Volume 1, Issue 1

Address Label Here

 
Hello Kathi, I found your response extremely useful. As I said in my original letter, I'd found a great deal of information regarding diagnosis and the characteristics of BPD but very little regarding treatment. Following your response, I was able to put a pack together to distribute to my team and then use this as a base line when we came to care-planning our client. This helped in a number of ways.

Possibly the most significant impact or your work was that it helped my team to understand that it was our client's condition that was making her so difficult to be with at times - and not her.

As professional as my team are, they were finding themselves drawn into petty and destructive arguments, responding negatively to personal insults and generally finding our client difficult to like. This was despite the fact that she was clearly reaching out to them for help and desperately confused by her mixed emotions.

After I introduced your work to them and the BPD pack that I'd put together, the heavy atmosphere in the unit just seemed to lift. The team were able to objectify the condition and this stopped them taking my client's behavior and attitude towards them personally.

The work that had been exhausting and mentally draining before became understandable and stimulating now because we had something with a name, recognizable criteria and also strategies for dealing with it.

The impact for our client was immediate. Because the team felt more confident they responded more positively towards her. Because my client felt less rejected and more accepted, her confidence grew and she was able to develop more positive relationships with each of her team.

This young woman is sixteen next week and we're throwing a surprise party for her. Many of the staff that have worked with her across the years will be there and this is because they have a genuine affection for her. Prior to her diagnosis we were looking at long term care in a therapeutic setting for this client. Now, because of the work we've been able to do with her, we're moving her towards independence.

Finally, I have been able to pass on the pack I put together, including your response, to other team leaders who have begun working with BPD young people. So, your work has impacted across our organization and on the lives of a number of young people. Thanks once again for all that you do. Jen Slade