Axis II Disorders, Borderline Personality Disorder and Post Traumatic Research Proposal

Axis II Disorders, Borderline Personality Disorder and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder - Research Proposal Example 3). The American Psychiatric Association(APA) in the DSM-IV Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th Edition) classifies PTSD as one of the anxiety disorders, typically caused by either or several of the three types of traumatic events: Intentional human causes, Unintentional human causes, or Acts of Nature. The presence of the stressor as part of the diagnosis differentiates PTSD from other disorders and makes it a uniquely complex phenomenon. (page number) persistent (more than one month) re-experiencing of the trauma (this category of symptoms is titled â€Å"intrusive memories† in Johnson, 2004), persistent (more than one month) avoidance of trauma-associated stimuli and suppression of general responsiveness (â€Å"avoidance behavior according to Johnson, 2004), persistent (more than one month) symptoms of hyperarousal (or, according to Johnson, 2004, â€Å"hyper-vigilance†), and disruption of psychological and functional equilibrium. Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is defined as â€Å"a highly prevalent, chronic, and debilitating psychiatric problem† associated with the following symptoms: â€Å"a pattern of chaotic and self-defeating interpersonal relationships, emotional labiality, poor impulse control, angry outbursts, frequent suicidality, and self-mutilation† (Levy, 2005, p. 259). Kernberg (2004), who considered the organization of the personality to be crucially determined by affective responses as displayed under conditions of peak affect states, adds to this definition: â€Å"identity diffusion and the †¦ predominance of primitive defensive operations centering on splitting† among the key symptoms of this psychological dysfunction noting that they are accompanied by â€Å"the presence of good reality testing† (p. 99). The researcher meant that although the patient imagined himself living in the paranoid and