People with borderline personality disorder(BPD) are especially vulnerable to abusive relationships due to the intense self-hatred and fear of abandonment common to the disorder. Due to the relatively weak sense of self, it is difficult for a person with BPD to leave a relationship, even an abusive one. People with BPD may believe they deserve the abuse and have a hard time believing the relationship is abusive.

Sometimes psychiatric symptoms can cause an encounter with the police. Sadly, these encounters don't always bode well for the person with a mental illness. More Than Borderline's Becky Oberg talks about how specialized training can save lives by teaching police officers how to deal with people in a psychiatric crisis.

I didn't plan on making a part three to this series, but a lawsuit in Indiana just made it important. The lawsuit charged that it was inhumane and a violation of the Eighth Amendment's prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment to keep inmates with mental illness in segregation (isolation) with no access to "minimally adequate" treatment.

Today is the day. Today, I will report to the hospital for an assessment of my alcoholism. If there are no surprises, I will be admitted for a two-week stay. I will finally face my alcoholism in the hopes of getting it back into remission.

According to HealthyPlace.com, the National Association of Psychiatric Health Systems reports that 88 percent of their member hospital admissions are voluntary. However, that other 12 percent does exist. Sometimes a person is so incapacitated by their mental illness that he/she may not recognize the need for inpatient treatment. In cases like these, involuntary treatment may become necessary.

It is important to know how to relax. Relaxation exercises can help treat symptoms of borderline personality disorder. More Than Borderline's Becky Oberg explains why relaxation is important and shares a few examples of how to do so.

It's not every day a metaphor sends a person to the emergency room. On Monday morning, I was preparing a hot tea drink which required mixing in a blender. I placed my hand on the lid and turned the blender on, looking forward to the drink. Suddenly, the lid blew off the blender, sending scalding water into my face. After being treated at the hospital for first-degree burns, I took a look at the blender to see what went wrong. The problem--the steam had no way to escape because the lid's seal was too tight. The irony quickly struck me: since the steam could not vent, it literally blew up in my face.