Tag Archives: histrionic personality disorder

Mental Health Week in Review: September 30-October 7

Recently we have been talking about death and how to cope with both the overwhelming feelings of despair that accompany the end of a life. We also looked at just what is a reasonable time spam to get over the loss of a much loved friend or family member. In How Long Does It Take to Get Over a Death I asked readers to estimate what they thought was a standard time to really come to grips with loss through death. The standard benchmark suggested by mental health experts is a minimum of a year. Yet society seldom gives us … Continue reading →

Histrionic Personality Disorder: Diagnostic Criteria

Individuals with Histrionic Personality Disorder exhibit an overly-dramatic behavioral pattern and almost seem to be acting to a full house on opening night. Everything is over-exaggerated, hence they may hug a person enthusiastically within moments of greeting them, or cry uncontrollably while describing an incident in a movie, or use sexually seductive behavior to draw attention to themselves. There is a pervasive pattern of excessive emotionality and attention-seeking behavior beginning in early adulthood. Five or more of the following eight criteria must be met for a clinical diagnosis: 1.The person is uncomfortable in situations in which he or she is … Continue reading →

Histrionic Personality Disorder (2)

In our previous article on Histrionic Personality Disorder we looked at how Sarah-Kate overdramatized everyday situations, was overly effusive to relative strangers and could not be relied upon by colleagues and friends. The link to this article is listed below. Today we will look at further characteristics of this disorder. Apart from having a style of speech that is excessively dramatic and lacking in real detail, the HPD sufferer is uncomfortable in situations in which they are not the center of attention. Thus if the conversation in a group situation should turn to subjects about which the HPD sufferer has … Continue reading →

Histrionic Personality Disorder (1)

Sarah-Kate is an elementary school teacher who is larger than life. Her bubbly personality seems ideally suited to teaching her young students and her seeming enthusiasm certainly bowls most people over on first meeting. Everything is “just wonderful” and your six-year old son is “just the most sweetest boy ever!” Sarah-Kate’s speech is seductive and irrepressible, but ultimately tiring and frustrating. While she can be highly amusing, relating humorous incidences with her own style of overblown drama, people soon quickly learn not to believe everything that Sarah-Kate says. If she is stung by an ant, it is a catastrophe. Her … Continue reading →