if they lose completely the ability to protect themselves or is a danger to others. You cannot section a person who lives in 'fear of harm' by others as a learned response from their early years environment. A person with PPD handicap themselves not others.

PPD is a symptom not the cause. However this symptom can lead to wasted life, unhappy life, unfulfilled life, social and personal isolation and blight the future of the next generation.

PPD is a learnt response to early years trauma, and is an extreme survival strategy to safeguard oneself from harm from others we cannot control. So in today's environment whereby of the 'individaul's needs' is foremost, PPD will increase.

Adee · Joined: 28 Jan 2008 Posts: 46

Looking at the criteria, a lot of 'normal' people can also fit into this behaviour. However there's a difference between a personality trait and personality disorder. I think this person explained it the best:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2riIyZKSMc0

He also emphasised that the most important criteria is 'the enduring patterns leads to clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational or other important areas of functioning.'

Which means their behaviour is affecting them from functioning properly in society in their day to day life.

Here's his take on PPD:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTPjo3IgQj8

After looking at some of his videos quite intriguingly one of the disorder seems to describe me very much. Also I want to know what sort of test do patients go through for the diagnosis?

pensggs · Joined: 24 Jan 2007 Posts: 361

Adee,

ZHM had highlighted the video links in his first postings. It had been very enlightening so I had emailed this to the appropriate person.

Personality disorders like PPD is not psychotic therefore the diagnostic tools are very crude.

A person's personality 'intensify' and 'escalate' with age. Listen as a bystander, 'He is getting crankier as he gets older!'; 'She is getting worse as she gets older!'

When a personality traits became classified as a personality disorder, it is when it becomes a handicap to the person in their daily life. Their personality will stop them from relating to others, both inside and outside the family; cause them not to achieve their potential in their personal and career life.

Today I was reading the 'Daily Mail' and on page 8, the title 'Our generation of narcissist children' caught my attention.'

Apparently, 'Expert warns against all praise and no criticism' because praising children at every opportunity is creating a generation of narcissists who cannot take criticism. Quote ' Narcissists makes terrible relationship partners, parents and employees'.

In today's attitude to individualism, especially in the West; there is a thinking that we have to get the 'I' bigger. In achieving this, the individual is getting very self centred, so taking personal responsibility for our own actions is being abdicated ; instead it is the state, or the school or the employer or our parents or the other person; who caused us to behave the way we did. We often choose to forget our 'role' in the situation.

I quote an incident. A car with an adult male and a girl in her early teens was parked in my carpark. They had trespassed on my land. I watched them for a while, and I saw the girl threw her half eaten sandwiches and its packaging from their car onto my carpark. I approached the driver and asked him why was he parked in my car park without being a customer. He replied that he was waiting for someone. I duly informed him that 'Not only was he trespassing on my land but he had allowed his daughter to abuse my facilities'. To that he just looked 'blank'. His daughter insolently replied that 'she was not littering but just feeding the birds'.
At no time did he apologised. When I threatened to put the litter back into his car, only then did he instruct his daughter to pick up her litter. Soon after another car turned up, driven by a woman. His daughter got out of his car and got into the other car. Neither of the parents exchange any 'niceties' except a 'baggage' of a child.

Personality disorders have their first sprouts in childhood experience. They are our survival instincts on overdrive. Some of us are lucky that these adverse childhood experiences are replaced by 'good' life experiences; which path our life. Some of us are unlucky and these adverse childhood experiences became a handicap, and blight their whole life.

Take a child of three and I will show you the '80 year old'.

joybetluck · Joined: 25 Aug 2007 Posts: 205

Watch your thoughts for they become your words
Watch your words for they become your actions
Watch your actions for they become your habits
Watch your habits for they become your character
Watch your character for they become your destiny.

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