Fatty Acid Summary

This article focuses on the use of Omega- 3 Fatty Acid supplements for treating Borderline Personality Disorder, herein after referred to as BPD. The authors attempted to reveal whether the use of Omega-3 Fatty Acid was a safe and effective treatment for BPD, demonstrated against a placebo. An eight week study was completed, composed of thirty women between the ages of eighteen and forty. The women were interviewed by phone, and then examined in person to ensure they met the criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition: DSM-5, as well as in the Revised Diagnostic Interview for Borderlines. The authors applied the Medical Model, in order to prove their hypothesis by using a form of treatment which acts

The therapy that alleviated the most symptoms was TFP, which they have argued is the best form of treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder. While I found it difficult to point out many flaws within this study, I believe that with talk-therapy, while based on a scientific approach, is a subjective form of therapy. Each therapist would work from the same basic set of rules, however they would have their own personal style, which may have effected the outcome of this study. Finally, this study is definitely applicable to my thesis paper. The study was based on multiple demographics, however most of the participant were caucasian females. This allows me to consider changing my thesis to focus on white females, rather than attempting to incorporate multiple races and genders, which seems difficult to do with Borderline Personality

One hundred and six participants, diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder were selected to complete this study, and 95 were willing and able to continue follow up for the six years. The participants were randomly studied at random intervals across the six years, at two hour meetings with a professional. During this meeting they would analyze things such as hospitalization, suicide attempts, and self harming behaviours. In order to complete this study, the authors used a cognitive-behavioural approach within their assessment of participants. After this six year study, the authors were able to demonstrate that Cognitive Behavioural Therapy was an effective form of long term treatments, as over half of the participants no longer met the criteria for Borderline Personality Disorder. The authors argued that this was an effect treatment, with long term benefits that reduced or completely removed many symptoms participants had experienced. The main flaw with this study, was that there was no recording of the participants use of psychotropic drugs or alternative forms of therapy throughout this study. Being unable to isolate this means that there is a percentage of participants who may have had alleviated symptoms from forms of therapy that was not cognitive behavioural treatment. With that being said, this study is applicable to my thesis paper,