An Integrated Intervention for Management of Adolescent Girl with Borderline Personality

Youth with borderline personality experience intense mood swings and exhibit impulsivity, aggression and self harm behaviour markedly. Although CBT has proven to be an effective treatment approach for such patients. Need is felt to incorporate other therapies like family therapy especially when unfavourable childhood experiences and disturbed familial relations have a role to play. This case study aimed to discuss about an efficacy of integrated intervention combining application of CBT along with Family therapy in a young girl with adolescent borderline personality. This is a case of a young girl presenting with complaints of verbal and physical aggression and excessive impulsivity increased in family context present from childhood. She had negative childhood experiences. Since she refused hospitalization and pharmacological intervention, she was managed on out-patient basis by using integrated intervention combining application of CBT along with Family therapy. Results shows as the therapy progressed, the patient reported improvement in terms of general well-being and gradually, there was 70% improvement according to the patient as well as her mother. Childhood experiences and family relationships play a pivotal role in contributing towards personality formation in adolescents. Combining CBT with Family Therapy may prove to be beneficial in such cases.