Update about me – got a letter from Pdoc yesterday which is a resume of our second meeting last week and he confirms that I have Paranoid Personality Disorder. I don’t see that as any kind of contradiction with my P’s assessment of me as AvPD – I think on the whole I feel more ok with having two dx’s that very accurately between them describe my internal set up. It’s a relief to have my own perceptions of my problems validated by ‘expert’ others.

I wonder how others here deal with potentially paranoid scenarios, such as when you’re convinced others are talking about you or laughing at you or thinking secret negative judgements and criticisms of you? The best I can manage is to rationalize it and tell myself that it’s *probably* my paranoia and that my own fear is creating this conviction. But it doesn’t make it any less real or frightening or painful .

Torn