Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is one of the most emotionally intense and misunderstood mental health conditions. Mislabeled or mistaken for mood disorders like bipolar or anxiety, BPD is rooted in chronic emotional instability, identity confusion, and a deep fear of abandonment.
Understanding BPD isn’t just about being diagnosed. Knowledge about the root of BPD symptoms and how they can manifest under different circumstances is decisive for those who believe they might have this condition. If you’re one of these individuals, it may be worth taking a trauma-informed borderline personality disorder test that can help you get these decisive insights.
Self-Check Yourself for BPD
BPD evaluations can seem overwhelming. Numerous questions, some of which prompt an admission of difficult life periods. That’s why going through a short checklist is advisable initially to soft-launch the exploration of BPD symptoms without pressure.
Among hundreds of quizzes online, there is one that is reliable and therapist-informed. This checklist is based on Breeze’s borderline personality disorder test, which has questions pulled from DSM-5 diagnostic criteria. The full test provides precise results and recommendations on next steps.
- I have intense episodes of anger, anxiety, or frustration that can last from a few hours to days.
- I can act impulsively when I am sad (impulsive shopping, substance use, unsafe sex, etc.)
- I often see myself as unworthy of love or any positive experience.
- Other people rarely understand my emotions or motivations.
- My mood can change quickly.
- I mostly feel empty, as if nothing can fill the hollow inside.
- I worry that other people always want to leave me.
- I have a history of self-harm and suicidal thoughts or attempts.
- My self-image changes daily, or based on the people I am around.
If you checked four or more points, you show some BPD symptoms. It is important to remember that any self-checklist or online BPD evaluation cannot replace a professional evaluation with a specialist. Refer to a psychiatrist or a therapist if you find it hard to navigate your emotions. No matter the score, the quiz can reveal where symptoms might be coming from and what could soothe them.
How a BPD Test Helps Understand Symptoms
Finding a reliable BPD assessment online is not easy. If they are non-inclusive and judgmental, others present themselves as fun or official diagnosing criteria. A person who suspects BPD in themselves is vulnerable, and if an online quiz doesn’t account for this, it’s a bad quiz.
A high-quality online evaluation of BPD explores four key areas:
- Emotional dysregulation
- Interpersonal struggles
- Identity disturbance
- Impulsive behaviors
Each question helps connect the inner world (experience, thoughts, doubts, and feelings) and outward behavior (objective depiction of the situation and reflection on one’s behavior). And because BPD symptoms might overlap with anxiety, trauma, or ADHD, the quiz is also helpful in ruling out BPD when traits don’t match the bigger picture. Some people who score low on the borderline personality disorder test discover their emotions come from unresolved childhood stress or chronic overwhelm, and not a personality disorder.
National Alliance on Mental Health reports that BPD affects an estimated 1.6% of adults in the U.S. However, this number may be as high as 5.9% because the actual rate may be higher due to underdiagnosis or misdiagnosis.
After completing the borderline personality disorder test, here’s what the results might indicate:
- Low likelihood: Symptoms may stem from another source, such as high-functioning anxiety, stress, or emotional burnout. A person might benefit from self-care tools or therapy.
- Moderate likelihood: User may identify with some BPD symptoms, such as fluctuating self-worth or conflict in relationships. A symptom journal can be helpful, along with speaking to a mental health professional.
- High likelihood: If the test strongly reflects one’s experience, this could be a moment of validation. It’s quite common for people with BPD symptoms to spend years blaming themselves without knowing there’s a name for their experiences. Effective treatments, like Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), focus on emotional regulation and interpersonal healing.
BPD Symptoms, Explained
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) doesn’t look the same for everyone. While it’s strongly associated with emotional outbursts and chaotic relationships, its core features are more nuanced. Below are five central symptoms, their roots, and possible manifestations.
Emotional Instability
The core BPD symptom that is also the most common is emotional dysregulation. People with BPD tend to experience feelings more intensely and recover from them more slowly than others. A small disappointment can feel like devastation.
This isn’t dramatization. Sicorello and Schmahl’s study, published in Current Opinion in Psychology, studies the link between altered amygdala (the part of the brain responsible for decision-making and emotional responses) and emotional dysregulation. In people with BPD, the amygdala is wired to react more intensely to threatening stimuli, which are basically all the negative feelings.
From a psychological perspective, emotional instability, as a BPD symptom, is the result of early environments where emotions were ignored, punished, or inconsistently met. The nervous system becomes conditioned to scan for threats and react quickly. As a result, mood swings can happen within minutes and feel uncontrollable.
Fear of Abandonment
One of the most painful and defining traits of BPD is the intense fear of being left. This fear can be triggered by small, some may say, harmless events, such as someone taking longer to reply, a friend needing space, or even a partner being emotionally distant for a day.
This fear traces back to experiences of inconsistent love or emotional neglect in childhood. Early experiences are so powerful that they can teach a person to form a habit for their whole life, even if it may be harmful.
Fear of abandonment can become bigger and affect other areas of life. Naturally, romantic relationships are the biggest threat. Some might now even learn what healthy relationships look like, and that’s why they escape if affection disappears.
A very striking example from the media is BoJack Horseman. In the animated series, his relationships with his mom are distant, which repeats the abandonment cycle between his mom and grandmother. That’s why BoJack always sabotages all romantic relationships, which are frequently dysfunctional and manipulative.
Unstable Self-Image
A widely spread BPD symptom is identity disturbances. Who they are, what they value, or how they see themselves can shift frequently. One day, people with BPD feel confident and capable; the next, they feel lost and nihilistic towards the future.
This instability can stem from growing up in environments where parents’ inner worlds, their thoughts, feelings, and preferences, weren’t reflected back onto children. Without consistent emotional feedback, a brand-new kid, an empty page, doesn’t know where to start to build a cohesive self.
An unstable self-image can also manifest itself as:
- Frequent changes in goals, appearance, or sense of purpose
- Mimicking others in new environments
- Feeling like a “different person” depending on the relationship
Impulsive and Risky Behaviors
To cope with overwhelming feelings, people with BPD may turn to impulsive behaviors that offer temporary relief. Despite temporary indulgence that frees one from emotional pain, these behaviors also come with consequences.
People who have underdeveloped coping skills are more likely to opt for risky behaviors than those with healthy coping skills, such as journaling, mindfulness, or sports. Impulsive behavior can look like binge eating, drinking, drug use, reckless spending, unsafe sex, or quitting jobs or relationships suddenly during emotional overwhelm.
The most extreme version of risky behavior is self-harm and suicidal ideation. Over 70% of those with BPD symptoms reported self-harm experiences, and 31% shared that they had attempted suicide.
Chronic Feelings of Emptiness
Many with BPD describe a constant feeling of inner void. Usually, it’s a drenching, aching emptiness that persists. Unlike loneliness, inner emptiness evokes a sense of disconnection from oneself and others, as if nothing is ever truly real.
These feelings become BPD symptoms when a person finds themselves saying or feeling the following:
- Saying “I feel nothing” or “I don’t know what I want”
- Constantly seeking external stimulation to feel alive
- Feeling hollow even with their relationships or during the most significant achievements
These symptoms might intertwine, feeding off each other. For example, a fear of abandonment can lead to impulsive behaviors. Or emotional instability can make maintaining a self-image harder. But none of these BPD symptoms make someone “broken.”
BPD manifestations have developed as a protective mechanism for the individual. The mind and body are great adaptors that have learned to survive in environments lacking safety, validation, and consistency. Recognizing that one’s body adopts these mechanisms helps to reteach oneself to live in a safer environment during adulthood.
Photos by Nubelson Fernandes; Unsplash and Freepik
