MENTAL HEALTH
Hope for the Fearful: 5 Surprising Facts About Avoidant Personality Disorder
AVPD causes intense fear and longing, but the truth about this disorder suggests there is hope for those who cope.
Suppose you’re sensitive to criticism. You’re withdrawn, shy, and awkward. The way people perceive you is a constant worry on your mind. If fear of rejection makes you avoid friends or work, you’re not alone and may have Avoidant Personality Disorder, known as AVPD.
AVPD is classified as a Cluster C personality disorder. The symptoms you experienced involve fear and anxiety.
If you’re confused by the name, then you’d be somewhat surprised. Celebrities Whoopi Goldberg and Donny Osmond are among those who lived with AVPD. As with all disorders, we must learn what we can by analyzing research. The lives of those with lived experience provide other people with support and hope.
Let’s go over some more information about AVPD.
What is Avoidant Personality Disorder?
AVPD is not social anxiety. It’s not anxiety about being out in public.
AVPD is a disorder of fear and longing. You may wish to be social, but you fear the feeling of shame. Before you go to work or try out a new activity, you worry obsessively — will you be ridiculed in public? The thought of rejection becomes too terrifying to bear. That’s why people with AVPD avoid responsibilities.
With AVPD, you may fear parties, job interviews, dates, or meetings. Even casual visits with friends can cause anxiety. The fears also cause some rather worrying physical problems. Uncomfortable symptoms. Loss of breath and shakiness. Palpitations and heart-racing are issues you’ll endure.
With AVPD, you don’t have to be socially isolated, but avoidants also have one distinct symptom: they seek out a connection only if they’re certain they’ll be liked. As a result of this behavior, avoidants often feel lonely.
To meet the diagnostic criteria for Avoidant Personality Disorder, four of the following must be true:
· You don’t want to pursue relationships unless you’re confident you’ll be liked.
· You’re constantly preoccupied with rejection, criticism, or shame, even in everyday social situations.
· You view yourself as inadequate, inferior, unattractive, and socially incompetent.
· You refuse to be vulnerable or intimate in relationships for fear of ridicule or embarrassment.
· You’re unwilling to take risks that will improve your life, such as trying new things or meeting new people, for fear of being humiliated or rejected.
What causes AVPD?
Environmental or genetic factors cause AVPD. If you grew up in a hostile household, you have a higher chance of being diagnosed. If your parents had AVPD, you might also likely develop AVPD. Understanding causes helps doctors better treat clients.
And now, five facts about AVPD
Myths about mental illnesses contribute to mental health stigma, the term referring to people’s negative views and thoughts regarding mental illness. For a more optimistic view of the disorder accompanied with information about treatment, you’ll be much more likely to seek help by reading the following information
1. No medication is approved for AVPD, but Zoloft is approved for Social Anxiety Disorder [source].
If you have AVPD, knowing a drug is available is a relief. Without a medication, you might not believe you could ever get well.
Zoloft, also known as Sertraline, is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), a class of highly recommended drugs that increase serotonin in the brain, helping you to feel less anxiety and fear, especially when involved in situations where rejection or scrutiny would occur.
Zoloft is among the most widely used medicines for anxiety and depression. Treatment for older adults reduces both worry and anxiety.
With Zoloft, you might not worry as much about what others think. You’ll live free of the anxiety of fearing shame and ridicule. Your thoughts will be positive, your life outlook will improve, your fear and anxiety will be diminished overall.
Full effectiveness may take as long as eight whole weeks, but in the meantime, teletherapy is proven effective.
Now, let’s move onto another fact. This one’s about gender.
2. Overall, men and women are equally affected by AVPD. [source]
This graphic will help you be wary of this fact.
Women and men fear rejection equally. The reasons they have this fear are also similar.
There is constant pressure to have friends, be attractive, and make loads of money. Ultimately, these burdens make coping with symptoms more difficult.
So, where does the hope lie?
Among hundreds of online support groups, available to everyone — men, women, and those who identify as transgender or non-binary.
Gender-specific support groups help with bonding and connection, but all support groups are proven effective. Unlike mental health peer groups, support groups talk about life, from relationship issues to work conflicts, to the meaning of life and grief management. The discussion is generally uplifting, and the options to attend are endless. You should consider attending support groups if you’ve been diagnosed with AVPD.
