Hysterical qualities?

Hi everyone!

I haven't posted here. Recently, in therapy, I had asked my T if I had OCD or OCPD. My p-doc says quite often that this or that drug will help my OCD...as far as I know, there hasn't been a formal diagnosis.

I asked my T this week. He said that I have some obsessions and compulsions but he thinks I fit more in the hysterical category. I nearly jumped off the couch! He said this in the last 10 minutes of course.

I had never heard of hysterical qualities or personality traits. He stopped short of saying personality disorder. He didn't think I have one in particular but perhaps a combo. He mentioned Histrionic and Borderline. He didn't say I have Borderline but he did talk about it a little bit.

I'm sure this sounds confusing. He and I will talk more next week. I'm just wondering if there is anyone here who is hysterical qualities/histrionic and what this means?

everybody has a personality 'style'. when those styles are extreme then they can amount to 'disorders'. it might be that he thinks you are more of hysterical / borderline / hystrionic style than obsessive / compulsive.

thats alright...

i'd imagine that it might be... that you are fairly emotionally expressive (guess)?

</font><blockquote><div id="quote"><font class="small">Quote:</font>
almeda24fan said:
He said that I have some obsessions and compulsions but he thinks I fit more in the hysterical category. I nearly jumped off the couch!

</div></font></blockquote><font class="post">
That's what it means :-) We react before we understand. My T explained me to me :-) using the idea that I was like a broken thermostat; everything is equally important, I don't "wait" or "shrug" about anything.

A good example for me is that everytime I get startled, I exclaim, "Ouch!" So, doesn't matter when I drop a knife in the kitchen, whether it hits my bare foot or not. My husband doesn't know whether to come running and help or to wait a bit and see if things "resolve". He usually waits; it's a bit like the shepherd who called "Wolf!" too often. I react instead of responding.

I hold my husband and others hostage to my reactions, don't think independently/individually about what he says/feels. What he says pulls my trigger and it becomes about me instead of about whatever the issue is he is raising. I can easily tell him what's wrong with his suggestions for where to go eat dinner, where I don't want to go but it's not so easy to stop and come up with where I do want to go. It's a way of putting a wall around myself, creating a buffer between other people and situations until I have time to "check them out." I'm a boat nearing a dock but I concentrate on not hitting the dock instead of docking :-)

Yes Alex, I am emotional, expressive, attention-seeking, sexual etc. I don't dress provactively though. I read this was one of the signs.

I also engage in story telling. I love to fill him in on insignificant stuff. It's almost like I am trying too hard to make sure he likes me. I guess I do this with a lot of people.

Perna, I'm the same way about dinner or lunch. Whenever anyone asks me where I want to go, I say anywhere is fine. Then they start suggestions and I will say 'nah, I'm not in the mood for x type of food' this goes on and eventually I say 'please just pick a place'.

I know how frustrating this probably is for many of my friends, husband and boss....

I am working on this and I call it giving myself room around my expereinces, my emotions.

I just failed at it last night.

Then this moring I see it in a different light. That's frequently an indicator for me, that I feel one thing immediately and then have a calmer more peaceful feeling about it later.

My immediate reaction is a kind of "OMG!" reaction and very narrow because it is about me, then later it's as if my perception broadens (lets the rest of the world in?) and I have a calmer, more secure, and more reasonable response.

Hopefully I will learn to remember this... but for now I"m getting lots and lots of practice.

It sounds dramatic and it is internally dramatic even if it isn't outwardly dramatic. So, accept what your T is saying and face it headon and see what you can learn about it. It will make you much more comfortable when you can learn how to respond rather than react.

I must admit as well, to having many histrionic tendencies, along with BPD. Actually, I have quite a few of the symptoms that characterize histrionics.

It is a rather unflattering sort of disorder and can be unbearable to think that "we" can be so dramatic in our expressions, especially painful ones. Even allowing those close to us to know and understand this disorder or even having tendencies towards this disorder puts us at risk of not being taken seriously insofar as the depths in which we feel our emotions.

I, myself, have yet to find a way to control these feelings, however, I do try to mask (or hide) them as much as possible, because I know, for the most part, they are knee-jerk reactions - as another member pointed out in an earlier thread - and given a few hours or so, I can come to see that it is just that - a reaction or trigger that causes an instant and over-exaggerated response.

Although my circle of family and friends that truly understand this is incredibly small, I ALWAYS try to show them my appreciation for their loyalty and continuing support.

It is also very important for me to acknowledge my over-the-top behaviours and to humbly apologize (even though they tend to sound very hollow after awhile) because I would never, ever want them to think that I take their love and patience for granted. Acknowledging these behaviours also tends to reduce their occurance somewhat.

And try to remember, there are ALWAYS varying degrees of each of the symptoms...

Altered State


BTW, I have never heard of it being called hysterical qualities. No wonder you "freaked." I would have, too!

one theory is that... the emotional expressiveness / reactivity is due to an 'invalidating environment'.

when the match between the individual and environment is poor then often people have to magnify or act out a little in order to have their emotional needs met.

oftentimes there is trauma too... hence heightened startle reflex / reactivity of emotional expression.

sometimes individuals don't really learn how to regulate their emotions because parents didn't know how to regulate theirs...

great posting yu guys. Had that label stuck on me once and it hurt my feelings. The explanations makes it understandable. Thanks

I had forgotten to come back to this thread. this is very insightful stuff!

I agree Alex about the parent thing. Both of my parents are emotional, chaotic...

Yes Altered that is what my T was trying to say. Everyone he says has some of these traits but when they become problematic is when some adjustments to emotions and behaviors can be made.