Your Guide to Paranoid Personality Disorder

Paranoid personality disorder (PPD) is a chronic mental health condition which is characterised by long-term and enduring patterns of suspicion or distrust of other people, without any adequate reason. Since it is a personality disorder, individuals with PPD are often unaware of their behaviour and do not see anything wrong with it. Hence, it can be challenging to persuade them to seek professional help.

Personality disorders can be difficult to understand; hence, there is little awareness about them. Hence, being diagnosed with or having a loved one diagnosed with PPD can be challenging as you may not know what to expect.

In this article, we take you through what PPD is, its symptoms, and the most common paranoid personality disorder treatment approaches that can help manage the symptoms of this chronic mental health condition.

Also read: Therapist-Recommended Tools to Start a Conversation on Your Mental Health With Your Family

What is Paranoid Personality Disorder?

As mentioned earlier, PPD is a mental health condition which is characterised by suspicion and distrust of others, even without any adequate reasons. These are not short-term periods of doubt, but rather long-term and enduring patterns of suspicion that others are out to threaten or demean them.

People with PPD are suspicious of their surroundings, which may make them cold and distant. Due to their suspicious nature, an individual with PPD is unable to form close relationships. However, although their fears and suspicions may be unfounded, they are not based on delusions or hallucinations.

Rather, they have a distorted view of the world, which makes them overly cautious of other people.

Also read: The Role of Therapy in Managing Personality Disorders

What are the signs of Paranoid Personality Disorder? 

PPD is characterised by suspicion of other people, without any adequate cause. However, these feelings can often make people seem cold and distant, severely impacting their personal lives.

Although individuals with PPD are often perceived to be hostile, rude, or suspicious by other people, they continue to believe that there is nothing wrong with their behaviour.

Besides a pervasive distrust of other people, signs of Paranoid Personality Disorder may include:

• Feelings that they are being lied to, deceived, or exploited by other people

• Believing that friends, family, and romantic partners may be untrustworthy and unfaithful

• Angry outbursts when they feel that they are being deceived

• Looking for hidden meanings in gestures and conversations

• Finding it difficult to relax in most situations

• Overly controlling in relationships to avoid being exploited or manipulated

• Holding negative views of other people around them

• Being overly sensitive to criticism from others

• Being stubborn, hostile and argumentative in most situations

How to Treat Paranoid Personality Disorder?

Psychotherapy is the preferred treatment approach for managing symptoms of PPD. With techniques such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) individuals are able to challenge pervasive thought patterns and work on changing their harmful behaviours.

While there are no specific medications for PPD, if individuals experience symptoms of other mental health conditions, such as depression or anxiety, medication may be prescribed. However, medication alone is not the recommended paranoid personality disorder treatment.

Also read: Breaking the Stigma: Talking about Mental Health in the Workplace

The greatest obstacle in treating PPD is convincing individuals to visit a professional. Although it may be challenging to persuade individuals to seek help, it's important to be hopeful. With appropriate paranoid personality disorder treatment and support from others, managing PPD is possible. 

Sources:

1. https://www.verywellmind.com/paranoid-personality-disorder-2795448

2. https://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1285&context=gscp_fac

3. https://hospitals.aku.edu/pakistan/diseases-and-conditions/Pages/paranoid-personality-disorder.aspx

4. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/9784-paranoid-personality-disorder#:~:text=disorder%20(PPD)%3F-,Paranoid%20personality%20disorder%20(PPD)%20is%20a%20mental%20health%20condition%20marked,demean%2C%20harm%20or%20threaten%20them.