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Please Don’t Leave Me—Separation Anxiety and Related Traits in Borderline Personality Disorder

  • Personality Disorders (K Bertsch, Section Editor)
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Abstract

Purpose of Review

In light of the apparent symptomatic resemblance of separation anxiety disorder (SAD) symptoms on the one hand and abandonment fears, anxiousness, and separation insecurity central to borderline personality disorder (BPD) on the other hand, a comprehensive overview of separation anxiety and related traits in BPD is provided.

Recent Findings

Epidemiological, environmental, psychological, and neurobiological data connecting BPD to separation events, feelings of loneliness, insecure attachment styles, dimensional separation anxiety as well as SAD per se suggest a partly shared etiological pathway model underlying BPD and SAD. Differential diagnostic aspects and implications for treatment are discussed, highlighting separation anxiety as a promising transdiagnostic target for specific psychotherapeutic and pharmacological treatment approaches in BPD.

Summary

This innovative angle on cross-disorder symptomatology might carry potential for novel preventive and therapeutic avenues in clinical practice by guiding the development of interventions specifically targeting separation anxiety and attachment-related issues in BPD.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the CRC-TRR58 (projects C02 and Z02 to KD) funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and in part by Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di La Spezia (to SP and MS). KD and SP are members of the Anxiety Disorders Research Network (ADRN), European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP).

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Author notes

  1. Swantje Matthies and Miriam A. Schiele contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Hauptstrasse 5, D-79104, Freiburg, Germany

    Swantje Matthies, Miriam A. Schiele, Christa Koentges & Katharina Domschke

  2. Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Section of Psychiatry, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy

    Stefano Pini

  3. Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health Mannheim, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany

    Christian Schmahl

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  1. Swantje Matthies
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  5. Christian Schmahl
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  6. Katharina Domschke
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Correspondence to Katharina Domschke.

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Conflict of Interest

Swantje Matthies, Christa Koentges, and Stefano Pini declare no conflict of interest.

Miriam A. Schiele has received a grant from Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di La Spezia.

Christian Schmahl has received consultancy fees from Boehringer Ingelheim, and grants from German Research Foundation (DFG, KFO 256, GRK 2350), and Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

Katharina Domschke received a grant from German Research Foundation (DFG; CRC-TRR58; projects C02 and Z02).

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Personality Disorders

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Matthies, S., Schiele, M.A., Koentges, C. et al. Please Don’t Leave Me—Separation Anxiety and Related Traits in Borderline Personality Disorder. Curr Psychiatry Rep 20, 83 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-018-0951-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-018-0951-6

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