Residential Treatment for Personality Disorders

Personality disorders can cause significant pain and heartache. Men and women with personality disorders often experienced loss, neglect, or abuse in childhood, leading to aberrations in their developmental processes that affected their sense of identity and feelings about other people. Personality disorders are frequently associated with self-centered or self-interested behaviors, which function as defense mechanisms in a world that seems hostile and unforgiving.

People with these conditions have a perspective on their lives that can be distorted and harmful. They may suffer needlessly for years, unaware that personality disorders are amenable to treatment.

BrightQuest offers comprehensive, individualized personality disorder residential treatment plans that can help those who have these disorders reverse their fortune, in every area of their life. Residential treatment for personality disorders at BrightQuest can produce remarkable results.

Personality disorders have both obvious and subtle impacts on self-esteem, self-image, and interpersonal conduct. When someone has a personality disorder they’ll know something is wrong, based on the nagging anxiety, hidden self-doubts, unbearable frustrations, and persistent conflicts that add so much unpleasantness and discomfort to their daily lives.

Personality Disorder Signs and Symptoms

The symptoms of each personality disorder are distinct. But deeper analysis reveals some patterns that recur in association with multiple conditions.

Some common signs of personality disorders include:

• Odd or strange speech or actions
• Social awkwardness, or socially inappropriate behavior
• Difficulty in forming or maintaining relationships
• Poor emotional control, marked by outbursts or overly dramatic behavior
• Impulsivity and recklessness
• Low self-esteem, which may be apparent or hidden
• Frequent attention-seeking behavior
• Insincerity or untruthfulness
• Suspiciousness and mistrust of others

The causes of personality disorders can often be traced to childhood. Men and women with personality disorders frequently blame others for their troubles, and that may be a side effect of their bad experiences with caregivers or other adults in their formative years. The role of early-life trauma in their onset highlights how deeply embedded these conditions can be, which explains why they often seem like fixed personality traits rather than mental health disorders.

Despite their deep roots, personality disorders can be recognized, addressed, and brought under control with carefully targeted, intensive treatment services offered on a residential basis. Personality Disorder treatment plans developed by BrightQuest’s licensed, trained, and highly experienced therapists and mental health recovery specialists incorporate only the best in evidence-based treatment practices, for personality disorders and any mental and behavioral co-occurring conditions.

Personality Disorders We Treat

There are several personality disorders that can be diagnosed, all of which can have a distorting effect on personal development and cause enormous life difficulties. They can leave those who have them vulnerable to additional mental and behavioral health problems, creating a complex medical situation that calls out for intensive, evidence-based treatment—which BrightQuest can provide.

Personality disorders are divided into three categories:

Cluster A: These personality disorders are characterized by unusual and eccentric thinking and behavior. Cluster A conditions include:

• Paranoid personality disorder. People with this disorder are perpetually yet irrationally suspicious of the intentions of others.
• Schizoid personality disorder. This condition causes emotional distance and detachment from others, and an apparent lack of reactivity and emotion (at least on the surface).
• Schizotypal personality disorder. This disorder is marked by distorted perceptions and unusual behaviors that can cause relationship troubles and odd or unexpected emotional outbursts.

Cluster B: Personality disorders in this category are associated with unpredictable, overly dramatic, and highly emotional thoughts and behaviors. Cluster B conditions include:

• Antisocial personality disorder. People with antisocial personality disorder lack respect for the feelings and needs of others, as they put themselves first in most situations.
• Borderline personality disorder. Men and women with BPD lack self-esteem and a distinct sense of identity, which leads to a fear of abandonment and emotionally erratic behavior.
• Histrionic personality disorder. With a flair for the showy and dramatic, people with this condition exert great effort trying to get attention from others.
• Narcissistic personality disorder. People with NPD lack empathy for others and require constant attention and flattery to feel good about themselves.

Cluster C: Conditions in this category generate persistent anxiety and irrational or obsessive fears that impact thinking patterns and behavior. Class C personality disorders include:

• Avoidant personality disorder. Sometimes misdiagnosed as social anxiety disorder, this condition is associated with serious social inhibitions, low self-esteem, and fear of rejection.
• Dependent personality disorder. People with dependent personality disorder feel unprepared to care for themselves, and consequently come to rely on others to protect and validate them.
• Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder. This condition manifests in perfectionism and an obsessive need for control over events and circumstances.

Co-Occurring Disorders

Personality disorders have a pervasive effect on thinking, behavior, and social interactions. Their dysfunctional elements leave those who have them prone to developing a wide range of psychological, emotional, and behavioral health difficulties.

One large-scale national study found that 42 percent of people with Cluster A personality disorders, 50 percent of those with Cluster C conditions, and an astonishing 83 percent of men and women with Cluster B personality disorders also had serious co-occurring mental or behavioral health disorders. Anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and substance use disorders were common across all categories, while those with Cluster A conditions were also vulnerable to psychotic disorders like schizophrenia.

Many people with personality disorders originally come to mental health treatment centers for help with other conditions. At BrightQuest we always screen for personality disorders, or for other life-altering disorders if a personality disorder has already been diagnosed. Either way, we offer comprehensive treatment plans that address any and all symptoms of mental health issues that might be uncovered.

