Summary: It's oriented more toward BPD people who cause self-harm or have truly self-destructive behaviors. There are other books that address the full spectrum. Still, there are some helpful tips enough that I would throw it in the mix if you're dealing with a BPD person.
Read this on hoopla and don't quite have my settings correct for page numbers. Here they are:
225 pages left - "The powerful emotions and sensitivity of people with BPD can be exciting and intense. People with BPD can be dramatic and charismatic, and they are often quite caring and understanding. Nevertheless, caring for someone with BPD is like trying to hold onto the sun: the emotional intensity of a person with BPD can singe and char relationships."
218 pages left - They go through the idea that there are clinical disorders and personality disorders. Most people think of crazy as the former. The latter, though is also something to be addressed. It has to do with the way people act, regulate their emotions, etc.
215 pages left (why isn't this definition sooner, IMO) - "BPD is a disorder of instability and problems with emotions. People with BPD are unstable in their emotions, their thinking, their relationships, their identity, and their behavior." It goes on from there with why that might be.
I have no idea how they think this is only 1-2% of the population. I think this may be higher among those that do not seek help. I'd like to see more thorough studies done on populational cross sections.
213 pages left - there's a checklist of the traits. This is similar to what you'd find online.
201 left - They talk about the idea that BPD are thought to be manipulative, but in fact, it's just them reacting to what has worked. When they exhibit extreme behaviors, they get a reaction. They may not be thinking through the reaction and how self-harm is bad or hurting others is not ok.
200 left - They are not at risk of hurting others, even if portrayed this way. [Ok... this one, I why I docked a star. If you think the emotional damage that BPD does to loved ones is not a form of hurt, then we've got to agree to dissagree]
197 left - BPD is not hereditary. The next few pages talk about risk factors. They then say a few pages after: "...the family members of people with BPD work incredibly hard to help that person in anyway they can. These families are doing the best they can to help a loved one who just happened to be born more sensitive and emotional than some other people."
I love and hate this. There is a different book I'd recommend if you are a child with BPD. B/c the issue here is that by definition a BPD person during an episode is typically denying a child's reality. And one of the major things they do in this case is to make you feel guilty that it is your job to parent them. so this whole being sensitive b/c they are emotional is great! Helping families and being there for loved ones is important. But there is a form of self-harm children of BPD do that last a lifetime and permeates into bad relationships due to lack of boundaries. This book doesn't address that.
194-3 left - They talk about the bias to attribute BPD to women. That's not true.
190 left - tests with twins demonstrate the idea that it might be hereditary vs. nurture.
187 left - describe lower dopamene levels related to the DD4 gene. It relates to mood and pleasure. (actually it relates to a lot more than that, but whatevs)
The talk on hormones continues on the next few pages in a way that makes me think there has been little work done in the right way. I mean, all these hormones are also related to exercise, sleep, etc. I would have liked to see a more thorough discussion here. At any rate
185 left - "If you have BPD, you probably experience intense emotions that sometimes change quite rapidly and at other times stick around for an agonizingly long time. You may have trouble bringing yourself down once you feel a strong emotion. So it's probably not surprising that researchers have found differences in the amygdalas of people with BPD..."
BPD and PTSD people both have a smaller hippocampus.
183 left - reaction to minor stressors set you off beyond normal. There is an exaggerated cortisol response for BPD people.
181 left - childhood mistreatment might be a part of it.
179 left - he doesn't believe it's a kind of PTSD
177 left - problems with attachment due parenting
160 left - "The other point we want to make is that some people are simply born more emotionally intense than others. They feel things more strongly and experience their emotions more intensely. This is just hte way they are, a part of their personality. And because it is a part of their personality, this is probably not going to change."
135 left - he goes into suicidal behaviors.
133 left - he goes into the idea that BPD people are not manipulative so much as they are reacting to the pattern of how people react to their extremely behaviors (in this context self-harm).
124 left - "People with BPD often struggle with major relationship problems and conflicts. They also have difficulty being assertive or skillfully asking others for what they want." Again, he's in the context of self-harm.
115 left - he talks about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy as a means of treatment.
101/95 left He talks about Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (talking it out) This helps BPD accept themselves and their actions.
99--98 There are 3 items he lists: Emotional Sensitivity, Emotional Reactivity, Slow return to Emotional Baseline - This is what BPD people struggle with. They then talk about the invalidating environment.
88 left - emotional regulation skills consists of: Managing your emotions effectively, Observing or accepting your emotions, Chaging (increasing or decreasing) your emotional experience, Making yourself less vulnerable to emotions by increasing pleasant events in your life, taking care of yourself, and meeting your physical/emotional needs
Distress Tolerence Skills - Wow... didn't know this was a thing. Very cool.
82 left - Mentalization Based Treatment - this is developed to improve a sense of self. Helps you understand the connection between your mental states and your behaviors. Also helps you understand that mental states are separate from behavior.
77 left - The idea is that as a child you should talk kids through their emotions so they can learn to mentalize correctly. If they are sad, have them talk through. this helps them to put a name on their feelings and then think about actions and behaviors separately.
76 left - if you mis-mirror emotions for a child it's super confusing and can also be bad.
Then he says that BPD people often have problems with this.
32 left - "Being a very emotional person is not hte problem, though. The problem is the way in which some people with BPD cope with their emotions."
If you are a person with BPD, this is a great book for you. It doesn't go too hard and is pretty compassionate. If you are doing with someone dealing with a BPD personality, I think the major issue with this book is given it's softness, it does not do enough to speak to the idea that NONE of these behaviors are OK and you are essentially choosing to tolerate them. Like it is NOT ok for BPD person to do a series of things to others b/c they lack emotional control. They need to seek help. If they don't, then you are simply embedding in the behavior.
My issue is given the personalities I have met with BPD, I can't see them reading this book and seeking help unless they are all the way to 10 suicidal. The stuff in between though is pretty painful to thier lives and those of others. I think there are others that might be better. You really should only read this book if you are a person dealing with BPD if you have the emotional strength to actually help such a person. If you're a victim, spouse, or child, this book is a starting place, but just realize that you are not the intended audience at all.