Paranoid Personality Disorder | Causes & Remedies
Paranoid personality disorder is a condition where someone is paranoid and suspicious of those around them, and will often have delusions that something bad will happen.
Paranoid personality disorder is a type of disorder in the cluster A, odd, personality disorders. It is classified by extreme paranoia, suspiciousness, and the mistrust of others. Someone with the disorder will often have the inability to trust other people, accompanied by delusions that the other individual will do them harm. They may fear others are out to do them harm and will isolate themselves to avoid criticism.
Do not confuse this condition with schizophrenia. While paranoia is a symptom of schizophrenia, these are two different conditions. Since this is a personality disorder, it is part of the individual’s personality. The person can get help and treatment for the condition to help lessen the paranoid thoughts and beliefs, but due to how their mind has formed, some level of paranoia will often stay with them.
The cause of the personality disorder is primarily due to how the person was raised. Someone who is paranoid was raised to be paranoid when they were young. They may have gone through severe abuse, neglect, and abandonment that lead them to not trust other people. They begin to see this as the norm as their personality develops. Since children are highly impressionable, the personality forms with the paranoid traits being part of the personality of the individual as they begin to suspect others are out to do them harm.
There is no rationalizing with this person since once they get the feeling that someone or something is not to be trusted, then any attempts you make to talk rationally to this person will fail. Attempts will reaffirm in their mind that they were right, and you are wrong. Rather, this is a type of person that has to come to their own senses and realize what is and isn’t true. Let them have their space and come to their own conclusion. A positive trait they like to see, though, is patience. If you’re patient with them, they will often come around in time. Forcing them will make them trust you even less. Trust is earned with these people and it’s important to let them let you know and show their trust, instead of you trying to force them to open up.
If you are dealing with the condition yourself, then realizing what is a delusion and reality is almost impossible. But, you can infer and form patterns based on past experiences and interactions with the person you’re suspicious about. If you are suspicious of your friend, who has been there for you for many years, then you have to analyze why you are fearful of them? Is it because you think they’re going to abandon you, despite not showing any signs of it? Or maybe they did something that broke your trust in the past and have apologized and changed, yet you still hold onto it. These are all things within you, not the other person, so it’s important to see the positive in the relationship and open up and learn to trust. If someone does you wrong after trusting them, it will hurt, but you learn and grow and become stronger as a result.
Let me know how this works for you. Have a great day!
Finding this article helpful?
Additional Info
This is a condition that basically describes me. I have been paranoid for a long time, and still am, though much less. This is largely because I was abused, neglected, unwanted, and abandoned as a child, making me think others were out to harm me. I have improved the quality of my life substantially, but I still deal with delusions that family and close friends are going to harm me. I rationalize the best I can and just enjoy the moment since they could be here today and gone tomorrow, and I don’t want to lose them.
About the Author