You may not understand the nature of the mental health struggles your partner, parent, sibling, friend, or extended family member is experiencing. But that shouldn’t discourage you from becoming involved. If signs of deep distress are there, you should encourage the person you care about to be evaluated by a mental health professional to see what might be wrong.

Being diagnosed with a personality disorder can be embarrassing for some people. They see it as a stigma, or as a sign of impairment that others will use as an excuse to judge them. This can make them resistant and defensive when approached about getting treatment, even if they have substance use issues, depression, or anxiety troubles that they would like to do something about.

In these instances, your unconditional love, support, and acceptance can make all the difference in the world. Whatever their vulnerabilities or sensitivities, they know you care what happens to them and will eventually realize your concern is motivated by love. If you sell treatment as a method for gaining greater control over their lives, and boost their self-confidence by praising their strength and courage, there is an excellent chance they will agree to seek help.

At BrightQuest, we will be glad to answer any questions you or your loved one have about our diagnostic procedures and our onsite treatment programs for personality disorders and related conditions. If they’re ready to change, we’re ready, willing, and eager to offer our assistance.

Families have an important role to play in a loved one’s recovery from a complex mental illness. At BrightQuest our recovery programs for personality disorders include regular weekly family therapy sessions, which will be open to any member of your family who would like to attend. During these dynamic sessions you’ll offer your loved one critical and badly needed emotional support and encouragement, in an atmosphere that is caring, compassionate and solution-oriented.

If you want to increase your involvement, we also sponsor biweekly educational groups for families of our clients, where you can ask questions, share information, and learn much more about personality disorders and how they affect behavior. As your understanding of personality disorders and their co-occurring conditions grows, so will your ability to offer helpful support to your loved one as they continue their heroic efforts to overcome their greatest life challenge.

We also offer monthly multi-family support group meetings. Held at our facilities in San Diego and Nashville, these inspiring sessions will allow you to network with other men and women who understand the impact of personality disorders on family relationships.

Innovative, intensive, and client-centered: that best describes the BrightQuest approach to treatment, and explains why we’ve been able to help so many people gain control over their complex mental health disorders. When a personality disorder has disrupted your loved one’s life, they need an immersive healing environment where they can focus on recovery and wellness 24 hours a day, which is exactly what we provide.

The BrightQuest Recovery Experience

BrightQuest offers a uniquely intensive, customized recovery experience. At our facilities in San Diego and Nashville, your loved one will work with some of the most highly qualified treatment experts in the country, in an atmosphere that is serene and upbeat. Peers in treatment support each other wholeheartedly at BrightQuest, amplifying the effectiveness of treatment and motivating everyone to give their best effort at all times.

Our treatment plans are comprehensive and evidence-based, and broad-ranged enough to provide our clients with the instruction and assistance they need to overcome their mental health challenges while learning to live on their own successfully and sustainably.

Our full treatment plan includes the following core elements:

• Intensive individual, group, and family psychotherapy
• Vocational and educational support
• Living skills development training
• Structuralized socialization practice and instruction
• Additional specialized programming to supplement treatment and help strengthen a healthier mindset and lifestyle

BrightQuest Levels of Care

Personality disorders are complex conditions in their own right, and they’re usually complicated by the presence of additional life-altering disorders.

Fortunately, BrightQuest’s diagnostic evaluation procedures are customized to detect multiple conditions whenever they’ve developed. Our experienced treatment professionals know how to create multifaceted recovery plans that will treat all existing symptoms and conditions with equal effectiveness.

Recovery at BrightQuest starts at one of two levels of care:

• Residential Treatment. New clients with severe mental or behavioral health issues will begin their recovery in residential treatment. They will receive round-the-clock supervision and all the medical services they require, and medication may be introduced if the situation warrants it. Once a client’s medical conditions have stabilized, they will move over to our semi-independent living program.
• Semi-Independent Living. BrightQuest’s semi-independent living treatment program provides extensive mental health services while helping clients gradually make the transition to greater freedom and autonomy. Clients spend several months or more sharing a house with others who must also learn how to live and survive on their own.

Other levels of care at BrightQuest include Independent living, Extended services, and Family Consultation.

The BrightQuest Therapeutic Community

From the moment they arrive at BrightQuests, your loved one will be accepted with open arms. At BrightQuest they’ll spend months immersed in a nurturing environment where everyone pulls together to help each other reach their highest goals. EAt BrightQuest, authentic feelings of camaraderie and shared purpose bind everyone together. Surrounded by so much positive energy, your loved one can slowly but surely transform their perspectives on their personality disorder and begin to embrace the possibility of change. Their process of healing and growing will accelerate under the compassionate and watchful care of our skilled mental health treatment professionals, and the relationships they form with peers will help them deepen their empathy for their fellow human beings.

We’re here to help your loved one complete an important and life-altering transition. If their commitment to change is deep and real, our guidance and support can make a decisive difference.

If your loved one is suffering from a personality disorder, contact us today.