Types Of Personality Disorders

Personality disorders are mental health concerns, which drastically transform the way of a person life. They completely change the way a person interacts with others as well as pose problems in all the spheres. In case such a problem arises, it becomes necessary to seek medical treatment. However, to seek therapy, it is important to know the various types of personality disorders and their symptoms. These personality disorders are mainly classified into three clusters.

 

Cluster 1 comprises of the following categories of disorders.

 

People suffering from Paranoid personality disorder are emotionally very cold. They constantly experience a feeling of distrust, discomfort, suspicion and deceit for others. Moreover they are prone to anger without any reason and are unforgiving. They usually lead a life of a recluse.

 

Patients suffering from Schizoid personality disorder are introvert, shy and prefer staying aloof. They have few social relations and are inexpressive about their emotions. They are engrossed in their own thoughts and often excel when placed in solitary positions.

 

When suffering from Schizotypalpersonality disorder, a person exhibits eccentric ways of talking and dressing. These people live in their own world and at times can be seen talking to themselves. They might react very aggressively over a conversation and at times might not react at all. They also claim to possess magical thinking, which enables them to see future and read other people’s mind.

 

Cluster 2 comprises of the following personality disorders.

 

Antisocial personality disorder is prevalent more amongst men than women, in younger people, people belonging to low socio economic strata of society, single and less educated individuals. The symptoms include disregard for the rights of others. These people do not conform to the social norms and lawful behavior. They are deceitful careless and unsympathetic towards others. This condition often results in, what is known as Sociopath.

 

People afflicted with Borderline personality disorder are on the border line of psychosis and neurosis. It occurs in almost 2 percent of the population, the majority of which is women. These people are very unstable in their personal relationships. They also exhibit random patterns of change in mood, behavior and self image. This makes them unpredictable and prone to self destructive actions. They face great difficulty with their own self identity.

 

In Narcissistic personality disorder, an individual experiences an exaggerated sense of self importance. They are lost in the thoughts of unbound success, fantasy and seek attention. They have self centered interpersonal relationships and are susceptible to criticism.

Histrionic Personality Disorder
In Histrionic personality disorder, a person is overly dramatic and gives himself loads of self importance. They have excessive mood swings and make shallow interpersonal relations.

Cluster 3 comprises of the following personality disorders.

 

In Dependent personality disorder, people strongly exhibit dependent and submissive behavior. They require constant reassurance as well as someone to make decisions for them, related to all the aspects of their life. They are even highly vulnerable to the fear of rejection.

 

People with Avoidant personality disorder have extreme fear of rejection and negative judgment from the society. They suffer from low self esteem and crave for acceptance and affection. At times it even results in social withdrawal.

 

Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder
People suffering from Obsessive-Compulsive personality disorder, are workaholics and perfectionists. They do things purely their own way and are highly inflexible.