hi my lovelies happy Wednesday today I'm
doing a video request from Melissa hi
Melissa and she asked me to talk about
when we take medication for BPD it makes
the BPD worse now I have done videos for
four on medication my more recent one I
think I've talked you through all the
different meds I've been on the good
ones and the really bad ones and and I
always say that no to meds work the same
or to people with them something might
be wonderful for you might be have a
really bad effect on someone else so
that and I always say that because I get
asked a lot well what are you on and I
don't think people should go back and
say all this she's in a recovery and
this works because it might not work on
you and so that's what I say that did
you know that no medication is
prescribed to treat borderline
personality disorder shock you're
thinking no that's not true I'm on meds
basically no medication has been proven
to help treat BPD but those of us with
BPD know we don't often just have BPD we
very often have it come orbit with
different disorders for example anxiety
or depression and in these cases
medication can be given to treat the
other disorders so you can be given
anti-anxiety medication you can be given
antidepressants to treat depression
there are also medications for example
antipsychotics
that don't treat BPD as a whole but they
can treat symptoms of BPD so one of the
traits can be having like dissociation
and we've been paranoid intrusive
thoughts
and antipsychotics have helped I've been
proven to help ease some of these traits
but like I said there's actually no
medication to treat BPD as a whole and
it's important that we know this because
if no medication is given or can be
given to help with BPD how are we
supposed to get well well like I say to
you we get well by learning new coping
skills and we learn to cope and we can
do it so well to the point we don't even
know we have BPD we just hope every
single day we can regulate our emotions
we can have good healthy relationships
and so that's how we do it with coping
skills but this is why medication can be
wonderful because no it can't get rid of
the BPD but how many of us have been
like in such crisis like it feels like
it's not just a one-off crisis we
literally having crisis of the crisis
after crisis our life is just like this
rollercoaster and we can't get off and
everything seems to be turning to date
and we don't know what to do and we're
offered DBT or we're offered some
counseling sessions when we're feeling
like that we don't want to go along to
group therapy we don't want to see a
counselor and if we do we're not very
likely to take the information in it's
literally going to go in one ear and out
the other because we've got so much
going on up here that we can't focus and
so it makes the whole thing pointless
because if we're not taking in the
information how are we going to learn
the coping skills and this is where
medication can help because it can
quieten the noise in our heads it can
ease the symptoms it can ease anxiety so
we're able to turn up and sit in a group
and engage in group therapy it can lift
our mood enough that we can finally get
out of bed and go to a counseling
session so I I'm a real believer
medication I think and I am gonna get to
the point I know this is this is like
I've kind of gone on but there's a
reason for this because it there's a lot
of people that think they like eating
well you can just get well without
having meds meds you don't need meds and
thirdly to the other person that can but
many people especially with BPD kind of
need a bit help just in the beginning
I'm not saying you have to be on meds
forever but in the beginning so like I
said so we're able to then engage in
therapy and take in the information that
we need we don't have to be on the meds
forever but there is a real slight
stigma attached to taking medication
when it comes to our mental health if
someone was in pain they wouldn't think
twice of taking a paracetamol but
someone could be so down they don't want
to get out bad but oh no don't want to
take medication that might make me get
my butt out of bed and learn some skills
to deal with the depression and I say
yes because getting to the topic right
six minutes I've got put that in the
notes I don't start talking to it about
what a six minutes medication can make
us feel worse or I've been on
anti-anxiety medication that has made me
so anxious I have been on
antidepressants that have literally made
me suicidal
the antipsychotics I've been on some of
them that like some were awful again one
of them I was left feeling suicidal
another I would just find myself in the
kitchen every morning at 1:00 a.m.
eating packs of biscuits and bags and
bags of crisps
and they're not put on night and I would
then feel even worse about myself
because my self-esteem is already on the
floor but I feel so so much worse about
myself and so I have been there with
taking medication and it not working and
I know the feeling go through life and
we feel so rubbish and horrible that we
what was that you say my phone just
beeped on yes so we feel so rubbish and
so horrible and we go to a doctor and
they give us a pill and it makes us feel
worse but this isn't fair this person
was happen this pill is supposed to make
me feel better and it can really make
leave us feeling disheartened like
what's the point and I don't want to go
through this again because why would we
when we fed up a feeling like crap
why would we take medication that is
going to make us feel worse but
unfortunately we never know how a
medication is going to be for us until
we try it and yes there is always the
risk it's gonna make us feel worse but I
would just say just be wary about saying
putting your hands up saying no more
because like at the beginning part of my
video what I was trying to get across to
you is that medication can be our
stepping stone to recovery
and without that stepping stone we can't
take the next step this out of reach
even if we're offered DBT if we're kind
of in it sucks a crisis or was so
anxious or was so depressed it's
completely out of our reach we're not
going to be able to take that step and
medication can be that first step
towards that so I do think it's kind of
when you're going to start a medication
just go into it open-minded don't go in
think he is gonna be bad it's gonna be
bad because you kindly replied the
placebo effect if you tell yourself it's
gonna be bad so you think it's bad so I
would say don't really overly focus on
it and but at the same time
Montee mood not like every single day
but maybe after the first seven days
have a check-in how am I feeling maybe
do it on day one of the medication how
am I feeling out of ten then day seven
how am I feeling out of ten and you
might have been feeling three before and
a week later you might be feeling a two
so it's not great but it's not a huge
drop either you've had a drop but it's
not a massive massive drop so then maybe
give it another seven days and if you've
dropped to it like a zero get on the
phone to your doctor and say this
medication isn't working I'm feeling
worse and then you can think about
stopping it and trying something else
because with medication it is trial and
error
there was probably so many of us that
can give stories of just how disastrous
some medications have been um but like
for me I like with one of them I I find
that happened so slowly I think I just I
had no idea it was the medication but
then I wasn't keeping track of myself I
just kind of
in downhill but after that bad
experience I became really aware when it
came to medication so then next time I
was put on a medication I'd kind of be
able to monitor my mood and think if
this is doing anything now here's the
thing as well always speak to your
doctor because if you are on a certain
medication and you've been on it a while
and you think this isn't working and you
just stop it chances are you're gonna go
downhill quick because you probably need
to be weaned off it but always speak
with a professional speak to your doctor
with regards to this have a voice when
it comes to your medication you don't
just have to take it and sit there and
go away and require and suffer if you
feel you're getting worse talk to
someone and tell them how you're feeling
because you don't have to just go on
continuing to take that medication but
do seek advice and don't just give up
and think no medication is going to
works like I said there are benefits say
my lovelies I'll be back on Friday I
love you overload