Poster #165 - An Emotion Focused Approach to Treatment for Adolescents with Borderline Personality Disorder: Intervention Strategies

• In Event: 1-169 - Poster Session 04
  In Poster Session: PS 04 Section - Prevention and Interventions

Integrative Statement

Extreme emotion dysregulation is a core feature of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) that interferes with an adolescent’s functioning and ability to manage distressing circumstances at home, at school, and throughout treatment. Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) may have utility as an intervention for BPD individuals, but clinical application in the literature has been scarce. The heavy burden experienced by caregivers of adolescents diagnosed with BPD (Bailey & Grenver, 2013; Goodman et al., 2011; Scheirs & Bok, 2007; Schulz et al., 1985) suggests that direct support (Weinberg et al., 2011) may facilitate the treatment process. EFFT can increase caregiver confidence in working with a child’s mental health difficulties and improve treatment outcomes for both children and adolescents (Foroughe, Stillar, Goldstein, Dolhanty, Goodcase, and Lafrance, 2018). Despite extreme emotion dysregulation typical to adolescents with BPD, the behavioral sequelae associated with the disorder necessitates behavioral-focused as well as emotion-focused interventions.
This paper presents an emotion-focused intervention that initially seeks to stabilize the client and then facilitates the transformation of core maladaptive emotions underlying BPD symptomatology.
In our presentation, we will outline a two-phase intervention that integrates Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT), and parent coaching in order to treat BPD and prevent relapse in four adolescent females.

Authors

• Flora H Roudbarani, York University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Meghan K Ford, York University
  Presenting Author

• Mirisse Foroughe, Kindercare Psychology
  Non-Presenting Author