August 7, 2026
Should You Tell People You Have BPD? The Honest Answer.
<p>Whether you've just been diagnosed with BPD or have been living with the diagnosis for years, deciding whether to disclose it can feel overwhelming. Should you tell your partner? Your family? Friends? Your employer? Or is it safer to keep it private?</p><p>In this episode, I explore one of the most common and emotionally difficult questions people with BPD ask.</p><p>🌱 Have questions, stories, or something you’d like us to cover? We’d love to hear from you. Email us at <strong>bpddiariespodcast@gmail.com </strong>and let’s keep the conversation going.</p><p>🎧 Looking for meditations made for emotional regulation, BPD, and more? Check out Empowered Heroes Meditations on Spotify.</p><p>If you’d like more support in your journey toward BPD recovery, Steff offers 1:1 sessions using evidence-based tools from DBT, Schema Therapy, and Mindfulness to help you heal. Email for a <strong>free 30-Minute Consultation</strong>:</p><p> 📩 steff@bpdsupport.org or check out the website: <strong>www.bpdsupport.org</strong></p><p><br></p><p>📚 <strong>Referenced Research Includes:</strong></p><p> Brohan, E., Henderson, C., Wheat, K., Malcolm, E., Clement, S., Barley, E. A., ... & Thornicroft, G. (2012). Systematic review of beliefs, behaviours and influencing factors associated with disclosure of a mental health problem in the workplace. BMC psychiatry, 12(1), <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-244X-12-11">https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-244X-12-11</a></p><p> De Picker, L. (2021). To diagnose or not to diagnose your BPD patient. European Psychiatry, 64(S1), S55-S55.</p><p> Ma, R., & Else-Quest, N. M. (2025). Destigmatizing borderline personality disorder with social justice and intersectional cultural humility: How researchers can construct and deconstruct stigma. Feminism & Psychology, 35(1), 3-21. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/09593535241278213">https://doi.org/10.1177/09593535241278213</a></p><p> Masland, S. R., Victor, S. E., Peters, J. R., Fitzpatrick, S., Dixon-Gordon, K. L., Bettis, A. H., ... & Rizvi, S. L. (2023). Destigmatizing borderline personality disorder: A call to action for psychological science. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 18(2), 445-460. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/17456916221100464">https://doi.org/10.1177/17456916221100464</a></p><p>Nault, E. (2025). The Moderating Effects of Disclosure on Bpd Personality Pathology Severity and Workplace Interpersonal Mistreatment (Doctoral dissertation).</p><p>Navarre, K. M. (2025). “You sure she's not making this up?”: A qualitative investigation of stigma toward adults with borderline personality disorder in physical healthcare settings. Personality and Mental Health, 19(1), e1646. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/pmh.1646"><strong>https://doi.org/10.1002/pmh.1646</strong></a></p><p>Stricker, J., Jakob, L., & Pietrowsky, R. (2024). Associations of continuum beliefs with personality disorder stigma: Correlational and experimental evidence. Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology, 59(9), 1629-1637. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-023-02543-8</p><p>van Schie, C. C., Lewis, K., Barr, K. R., Jewell, M., Malcolmson, N., Townsend, M. L., & Grenyer, B. F. (2024). Borderline personality disorder and stigma: Lived experience perspectives on helpful and hurtful language. Personality and mental health, 18(3), 216-226. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/pmh.1609"><strong>https://doi.org/10.1002/pmh.1609</strong></a></p><p>Villet, L., Madjlessi, A., Revah-Levy, A., Speranza, M., Younes, N., & Sibéoni, J. (2024). The lived experience of French parents concerning the diagnosis of their children with borderline personality disorder. Borderline Personality Disorder and Emotion Dysregulation, 11(1), 13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40479-024-00258-z</p><p>Volkov, I., Sheppard, D. M., Kirk-Brown, A., & Van Dijk, P. (2025). Workplace outcomes after mental health disclosure: the critical influence of supervisor reactions. Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation, 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-025-10352-w</p><p>Watts, J. (2024). The epistemic injustice of borderline personality disorder. BJPsych International, 21(4), 78-82. doi:10.1192/bji.2024.16</p><p>business.com/articles/disclosing-mental-health-at-work</p><p> pursuit.unimelb.edu.au — source for BPD stigma exceeding schizophrenia in healthcare settings.</p>
