Personality Disorders

People who have a personality disorder have aspects of their personality that they and others find difficult to manage. They often experience a lot of issues and can be very distressed by them. A personality disorder will generally show up by late adolescence or early adulthood. A

psychiatric evaluation

by a

psychiatrist

is used to diagnose a patient. Patients with a personality disorder are generally managed by a team including the

primary care doctor

, psychiatrist and

psychologist

. The main treatment method for personality disorders is

psychotherapy

where psychologists use clinically researched techniques to assess and help people to make positive changes in their lives. Sometimes medications are prescribed for a short-term strategy or to treat another mental health condition the patient is suffering from such as

depression

. Other complementary therapies can be utilised to improve symptoms such as practising

mindfulness

,

exercise

,

relaxation

and

hypnotherapy

.