"If the Shoe Fits…" – Wait, What if It Doesn't?
Galit Peysachov, Noa Magal, Idan Kogan, Roee Admon, Sigal Zilcha-Mano - Department of Psychology
Tomer Sidi -DSRC
Machine Learning
Deep learning
Neural Networks
Health
Psychology
Supervision Grant 2022
Most patients suffering from borderline personality disorder (BPD) also suffer from depression. For most of them existing psychotherapy for depression isn’t as effective as it is for other patients with depression. The depression that they experience is different from that of patients without BPD – it is more severe, chronic and appears at earlier stages of life. It seems that one size of psychotherapy does not fit all.
Patients with BPD have been also shown, through physiological markers, to be different in their response to stimuli. While patients with depression experience an elevated heart rate (HR), patients with BPD reported to experience more arousal, which can potentially manifest in an even more elevated HR. They also experience more HR elevation in response to BPD-specific triggers, such as interpersonal relationships (as they experience interpersonal dysfunction), as compared to other patients. It seems that patients with BPD need psychotherapy for depression to be tailored to their size.
Studies suggest that the relationship with the therapist allows for patients to regulate their elevated HR. Considering the interpersonal dysfunction that patients with BPD experience, this assumption isn’t as intuitive. Therefore, we aim to investigate whether and how they differ from other patients with depression. We believe that patients with BPD will show a more elevated HR prior to treatment and less HR regulation throughout, due a weaker patient-therapist relationship. This study can shed light on the tailoring work necessary to allow patients with BPD relief from depression.
This study is conducted at the Psychotherapy Research Lab led by Prof. Sigal Zilcha-Mano (https://psychotherapy.haifa.ac.il/?lang=en), in collaboration with the Stress & Psychopathology Research Laboratory led by Dr. Roee Admon, and with Ms. Noa Magal, a PhD student from Dr. Admon’s lab (https://sites.google.com/edu.haifa.ac.il/stress-psychopathology), who have supported us greatly. This study is also conducted with the support and guidance of Dr. Tomer Sidi as part of the Supervision Grant from the Data Science Research Center.
Most patients suffering from borderline personality disorder (BPD) also suffer from depression. For most of them existing psychotherapy for depression isn’t as effective as it is for other patients with depression. The depression that they experience is different from that of patients without BPD – it is more severe, chronic and appears at earlier stages of life. It seems that one size of psychotherapy does not fit all.
Patients with BPD have been also shown, through physiological markers, to be different in their response to stimuli. While patients with depression experience an elevated heart rate (HR), patients with BPD reported to experience more arousal, which can potentially manifest in an even more elevated HR. They also experience more HR elevation in response to BPD-specific triggers, such as interpersonal relationships (as they experience interpersonal dysfunction), as compared to other patients. It seems that patients with BPD need psychotherapy for depression to be tailored to their size.
Studies suggest that the relationship with the therapist allows for patients to regulate their elevated HR. Considering the interpersonal dysfunction that patients with BPD experience, this assumption isn’t as intuitive. Therefore, we aim to investigate whether and how they differ from other patients with depression. We believe that patients with BPD will show a more elevated HR prior to treatment and less HR regulation throughout, due a weaker patient-therapist relationship. This study can shed light on the tailoring work necessary to allow patients with BPD relief from depression.
This study is conducted at the Psychotherapy Research Lab led by Prof. Sigal Zilcha-Mano (https://psychotherapy.haifa.ac.il/?lang=en), in collaboration with the Stress & Psychopathology Research Laboratory led by Dr. Roee Admon, and with Ms. Noa Magal, a PhD student from Dr. Admon’s lab (https://sites.google.com/edu.haifa.ac.il/stress-psychopathology), who have supported us greatly. This study is also conducted with the support and guidance of Dr. Tomer Sidi as part of the Supervision Grant from the Data Science Research Center.