In this episode, we discuss the different types of personality disorders and compare them to flavors of ice cream. We explore the personality disorders that are always in season and the ones that come and go depending on cultural and social factors. Highlighting the “ingredients” that make up each disorder and how they manifest, we explore the DSM-5-TR classifications of: Cluster A (odd or eccentric), Cluster B (dramatic or erratic), and Cluster C (anxious or fearful). If you want to jump to a specific cluster, just use one of the timestamps/chapters below. If you’re new to personality disorders, we recommend starting at timestamp 11:17 and returning to the beginning after a more thorough explanation of each disorder.

Chapters

00:00 - Intro/Overview of the Personality Flavors 02:13 - Personality Flavors Always in Season 03:12 - Pandemic Personality Flavors 05:14 - Mid Pandemic Personality Flavors 06:18 - End of Pandemic Personality Flavors 07:15 - Personality Flavors not often in Season 11:17 - DSM Clusters ABC Overview

Cluster A 11:48 - Cluster A 12:14 - Cluster A: Paranoid PD 14:55 - Cluster A: Schizotypal PD 19:21 - Cluster A: Schizoid PD

Cluster B 22:33 - Cluster B 23:10 - Cluster B: Antisocial PD 27:39 - Cluster B: Borderline PD 29:41 - Cluster B: Histrionic PD 31:51 - Cluster B: Narcissistic PD 32:43 - Antisocial PD vs Narcissistic PD

Cluster C 36:20 - Cluster C 36:40 - Cluster C: Avoidant PD 37:34 - Schizoid PD vs Avoidant PD 38:08 - Borderline PD vs Avoidant PD 39:16 - Cluster C: Dependent PD 41:38 - Cluster C: OCPD 44:27 - Conclusion

In this episode of the Personality Couch Podcast, we discuss how to spot a personality disorder. We start with the definition of a personality disorder according to the Diagnostic Statistical Manual (DSM), which includes enduring patterns of behavior that deviate from cultural expectations and cause distress/impairment. We also introduce the concept of the personality drama triangle, where individuals can take on different roles as a rescuer, persecutor, or victim. We discuss how to spot personality disorders through observations of thinking patterns, moods, relationships, and impulsivity. We emphasize the importance of trusting your intuition and paying attention to your body's reactions when interacting with someone who may have a personality disorder.

Chapters

Introduction 00:00 - Introduction 01:40 - The DSM definition of Personality Disorders

How Personality Disorders Show Up 03:41 - How Personality Disorders Show Up in Thinking 05:07 - The Drama Triangle in Personality Disorders 07:09 - How Personality Disorders Show Up in Moods

Spotting Personality Disorders 09:22 - Trusting your Gut, Intuition, and Body 13:50 - Where There’s Smoke, There’s Fire 16:45 - The Axis II Hook and “Oil Spills”

Disconnecting From Personality Disorder Dynamics 31:05 - Stop Drop and Roll Out of the Drama 33:53 - The Power of Naming a Personality Disorder

Conclusions 41:02 - Empathy for Personality Disorders 45:54 - Conclusion

In this episode of the Personality Couch Podcast, we talk a little more about our intrigue for personality, pathology, and darkness, which influence our media consumption. We discuss seeing personality everywhere - from pets to babies to our everyday relationships. Walking through history, we explore various classifications including, the Four Temperaments, Freud and Psychoanalysis, the MBTI, the Big 5, and more! We look at the American Psychological Association’s (APA’s) definition and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM), which includes the field’s current classification of personality disorders.

Chapters

00:00 - Introduction and Intrigue of Personality Darkness in Media 08:23 - How Did Personality Become a Thing? 20:09 - What is Personality? (APA + other definitions)

Historical Classifications of Personality 28:47 - The Four Temperaments 33:20 - The Enneagram (9 Types)

Modern Classifications of Personality 35:04 - MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator) 36:02 - OCEAN (Big 5) 36:30 - Type A, B, C, D 37:37 - DSM 38:35 - What are Personality Disorders? 42:49 - Personality Disorders in Youth 50:30 - Summary