Do you know someone you suspect may have paranoid personality disorder? While some people can seem suspicious by nature, paranoid personality disorder is a mental health disorder that requires treatment by professionals.
Someone living with this level of paranoia will find themselves having difficulties on the job, in school, and maintaining long-term healthy relationships. Montare Behavioral Health understands the severity of this mental illness and how a high level of distrust makes having good mental health impossible. We provide programs for residential treatment and outpatient care to help people get their needs met on a schedule that works for them. With the help of our vastly experienced mental health counselors, people with paranoid personality disorder can experience a reduction in their symptoms and greater control of their tendency to distrust others.
What is Paranoid Personality Disorder?
Paranoid personality disorder is a type of personality disorder that causes people to be extremely suspicious of others without justifiable reasons. They keep their guard up in the belief that both those they know and strangers have a goal of causing them harm. Despite reassurance from others, they typically cannot be convinced that they are being paranoid. This causes tremendous difficulty for the person with paranoid personality disorder to have healthy, long-term relationships with others. It can also impact their performance on the job and interaction with friends.
Signs of paranoid personality disorder usually first surface in a person’s teen or young adult years. This disorder is not considered a psychotic disorder because it does not include hallucinations like other mental illnesses like schizophrenia.
Signs & Symptoms of PPD
It can be easy to write off the symptoms of paranoid personality disorder as someone being stubborn or eccentric, but the condition is quite serious. Common signs and symptoms of paranoid personality disorder include:
- Distrusts those around them, regardless of how well they know them
- Doubts that people have loyalty to them
- Holds grudges against real and perceived slights
- Does not respond well to criticism
- Difficulty working with others
- Isolates from others in an effort to protect themselves
- Does not perceive their roles in confrontational situations
- Twists innocent comments into something harmful or sinister
Anyone concerned that they or a loved one might have paranoid personality disorder should speak to their doctor or a mental health counselor. An assessment can be made to determine if they have this mental illness and a plan for treating it can be implemented.
Causes of PPD
Anyone who has paranoid personality disorder or cares about someone who does wonders about what might have caused it to develop. No singular cause exists, but there are some factors that can contribute to having it. Genetics may play a part, as they do so often for other mental health disorders. Having a family history of psychotic disorders can elevate the chances a person will have the disorder.
In addition, a person with a childhood history of physical or emotional neglect has a higher tendency to develop paranoid personality disorder. The illness is more common in males than females, though why is not certain. A study shows that approximately 75% of people with paranoid personality disorder also have another type of personality disorder. The most frequent comorbid personality disorders include avoidant personality disorder, borderline personality disorder, and narcissistic personality disorder.
Treatment Options for Those Who Have Paranoid Personality Disorder
Getting someone into treatment for paranoid personality disorder can prove difficult because they often assume nothing is wrong with them. Once the person starts therapy, it can take longer than average to develop trust with their therapist. Popular therapy modalities that help people with this disorder include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavior Therapy. Both of these types of therapy help teach the individual to learn the difference between reality and paranoid suspicions. The therapist helps them work on developing healthy coping skills and how to trust others.
There aren’t any medications with the sole purpose of treating paranoid personality disorder. Having said that, some prescription medications can help reduce the symptoms of the disorder. If the individual has a co-occurring mental illness such as anxiety or depression, they may benefit from taking anti-anxiety and antidepressant medications. If their symptoms are extreme, they might be put on antipsychotic drugs to see if they help.
Contact Montare Behavioral Health About Treating Paranoid Personality Disorder
Having paranoid personality disorder causes tremendous disruption to a person’s life. They become unable to develop healthy, long-lasting relationships with family and friends or sound connections with co-workers. Living with this level of distrust and the assumption that everyone is out to get them takes its toll. Montare Behavioral Health created a treatment program to help people who have paranoid personality disorder. We offer both residential care, which takes place in a live-in facility, and outpatient care, which takes place several days per week. Our goal is to help each person reduce their symptoms, become more at ease in the world, and experience more peace of mind.
Contact us today and let us tell you more about how our program for paranoid personality disorder works. We also offer prescription medication options and can provide a free insurance check for you.
