Paranoid Personality Disorder: Causes And Symptoms
Individuals who suffer from Paranoid Personality Disorder are usually characterized by having a very pronounced distrust. and generalized towards other people over a relatively long period of time.
People who suffer from this disorder are extremely suspicious of the acts, attitudes or intentions of others, to the point that they believe that there are conspiracies and “suspicious” movements that seek to hurt or harm them in some way.
Throughout this article we will see what the symptoms, possible causes and treatments of Paranoid Personality Disorder are, and its general characteristics as a psychological alteration.
We know Paranoid Personality Disorder as a clinical entity from the field of psychiatry and clinical psychology of the DSM-IV manual. In this personality disorder, it stands out the existence of paranoid delusions : the belief that there are third parties who seek to harm us in some way, and in a covert or secret way.
Therefore, people who present this clinical picture tend to attribute malicious intentions to other people or entities, regardless of whether they are or have been physically close to them or whether they truly exist.
Paranoid personality characteristics
People affected by this disorder vividly believe that other individuals are trying to take advantage of them, or want to harm or harm them, although there is no data or evidence that leads to that conclusion. We should not confuse this pathological belief pattern with what an average human being may think or experience at certain times in life, for example in the work environment, such as feeling less valued than a co-worker, etc.
People who suffer from Paranoid Personality Disorder are extreme cases of this trait, and They carry these false beliefs to all or almost all areas of life : from the professional field to friendship or family relationships.
Symptoms
The repetition of paranoid experiences is the main feature of Paranoid Personality Disorder. During these episodes, the affected person will experience some of the following symptoms:
Causes
Although this disorder has been studied in depth, there is still no reliable data on its causes. There are different theories and hypotheses about the causes of paranoid personality disorder.
In most cases, mental health experts agree that the causes are biopsychosocial, that is, a mixture of biological and genetic factors combined with learned and social factors. In other words, there would be a certain genetic and biological predisposition to have a paranoid type of thinking structure, but also learned roles and the environment can lead to this predisposition clearly manifesting itself, or not.
In addition, there are also psychological causes, which are linked to the personality, character and temperament of the person, which may also be related to the appearance of paranoid disorder. For example, having learned coping strategies during childhood can be a preventive factor when developing certain mental disorders, since it allows you to alleviate the discomfort caused by the stress caused by certain everyday situations.
Be that as it may, it is a multi-causal disorder and each case is unique.
Treatment
Treatment for paranoid personality disorder is usually based on psychological therapy with a psychologist with experience and training in professional support in this type of case. Certain psychotropic drugs can also be administered if the symptoms and the personal and social context of the affected person warrant it.
Psychotherapy is the least invasive and most effective method when treating any type of personality disorder.
As it is a disorder that has its origin in the patient’s maladaptive and irrational beliefs, the focus will revolve around regaining the trust of the affected person, since it is not usually common for them to talk about their paranoid ideas up front.
2. Pharmacological
Psychotropic drugs, despite being effective from a psychiatric point of view, are not recommended in this type of case because they can generate suspicion and misgivings on the part of the patient, and this usually leads to abandonment of the therapeutic process. In that case, if strictly necessary, the administration of medications should be limited to short periods of time.
Anxiolytic psychotropic drugs, for example Diazepam, are usually administered in cases where the patient suffers from anxiety or agitation. Antipsychotic-type medication, for example Haloperidol, may be indicated if the affected person has psychotic thoughts that may be potentially dangerous to themselves or other people.
