Avoidant Personality Disorder

What is "avoidant personality disorder"?

Avoidant personality disorder is characterized by pervasive social inhibition accompanied by feelings of inadequacy and hypersensitivity.

What causes avoidant personality disorder?

I don't think there is a known cause of avoidant personality disorder. I would tell you it is associated with childhood shyness, however, childhood shyness is not considered to be a risk factor. It's definitely an association. In other words, everyone you see with avoidant personality disorder will have been shy as a child; however, the converse is not true. That shyness does not predispose one to develop avoidant personality disorder. A lot of people are shy as children and outgrow it and go on to become outgoing, exuberant adults.

What are the dangers of avoidant personality disorder?

Socially, obviously, part of the diagnosis is that social inhibition. These people view themselves as rather socially inept, and they are terrified of engaging in any kind of thing that they might perceive as socially risky, which is just about everything. Sufferers tend to have a very small social network. A typical social network perhaps would be your best friend since kindergarten and maybe your sister. Those are your 2 friends that you do anything with. Occupationally, again, while you might be competent and able to do certain jobs, you will turn them down or not be interested in them because they might involve dealing with people, and you're not willing to put yourself at risk to be criticized.

Who is at risk for avoidant personality disorder?

The male to female ratio in avoidant personality disorder appear to be about equal, 1:1. However, in boys it tends to be a little bit earlier in its onset and much more disabling. I think it's because, in today's society, women can still get away with being shy and withdrawn a little more than men can. There are other kinds of expectations placed on men that aren't true for women.

What are the treatments for avoidant personality disorder?

Again, there's no treatment specifically for the avoidant personality disorder itself. However, since these patients are prone to lots of anxiety and depression, they should certainly be treated in the standard way to help deal with these feelings. A small dose of a beta-blocker might be helpful to relieve any anticipatory anxiety. Beta-blockers, in small doses, help to lower anxiety levels in daily life and allow suffers of avoidant personality disorder to cope a little better.