Q. Your site indicates Tegretol as a treatment for BPD. The literature accompanying Tegretol states possible side effects being “psychosis,” “mood swings,” and “personality change.”
My ex wife, diagnosed with epilepsy as a child, was changed from the old Dilantin/Phenobarb for seizure control to Tegretol. Following that she experienced severe migraines, muscle and joint pains. She was put on a heart med for high blood pressure. Another med for migraines, another for joint pains. And yet another for purported “reflux.” In 20/20 hindsight, it was at about this time that she underwent a drastic personality change which eventually led to a divorce. Through the divorce she made all sorts of outlandish allegations. She was diagnosed as Histrionic Personality Disorder with Borderline tendencies.
Could this problem be triggered by Tegretol? Or by the “cocktail” of drugs she is taking? Or could it be that the phenobarb was “masking” the problems?
A. Any of the above are reasonable conclusions. To be diagnosed with either the BPD or Histrionic disorder the symptoms need to have been present since early adulthood, in virtually every aspect of life – not with the change in medication only. Any medication can cause any thing in any body. So can any food, vitamin, herb, or any other treatment.
Q. You state that BPD is related to epilepsy. Could her problem be a result of epilepsy? She has been virtually seizure free for about 20 years, but suffers from migraines which make her totally non-functional.
>A. The diagnosis is not clear, but yes I have seen patients with other forms of epilepsy have behavioral seizures and severe dysphoria that fit the BPD.
Migraines have many causes. Borderlines almost always grind their teeth, which leads to severe TMJ and muscle spasm headaches – causing migraines also. They can be very debilitating.