At the heart of the process of recovery from Borderline Personality Disorder is the need to find one’s lost self – an authentic self that has been lost to the core wound of abandonment in BPD. BPD recovery requires first asking the question, Who am I? Secondly, it requires finding the answer to that question.
Self Harm in BPD – Who is really getting harmed?
In her latest audio podcast, A.J. Mahari, talks about self harm in Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). Along with talking about how vast it is Mahari explores the main reason for self harm. She also asks and then answers a central question – who is really getting hurt and harmed in borderline self harm?
Borderline Self-Harm/Self-Mutilation Serves as a Defense To Unresolved Abandonment Trauma
For many who are diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) self harm and/or self mutilation are maladaptive or pathological attempts to ward off the repressed pain of unresolved abandonment trauma that lies at the heart of BPD.
Self Mutilation is a Borderline Language of Pain
Borderline Personality Disorder is a breading ground for self harm. Self mutilation and all forms of self harm make up the borderline language of pain. Cutting, burning, impulsive sex, impuslive shopping, overeating or undereating are all examples of self harm that many with Borderline Personality Disorder engage in.
Self-mutilation, for many who have Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), is a learned language of profound pain. It is a primordial scream for help. It is the apex of needing to be heard, validated, and soothed. It is one of the most prolific and anguished expressions of borderline pain. It is self-defeating and holds you hostage to the pain of the false self — to the pain that you can’t heal by further wounding your body and your precious soul.
