9 Tips to Reduce Emotional Instability in BPD

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsEmotional Volatility in BPDGet Quality SleepExerciseEat HealthyPractice Self-CareCreate StructurePractice MindfulnessMeditateGround YourselfSeek Treatment

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Emotional Volatility in BPD

Get Quality Sleep

Exercise

Eat Healthy

Practice Self-Care

Create Structure

Practice Mindfulness

Meditate

Ground Yourself

Seek Treatment

Close

Borderline personality disorder(BPD) is often associated with emotional highs and lows, impulsive behavior, and sensitivity. Many people with BPD experience intenseemotional instability, also sometimes known as emotional volatility.

Often, your emotional reactions may be disproportionate to the incident that triggers the emotion, such as feeling so sad you begin to cry over a minimal inconvenience.

People with BPD often feel emotions much more intensely than others, and it may take longer for those feelings to pass. This means that situations or events that may not faze another person can be highly disruptive and upsetting for someone with BPD.

This underlying instability may also be the driving force behind other symptoms of this condition, including impulsivity.This can be very disruptive to your daily life, impacting your relationships, career, mood, and overall functioning.

While somemedicationscan help reduce your emotional instability, lifestyle changes can help dramatically impact this symptom.That could include avoiding some unhelpful coping mechanisms you’ve used in the past and adopting techniques designed to help you self-regulate.

Making these changes can reduce the frequency and intensity of your feelings and can improve your overall ability toregulate your emotional responses.

Before undergoing any treatment plan to address emotional volatility, be sure to talk to your therapist about what’s going on to ensure you don’t interfere with your therapy. They can even help you with these changes to help manage your emotions.

A good night’s sleep is one of the most important things you can do to reduce your emotional instability and reduceirritability.

What constitutes a “good night’s sleep”? While the answer varies depending on each individual, most adults should aim for somewhere between seven and nine hours each night.

If you have trouble falling or staying asleep, you can do some things to improve your sleep overall and help you get through your days with less emotional turmoil, such as:

‘Why Can’t I Sleep’—Why You’re Not Sleeping and How to Get More Rest

It’s no secret that you will feel better physically and mentally when your body is active. Exercise doesn’t just fight a host of physical health problems that are associated with BPD, it is also a great way to maintain a more stable emotional system.

If you don’t have an exercise program, consider consulting with your doctor first to determine which forms of exercise would be best suited for you. Then you can take some steps to begin your own exercise routine:

The Mental Health Benefits of Physical Exercise

You may be more likely to let your diet slip when you feel bad. Negative emotions can lead to urges to eat unhealthy foods,binge eat, or skip meals altogether.You may turn to comfort foods to help you handle stress or depression.

Unfortunately, poor eating habits create a vicious cycle, because what you eat impacts your mood. An unhealthy diet may leave you feeling even worse.

Meal Planning for Eating Disorder Recovery

The best way to reduce emotional ups and downs is to make a commitment to take good care of yourself. With all the demands that you are facing, this can be easier said than done, but it’s well worth the effort to add self-care to your regular routine.

This can include any activities that help you feel fulfilled and cared for, like:

The time you spend on a self-care program will pay off if you can improve your emotional well-being. From taking time for yourself to relaxing, meditating, or even pampering yourself, self-care can help you manage your symptoms.

5 Types of Self-Care for Every Area of Your Life

Think about the times that you find yourself experiencing periods of emotional volatility. If you’re more likely to feel them during your downtime when you have no other activities planned,creating a structured routinecould help you stay occupied and more emotionally stable.

Coping Skills for Borderline Personality Disorder

Mindfulnesscan help you refocus your attention during moments of emotional instability. Mindfulness involves learning to become more aware and observant of yourself and your surroundings and encourages you to live in the present, without judgment.

Mindfulness helps reduce anxiety and manage stress.If you react emotionally to something that happened in the past or may occur in the future, consider taking a mindfulness break. This practice can help pull you back into the present.

How to Become More Mindful in Your Everyday Life

While mindfulness is something that you can engage in at any time,meditationis a more structured practice. It’s often done in a quiet place that’s free from distractions, which allows you to focus on something specific, like your breath, a specific object, or a mantra. Scheduling regular meditation sessions for set time periods may help you manage your overall stress.

Research on meditation suggests that the practice may carry a number of benefits, like:

Meditation for BPDLoving-kindness meditationmay increase feelings of self-acceptance and self-kindness while reducing self-criticism.Mindfulness meditationcombines both techniques—research suggests it may help improve mood and reduce impulsivity for people with BPD.

Meditation for BPD

Loving-kindness meditationmay increase feelings of self-acceptance and self-kindness while reducing self-criticism.Mindfulness meditationcombines both techniques—research suggests it may help improve mood and reduce impulsivity for people with BPD.

Mindfulness meditation is structured, meaning it involves setting aside a certain amount of time to allow yourself to get comfortable and focus. Generally, mindfulness meditation encourages you to pay attention to your body and breath, while noticing thoughts as they occur.

Benefits of Mindfulness

One grounding technique, called the 5-4-3-2-1 method, relies on your senses to focus your attention on your surroundings. To try the 5-4-3-2-1 method, focus on:

More Helpful Grounding TechniquesSome other grounding techniques include:Engaging in abreathing exerciseSnapping a rubber band gently on your wristHolding an ice cube or running your hands under cold waterSmelling something fragrant, like a candle, essential oil, or spiceTouching something soft, like a rug or blanket, and noting the textureObserving your surroundings and noting objects based on specific criteria (e.g., finding all of the red items in the room or locating objects that begin with the letter “A”)

More Helpful Grounding Techniques

Some other grounding techniques include:Engaging in abreathing exerciseSnapping a rubber band gently on your wristHolding an ice cube or running your hands under cold waterSmelling something fragrant, like a candle, essential oil, or spiceTouching something soft, like a rug or blanket, and noting the textureObserving your surroundings and noting objects based on specific criteria (e.g., finding all of the red items in the room or locating objects that begin with the letter “A”)

Some other grounding techniques include:

Dealing with the emotional instability that often accompanies BPD can be a challenge for anyone, but you don’t have to go through it alone. BPD is a treatable condition with a good prognosis possible.

Seeking treatment from a qualified healthcare provider can ensure you have access to more information about BPD, therapy, and potentially medication—all things that may help reduce instances of emotional turmoil.

Professional help can also ensure that you receive treatment for any other conditions you’re currently experiencing. People with BPD often have a co-occurring condition, which will impact their treatment options.These conditions can include:

The treatment options available for BPD are varied. Psychotherapy is the first-line treatment, but medications are also sometimes prescribed to help people manage specific symptoms, such as anxiety or depression.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT)is a very effective technique for managing this condition’s symptoms.DBT encourages you to learn skills that will help you self-regulate and manage symptoms.

This form of therapy may help you develop healthy coping mechanisms. This can be particularly useful if you typically turn to things that can exacerbate emotional volatility, like substance use or disordered eating.

Other Types of Therapy

DBT is not the only option available for people with BPD, and you may find that you thrive with another form of therapy. Other options you might consider include:

The important thing is to find a healthcare provider you feel comfortable with and determine what works best for you.

Borderline Personality Disorder Treatment

A Word From Verywell

Emotional instability is difficult to deal with, but it is something that you can learn to overcome. With practice, these tips and techniques can help you deal with emotional dysregulation so you can feel more secure and grounded. If you need additional help, reach out to your healthcare provider for treatment options.

5 Keys to Living With Borderline Personality Disorder

15 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

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