Introduction:

Connection between borderline personality and adoption. There seems to be a lack of study on the subject and sometimes appearances are misleading. Perhaps the problem is not "adoption" but "abandonment". You will find on the last part of this document our vision which we hope comprehensive and listening to the suffering

* Wilson. : Green. : Soth.
1986 - BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER IN ADOPTEES.
Report that many adopted adolescent patients in their hospital (10 out of 21) have received a diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder

* Zucker KJ, Bradley SJ. -
1998 Can J Psychiatry - Adoptee overrepresentation among clinic-referred boys with gender identity disorder.
The percentage of boys with gender identity problems who were early adoptees (7.6%) was significantly higher than the base rate of males adopted in Ontario in the first 2 years of life (1.5%)
Please read the page gender identity disorder and bpd
 

* Slap G, Goodman E, Huang B. - Div of Adolescent Medicine, Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio
2001 Pediatrics 2001 - Adoption as a risk factor for attempted suicide during adolescence.
Adoptees differed significantly from nonadoptees on 4 of 26 variables. They were more likely to have attempted suicide (7.6% vs 3.1%) and to have received psychological or emotional counseling in the past year (16.9% vs 8.2%), and their mothers reported higher parental education and family income.

* Hjern A, Lindblad F, Vinnerljung B. - Centre for Epidemiology, Stockholm, Sweden
2OO2 Lancet - Suicide, psychiatric illness, and social maladjustment in intercountry adoptees in Sweden: a cohort study.
Adoptees in Sweden have a high risk for severe mental health problems and social maladjustment in adolescence and young adulthood. We advise professionals to give appropriate consideration to the high risk of suicide in patients who are intercountry adoptees

* Cubito DS, Brandon KO.- Department of Psychology, University of South Florida, Tampa
2OO2 Am J Orthopsychiatry - Psychological adjustment in adult adoptees: assessment of distress, depression, and anger.
Analyses were conducted by gender; by search status, i.e., those who had never searched, those who were searching, and those who had made contact with their biological parents; and by history of mental health service utilization. Compared to normative data, the sample reported significantly higher levels of psychological maladjustment; only women adoptees scored higher on a scale measuring anger. Overall, adoptees' scores were elevated but did not approach levels typical of outpatient populations

* Warren SB. - University of Cicago, IL.
1992 J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry - Lower threshold for referral for psychiatric treatment for adopted adolescents.
Epidemiological data on a national sample of 3,698 adolescents, of whom 145 were adopted, indicate that adoption significantly increases the likelihood of referral for psychiatric treatment even after controlling for the fact that adoptees display more behavior problems and come from more educated families. This is accounted for by the fact that adoptees are significantly more likely to be referred when they display few problems. Thus, contrary to popular myth and clinical lore, the overrepresentation of young adoptees in clinical settings is not attributable solely to the fact that adoptees are more troubled

Please read other data

Here is our feeling

Is there some direct link between adoption and bpd ?
We think that it is typically a wrong question.
We can almost statistically be sure that adopted childs are really "wanted".
The Warren's study give us this valuable information "adoptees are significantly more likely to be referred when they display few problems". The parents are in such situation very attentive.
So we think that it is not the right angle to think about this

But it is known that adoptees peoples have more problems !
Of course, but it is not necessary to be a genius to understand that they feel better with a new loving family than in a previous one with abuses or neglect or in a orphanage (example)

So, for you what is the "real" problem if you think that the adoption is not the "cause" ?
For us the reason is not "adoption" but "abandonment"
Loosing its biological parents because they are dead, because they are bad (abuse, neglect), sicks, or for economic reason, etc... is a real trauma for every child in such situation. Please read the page BPD and Post traumatic Stress
Another point is that very often, especially when the child comes from another country, we have no information about its biological family, then who knows if there are mental problems in the family ?
It is why we think that the adoption is not a trauma but an new chance for the child. It is the abandomnent which is the trauma.
This is, we think, an explanation why there is more mental problems with adoptees peoples