Helpful resources
There’s Support Groups Central, as well as Meetup and Facebook. Peer mental health groups are a practical option, too. Mental health groups work when a licensed mental health professional is needed, which is ideal for challenging anxiety-ridden thought patterns and beliefs.
Now, the following fact discusses AVPD and drugs. What is known about this topic so far?
3. Of those with AVPD, 19.56% suffer from drug dependence [source].
Not the highest percentage, but still worth pointing out. Drugs cause psychosis, anxiety, and fear, and since you might have depression with AVPD, you might self-medicate, so in most cases, drug abuse is a bad idea.
Think about harder street drugs like cocaine and heroin, which can develop into serious addictions and overwhelm you even faster. Even cannabis abuse causes loneliness and reduces flourishing.
But all substances contribute to the severity of symptoms. Therefore, you’ll need to consider drug treatment to take part in two important steps:
· Detoxification to prepare for sobriety
· A treatment team meeting to ensure positive outcomes
This is the process to get sober so you have an improved chance of treating AVPD.
And drugs aren’t the only thing to quit. Alcoholism worsens AVPD symptoms, too.
4. Of those with AVPD, 34.91% suffer from alcohol dependence [source].
Alcohol dependence affects the brain and body, which makes life harder if you happen to have AVPD.
Below is a picture that illustrates this idea.
The man is probably lightheaded, dizzy, his head pounding as he drifts closer to sleep. He could try his best to socialize, but as the night wears on, he’ll become depressed and moody. After a while, he’ll be bad company and no one would want him around.
The alcohol is a depressant that slows his nervous system.
Drinking also lowers inhibition, which could lead you to behave self-destructively, whether that’s risky sex or aggressiveness, mistakes cause sensitivity.
If you have AVPD, you hurt yourself if you’re abusing alcohol, but as with substances, a brighter future awaits you. Make sure you check in at a rehabilitation center.
The staff will help you see how your disorder contributes to alcoholism. Rehab will get you to confront your fears and anxious thoughts, while also helping you progress from your comfort zone where the fear has you trapped. Rehab is an excellent solution if you’re struggling with alcoholism, especially if you also happen to be coping with AVPD.
Another way towards happiness: you guessed it, a long-lasting relationship. But there’s one intriguing fact that you don’t have to necessarily take as bad news.
5. More than half of people diagnosed with AVPD are single [source].
AVPD symptoms pose risks to relationships. Friends’ night out may mean encountering strange faces. Date night out means a conversation gone wrong. Anything ranging from eating terrible food to being mocked on the dance floor would create a worst-case scenario if you have AVPD.
Intimacy is another part of relationships that produces anxiety. Consider, for example, if you had a fear of undressing, stressed about underperforming, or felt bothered without clothes. You may feel constant worry about getting close to others as the thought of being rejected is paralyzing. In such a scenario, there has to be a way to get healthy.
The path ahead lies in couples counseling. In this kind of therapy, you’ll work on improving communication. You’ll also learn techniques to help you feel and show empathy. From there, you’ll plan activities for building an unbreakable trust, and in doing so, learn more about the following:
· How to solve stressful interpersonal conflicts
· How to develop a mutual understanding on a topic or issue
· How to rekindle affection through planned experiences
With AVPD, you can use therapy to help with relationships
In an article with Psych Central, Illinois-based clinical social worker Lynn Zakeri describes strategies for improving relationships, discussing transparency and sensitivity among people with AVPD.
“Build trust in each other by being open and honest, sharing your thoughts and feelings, rather than avoiding and hiding.”
Zakeri explains that if you have AVPD, you’re sensitive to being hurt, so both partners should focus on aspects of the relationship they can change.
In doing so, the relationship would be more fulfilling, and ultimately, longer-lasting than ever, which is what anyone with Avoidant Personality Disorder would want.
Have hope if you have AVPD
You’re frightened and sensitive, trapped in pain, capable of love and friendship, and strengthened by longing. But without therapy and medication, you’ll struggle to sustain a future. For treatment, you may need to rely on an intricate, multi-faceted approach.
Personality disorders continue to be difficult to treat, but there is reason to believe that hope rests in the facts.
The facts are what shed light on the symptoms. The facts help us believe there is a chance for recovery. If you’ve been diagnosed with AVPD and need support, you can now believe in your ability to recover and live well.
