If you suffer from elimination disorders such as avoidant personality disorder, you experience extreme sensitivity to the impressions other people have of you. Constant feelings of inadequacy plague you and discourage you from having a normal, healthy social life, which is something everyone needs. You likely avoid putting yourself into any situation where you would have to be exposed to other people regularly.
Avoidant Personality Disorder Symptoms
There are five symptoms that anyone who has avoidant personality disorder will experience. These five symptoms are fear of becoming embarrassed, humiliated, or rejected, avoiding other people and isolating yourself as much as possible, and a general withdrawal from any social activities whatsoever.
Suffering from these symptoms is a sign that you suffer from low self-esteem and can’t handle being rejected. Social inhibition often prevents you from having the healthy support system everyone needs to live a happy and content life. When you practice avoidance behavior, you are doing a disservice to yourself, and you must seek help immediately. The first step in obtaining support for this type of severe social withdrawal is to understand its causes.
Causes Of AVPD
Though there is no clear cause of this disorder, factors can make a person more likely to suffer from it than others. In some cases, the condition is inherited from one’s family. Certain temperamental factors can cause it, such as anxiety disorders that can cause you to become socially inept.
These disorders often start when one is a child or a teenager and manifest themselves in characteristics such as shyness and fear. In some cases, these disorders can begin at only four months.
Studies have shown that if you suffer from this disorder as an adult, it could be because you were emotionally abused as a child. Prenatal factors can contribute to the appearance of the disease, so if your mother had an unhealthy pregnancy, you could have it.
Diagnosis
To properly diagnose you with this disorder, your doctor must be either a psychiatrist or a psychologist. A face-to-face assessment must be performed by a qualified professional. They will take your personal history and how many of the symptoms of the disorder you are experiencing.
Treatment For AVPD
There are many different treatment plans for this disorder, and the guidelines for each type of treatment vary. Various types of therapy are used to treat the disorder; including:
- Cognitive/Behavior Therapy
- Psychodynamic Therapy
- Interpersonal Therapy
- Psychopharmacological Treatment
- Group Therapy
- Family Therapy
- Medications
Cognitive/Behavior Therapy
Cognitive and behavior Therapy involves teaching you the healthiest ways to cope with anxiety so it doesn’t cripple you. Part of this type of Therapy involves exposing you to social situations you are not comfortable with to teach you how to become comfortable. Depending on the individual, one course of treatment may be all this is needed to treat this disorder. Only the severely impaired need multiple therapy sessions to successfully treat it.
Cognitive and behavior Therapy is most often applied if you have thoughts that are considered self-deprecating. Though this type of Therapy can often improve symptoms of the disorder, it can’t always eliminate them together. In some cases, intimacy training is needed to alleviate the disorder’s symptoms.
The ultimate goal of this type of Therapy is to alter how you think about yourself and how you assess yourself. It is designed to make you less critical of yourself and love yourself more. This is often the first step in recovery. Who may give it in conjunction with psychodynamic Therapy?
Psychodynamic Therapy
Psychodynamic Therapy is designed to interpret your fears to allow you to face them successfully. During this type of Therapy, you will learn why you fear the things you fear. Impulses you don’t even realize you have must be discovered and defined to help you start healing. When you are experiencing severe grief or shame about yourself and who you are, this type of Therapy can be very helpful.
Interpersonal Therapy
Interpersonal Therapy can help anyone suffering from this disorder. It is about overcoming your fear of being rejected by others. During this type of Therapy, you will be taught how to experience healthy emotions in your relationships with other people.
The behavior that is causing you to suffer is examined during this type of Therapy, and you are taught how to change your behavior so that it is healthy for you. Working through your behavior patterns with your therapist will go a long way in helping you become a happier person.
Most people who end up in Interpersonal Therapy are extremely timid and avoid interacting with others as much as possible. Throughout treatment, the natural progression is to become less nervous and more comfortable when interacting with people. You will build up your self-confidence to a healthy level when you undergo interpersonal Therapy. If you have a significant other, they are not unheard of to be involved in your therapy session.
This is done because your therapist knows that your significant other is likely the person you are most comfortable being around. You are instructed to practice new social skills with your partner so that you have the confidence to practice them with others as well.
Psychopharmacological Treatment
Though medication is not the first treatment option used for this disorder, there are cases where it may help you. Since general phobia and anxiety disorders are often treated with medication, it is not a stretch to think that medication can also help treat these disorders. Emotional pain is usually tremendous in anyone suffering from it, and medical science has proven that medications are effective in treating emotional pain in most individuals.
You may be prescribed anti depressants if you suffer from this disorder. However, not everyone with the disease responds to them. If you are one of these individuals, there is a relatively new medication that may help you. Mood-stabilizing properties can make dealing with the disorder significantly easier in some patients. Most of the time, you will be given medication for several months.
Group Therapy
Though you may be hesitant to participate in group therapy, you are likely to have to do so to assist in the healing process. Generally, you will be given individual Therapy before you are put into a group therapy situation. The individual therapy sessions you will undergo will help prepare you to handle group therapy healthily.
When you participate in group therapy, you will interact with others who are also suffering from the disorder. Doing so may help you heal emotionally, which will go a long way in helping you overcome the disorder altogether. You will likely draw courage from interacting with others who suffer the same way you are.
Family Therapy
If your family has contributed to your disorder, the whole family will likely have to undergo Therapy together. This type of therapy aims to have your family help encourage you to socialize with others in healthy ways that you can learn to be comfortable with. Your family members will be taught how to help you deal with your disorder and will be given all the knowledge they need to understand it.
General Medications
Aside from being prescribed antidepressants, you may also be subscribed to sedative medications during your treatment. Though the medication won’t single-handedly cure you, it will help you cope with the things you will have to do as part of your Therapy.
You will feel less anxious due to the medications, which will make you more comfortable when it comes to practicing normal social interactions. You may be prescribed a PCP or stimulant help you feel stronger and less vulnerable.
Other Considerations
When you suffer from this disorder, you may also perform compulsive behaviors when it comes to shopping and sexual activities. Alcohol and drug addiction and an eating disorder can also result from an APD diagnosis. If this is the case, you will need to seek additional treatment to be able to heal.
The definition of social anxiety and other similar terms must be made clear when dealing with the disorder. It is important to define withdrawn people as being victims of APD properly. As it is not an uncommon disorder, you should never feel ashamed of suffering from it.
Part of the problem with this is that many people who suffer from ADP already feel very bad about themselves, which often prevents them from seeking treatment. If you are one of these people, you should be aware that there is help out there available to you that you should take advantage of. No one should suffer from this diagnosis when Who can treat it in so many ways.
The roots of social anxiety and low self-esteem often lie in your experiences throughout your life. Extremely emotionally or mentally stressful events may bring to light symptoms of ADP that you didn’t even realize you had. It is important to stand up and recognize this disorder as something that can and should be treated. No matter how hopeless you may feel, there is help there for you.
Social disorders are more widespread than many people realize. This is partly because so many people are afraid to admit that they are suffering and seek the help they need. By seeking help for this disorder, you are helping other people who suffer from it as much as you are helping yourself. The more the medical community knows about the disorder, the better Who can treat it.
There are many qualified doctors in practice all across the country who can diagnose ADP. The presence of its symptoms in your life should never be ignored as there is no reason why Who can’t overcome these symptoms with the proper mixture of Therapy, medication, and emotional support that comes from a therapist or family; in ideal cases, both work together to help you cope with this disorder and learn how to manage it.
Conclusion
Though APD is still somewhat of a mystery in some ways, it is often being studied to uncover new and effective forms of treatment and therapy that can help you heal.
