Jeffrey C. Wood - The Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Workbook for Personality Disorders: A Step-by-Step Program

Congratulations on getting this book for yourself or someone you care about. I can only imagine how challenging it must have been to admit that you have a problem and then to seek help for it. Hopefully, The Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Workbook for Personality Disorders will provide you with the skills you need to build a healthier, more satisfying life.

Most likely, you picked up this book because someone such as a psychologist or psychiatrist told you that you have a personality disorder. This isnt a very flattering thing to say to someone. Clearly, this label wasnt created by anyone who was actually suffering with one of these difficult and painful problems. If it had been, the person certainly would have picked a more compassionate and appropriate label, one like dysfunctional habit or troublesome interpersonal style. Understandably, no one wants to be told that he or she has a personality disorder, and I can certainly appreciate why the name alone might prevent you from reading this book. As a consequence, part of the challenge while writing it has been figuring out how to help you with your problem without scaring you away at the same time.

As you may already know, the names of the disorders discussed in this workbook often sound more judgmental than helpful. For example, narcissistic personality disorder, avoidant personality disorder, and dependent personality disorder sound insensitive or insulting to many people. In some ways, these inappropriate names probably say more about the frustration of the early mental health experts who failed to provide successful treatments than they do about the pain of those who were struggling with the symptoms.

Similarly, other labels give the patients whove been diagnosed with them absolutely no information about the nature of their problems. For example, schizoid personality disorder, schizotypal personality disorder, and borderline personality disorder can sound baffling, and unless you understand Greek or are an avid reader of old medical journals, you probably have no idea what these terms means. (Schizo means split, by the way, and refers to splitting away from other people, while borderline refers to an old belief that patients with this problem were on the borderline of being psychotic.) Unfortunately, many of these names have endured and are now used in the American Psychiatric Associations official handbook of mental health problems known as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, now in its fourth edition.

With this in mind, I have attempted to be both accurate and compassionate while writing this book. However, some readers will still be bothered by the labels and descriptions that Ive used, and I cant say that I blame them. However, I hope that the labels and descriptions wont stop you from getting the help you need to improve your life, fix your relationships, and end your suffering. Because no matter what name is given to these problems, it doesnt change the fact that you and millions of people like you are struggling and dont know what to do about it.

Throughout this workbook Ill encourage you to think about your life in new ways. So starting right now, instead of thinking of your personality disorder as one, very large problem that dominates all aspects of your life, I encourage you to think about it as a group of ineffective habits. Right now you use several long-standing habits that dont work, but luckily, theres a treatment called cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) that will show you how to change those ineffective habitsone at a time.

Most readers will want to start at the beginning of this workbook and work through its chapters in order, since many of the skills build on one another. However, if youre working with a mental health care professional or you are using this workbook only to learn a few specific skills, use the descriptions below to guide you.

Part I, Understanding Personality Disorders, will teach you basic information about personality disorders and cognitive behavioral therapy:

• Chapter 1, What Are Personality Disorders? will help you identify the personality disorder youre suffering with by providing descriptions of other peoples symptoms who are struggling with the disorder too.
• Chapter 2, The Eleven Personality Disorders, will provide you with more specific information about your personality disorder, including its symptoms, the official diagnostic criteria, and other related problems.
• Chapter 3, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Personality Disorders, will introduce you to a very effective treatment for personality disorders called cognitive behavioral therapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy will help you examine the way your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors all contribute to the problems you experience.

Part II, Specific Cognitive Therapy Skills, will teach you techniques that will help you cope with your problems more effectively and change many of your habits.

• In chapter 4, Get Reactivated in Life, youll learn how to schedule both pleasurable and mastery activities into your life. Most people with personality disorders are stuck in the rut of doing the same activities over and over again. The result is that their lives often feel boring or unfulfilling. The goal of this chapter is to help you find time in your weekly schedule for activities that give you both pleasure and a sense of accomplishment.