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Dependent Personality Disorder

What It Is

By Iria Vasquez-PaezPublished 5 years ago 3 min read
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Dependent personality disorder is not defined as being on the sociopathy spectrum such as the others excluding avoidant personality. Dependent people are dependent on other people, having no personality of their own. Those diagnosed with dependent personality depend on other people way too much to meet their emotional and physical needs. The people with dependent personality have problems achieving normal levels of independence. People with dependent personality disorder are passive and clingy, unable to withstand being alone. Source. They feel that they need somebody to help them all the time because they cannot stop being needy.

They are over-analytical as well as dependent on other people’s opinions before making their own choices by themselves, as one of the traits of dependent personality disorder. A dependent person does whatever other people demand they do, so joining a cult is easy for someone who lets people do the thinking for them. A dependent person cannot make demands on somebody because they feel they shouldn’t rock the boat too much. They feel helpless when alone because they exaggerate and blow out of proportion their ability to take care of themselves or not. They have fears of abandonment from someone with a close relationship with them.

They do not make their own decisions without asking anybody else about it. Making your own decisions is relatively easy for people who are not dependent. People who are dependent personality disordered types are in relationships where they are emotionally abused or physical abuse is done to them. Dependent people are powerless and are easy to use suggestion on. Some feel guilty or anxious about how they need people to make decisions for them all the time. They are unable to soothe themselves or provide comfort for themselves, so they always need someone else around to take care of them.

People with personality disorders deviate from the norm of the way their culture says they should be. Their behavior patterns can be traced to adolescence and adulthood. Dependents are characterized by submissive behavior patterns with regard to others. Adolescents let their parents make all the decisions for them from what to wear to whom to be friends with. Dependent people have a hard time disagreeing with anybody about anything. People who have this disorder have difficulty disagreeing with anybody so they put up with that person making all the decisions for them and being easily brainwashed. Dependent people work hard at making themselves need the person they depend on.

People with dependent personality disorder simply cannot make their own decisions until they train themselves to do so. They are passive, docile people who cannot make their own choices on any level. These people avoid personal responsibility at any level. They also avoid being alone. Dependent people are unable to deal with everyday life decisions and have a bizarre willingness to tolerate mistreatment or abuse from others. Treatment involves psychotherapy where they learn how to make their own choices even if they are the sorts of people have problems starting relationships with other people. Dependent people need a lot of reassurance about everything, every decision they need to make. Dependent people are clingy, needy, and passive-aggressive. Like borderlines, they fear abandonment as well as rejection. They need to develop confidence in their own abilities. Lack of secure attachment to a parent is what causes dependent people all their pain. Authoritarian parenting or overprotective parenting is also a huge cause of dependent personality. Children who are not able to believe in their own autonomy or freedom to make choices for themselves are the sorts of people who develop dependent personality.

Works Cited

Understanding the Causes of Dependent Personality Disorder and Your Role in Your Loved One’s Treatment

Dependent Personality Disorder

Dependent personality disorder

personality disorder
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About the Creator

Iria Vasquez-Paez

I have a B.A. in creative writing from San Francisco State. Can people please donate? I'm very low-income. I need to start an escape the Ferengi plan.

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