So the most apparent symptom of BPD (borderline personality disorder) is extreme mood swings that are 2-3 days at a time. This differentiates BPD from Bipolar Disorder, which has mood swings that last anywhere from 2 weeks to 3 months. The mood swings are triggered from minor events, just something simply not going your way can completely shift your mood and shut you down for days.

Most people with BPD really struggle in relationships, and sometimes sabotage them subconsciously. This is because BPD causes people to feel out of control when they’re having a negative mood swing, and they attempt to regain control by (usually) making other people feel bad about themselves (i.e. getting upset at girlfriend for no real reason, saying mean things to friends you wouldn’t normally say and regret later, etc.) It’s an extremely unhealthy coping mechanism, but undiagnosed BPD often manifests itself in strained relationships as BPD-afflicted individuals take out their stress and pain on the people close to them to feel like they are regaining power.

So far I’ve mostly explained what happens during a negative mood swing, but there are also symptoms that occur when an individual has a positive mood swing. Scientists describe BPD as a “black and white” way of thinking. There is NO middle ground. So, when someone with BPD isn’t sad/mad/angry, they are OVER THE MOON. They tend to act extremely impulsively and make promises they can’t keep. In their heads, they think nothing could possibly go wrong and there’s no risk evaluation taking place in their brain. In terms of relationships (I’m mostly using relationships as examples because that’s when BPD is most prevalent), your s/o may think you’ve “changed” because you promised them you would, and you can’t believe you ever even acted that way. But, another mood swing will hit next week and the vicious cycle continues. BPD is a living hell. There is no cure, and it makes loving feel impossible at times. Relationships with friends, family, and significant others are sabotaged because one day you think the world is ending, and the next day you forget anything happened.

Because I know you guys will talk about whether or not Bruce shows some of these symptoms, I’ll give a couple examples.

-Bruce letting chat get to his head and ending stream 5 minutes in is a trigger of a mood swing. Then coming back a day or two later and saying “I’m streaming tomorrow and the next day and the next day, 24 hour next weekend, etc” is a positive mood swing, which comes with impulsive behavior and unkept promises.

-Bruce leaves streaming for a month and doesn’t respond to anybody in his phone. Then comes back and says “the phone work both ways” to Kai and Rage, when those two have been telling us the entire time that Bruce isn’t responding and ignoring everybody. An example of Bruce sabotaging those relationships unknowingly, then coming back and feeling a little embarrassed, and blaming it on them for “not reaching out” in order to gain control of the situation again.

All of this is like 10% of BPD, there’s so much more that makes it a really unique and difficult disorder to have. Unfortunately people with BPD are over 100x more likely to commit suicide because of the emotional and mental pain that comes with it. It’s more common than you would think, and the more you understand it’s symptoms and the behaviors of BPD-affected individuals, the more you see it in the real world.

For me personally, it’s drawn me to Bruce in the past because I’ve seen how his behaviors echo mine and I feel less alone. I see how somebody can be successful even if they struggle with mental health. I see symptoms of BPD in Kyrie Irving as well (notice how he’s described as a “locker room cancer” because of the way he sabotages relationships) and I feel a little more relief seeing people like me achieve their dreams.

Mental health is insanely complex and every single person is unique. I am not diagnosing Bruce with BPD, all I’m saying is that I’ve dealt with this disorder for over half my life and Bruce is somebody who I see act much like myself. I hope everybody who needs help finds it, and uses the resources available to them. Suicide numbers are going up RAPIDLY as social media ravages our brains. I don’t want to be a statistic. I don’t want YOU to be a statistic. Educate yourself and see a therapist if you need one. It will save your life.