About the Author

John Gunderson, MD, is a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. At McLean Hospital he is director of the Borderline Center's clinical, training, and research programs. Gunderson is widely recognized as the father of the borderline diagnosis. He is responsible for seminal research on the diagnosis, its course, its origins, and its treatment. These contributions have always been anchored within his role as a clinician whose practices are practical and compassionate.

Perry Hoffman, PhD, is president and cofounder of the National Education Alliance for Borderline Personality Disorder (NEA-BPD). Hoffman has several grants from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) with a focus on families. She has coordinated over sixty conferences on the disorder and is codesigner of the twelve-week psychoeducation course, Family Connections™, available in seventeen countries. In 2011, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) awarded Hoffman the Excellence in Community Mental Health Award. To find out more, visit www.borderlinepersonalitydisorder.com.

Reviews

"Saying that these are important stories is not enough. These are essential stories, to be read and digested by anyone with BPD, anyone who has a loved one with BPD, and any professionals (not just mental health professionals) who work with people with BPD. These wonderful and courageous authors help us understand their suffering, and then show us how they created hope, and a life worth living, from the depths of despair. This is truly an educational and inspirational book."
--Alan E. Fruzzetti, PhD, professor and director of dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) and research program department of psychology at the University of Nevada, Reno

"These survivors hit their mark in helping to change the conversation about borderline personality disorder (BPD), from one of fear and misunderstanding to one of empathy, evidence-based treatment, and hope. BPD is a relatively new DSM diagnosis with a ten percent suicide rate--and relatively new evidence-based treatments. Studies show that nearly forty percent of individuals diagnosed with bipolar disorder in fact have BPD, as the editors note. These BPD survivors describe more stable, less chaotic lives, as well as pure gratitude for the mental health professionals who diagnosed their BPD and provided either evidence-based treatment or otherwise compassionate and committed care."
--Jim Payne, former president of the National Alliance on Mental Illness

"This compelling book grasps the tragedy and suffering of BPD in a way that I hope will reduce some of the stigma of the disorder. I am quite happy to see they have included stories of people finding their way out of hell. It is important to appreciate that once in hell, it is possible to climb out of it."
--Marsha Linehan, PhD, ABPP, developer of dialectical behavior therapy (DBT)