Unlike social anxiety disorder (SAD), AvPD is a personality disorder that affects nearly every aspect of how you relate to and engage with the world around you. In contrast, SAD is a mental health condition that causes fear in social circumstances.
Adults with avoidant personality disorder often desperately want connection and acceptance, but avoid relationships and social situations due to overwhelming fear of rejection or embarrassment. Sadly, the isolation that protects someone from judgment also reinforces the belief that they’re somehow unworthy of being accepted.
Fortunately, accessible and appropriate treatment exists for AvPD, which can help someone learn to manage their condition and explore new ways of engaging with the wider world. If you suspect that you have AvPD, a mental health professional can discuss the most appropriate treatment options for your needs.
This page can also help as it explores the core AvPD symptoms and treatment options, including:
People with AvPD tend to view themselves as socially “inept” and “inferior” to others. This negative self-image can create an intense fear of rejection or criticism in social situations.1
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) requires at least four of the seven criteria for AvPD to be met for an official diagnosis. These are:1
Avoiding activities that involve contact with others because of an underlying fear of criticism, disapproval, or rejection
Understanding Personality Disorders
AvPD is a personality disorder (PD), which are mental health disorders that involve inflexible patterns that are quite different from societal norms and expectations.2 PDs represent ongoing and rigid patterns that tend to remain unchanged over time.
Because of this, most PDs feel like inherent parts of who you are, rather than the symptoms of any illness or struggle. They tend to affect several different aspects of life, including your thinking patterns, emotional responses, and day-to-day functioning.
However, they can impact people in varying ways depending on which “cluster” their symptoms and behaviors fall into.
Personality Disorder Clusters
The DSM organizes personality disorders into three distinct clusters based on shared characteristics. These are:3
Cluster A: Also known as the “eccentric” cluster, this category includes paranoid personality disorder, schizoid personality disorder, and schizotypal personality disorder. All these conditions typically involve unusual thinking patterns and social detachment.
Social anxiety usually focuses on unique circumstances, such as public speaking or meeting new people, whereas AvPd affects your entire approach to relationships and how you view yourself.4
What’s more, people dealing with social anxiety are usually able to maintain close relationships with people they feel comfortable with. In contrast, people with AvPD often find one-to-one interactions and intimate relationships most challenging.4
In a nutshell, people with avoidant personality disorder tend to impose their fundamental beliefs about being unworthy of love and connection into most life circumstances. However, interestingly, there is some research that indicates anywhere from 32 to 50% of people with AvPD also struggle with social anxiety disorder. Yet, more research is needed on this topic.5
AMFM is here to help you or your loved one take the next steps towards an improved mental well-being.
Chronic isolation has been linked to increased rates of everything from depression to a weakened immune system, showing the potential to affect long-term physical health and well-being.6 This is because humans have a fundamental need for connection and belonging. Therefore, the absence of relationships can create a void that reinforces the inadequate feelings that maintain avoidance.
Without regular social interaction, people lose opportunities to practice social skills, which can make future interactions even more difficult. They miss experiences that could challenge their beliefs about being fundamentally unacceptable.
Further, people with AvPD might also avoid career opportunities and hobbies that could bring enjoyment, creating regret that adds to their distress and hampers their quality of life.
Treating avoidant personality disorder can require patience, as the disorder involves deeply ingrained patterns that have likely existed for decades. AvPD symptoms and treatment options respond differently from other mental health conditions like depression, but personality change can happen gradually through consistent therapeutic work.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy is widely considered one of the optimal approaches for AvPD symptoms and treatment. CBT specialized for personality disorders seeks to address the maladaptive thinking patterns that drive avoidant behavior, working to improve self-esteem and social skills. Additionally, as automatic negative thoughts can play a large role in AvPD, CBT works to build new tolerance for anxiety and negative thinking patterns with new coping skills.
Distress tolerance can also be important in overcoming the limitations of AvPD, and dialectical behavioral therapy teaches people new ways to tolerate the intense discomfort social situations can create. DBT also focuses on interpersonal effectiveness – key skills for navigating new social interactions and expressing needs.
Group therapy can provide a controlled environment to practice social interactions with others. People can test their beliefs about rejection safely, feeling the support of others who also find avoidant behavior and acceptance challenging.
Treatment for chronic anxiety and avoidant personality patterns can occur at several levels of care, depending on the severity of your symptoms and any co-occurring conditions you may have.
The following paragraphs discuss these different levels.
Intensive outpatient programs (IOPs) provide multiple therapeutic sessions weekly, usually three to five days for several hours each. IOPs still allow you to live at home while working to develop new skills and providing closer monitoring than standard outpatient therapy allows for.
Partial hospitalization programs (PHPs) also offer a unique take on outpatient treatment, with five to seven days per week of services that allow you to return home in the evenings. PHPs provide more intensive interventions to combat social isolation and mental health concerns, and can be indicated when you don’t require overnight, full-time care.
These programs provide an immersive therapeutic experience with daily sessions, multiple therapy groups, skills training, holistic interventions, and psychiatric care.
Inpatient treatment removes you from the environments where your avoidance has become standard. They provide controlled spaces in which low-level exposure can combine with round-the-clock support to learn new skills and build new competencies.
Residential treatment programs also address the practical barriers of AvPD. For example, if severe anxiety and avoidance have left you completely isolated, then you might need comprehensive support rebuilding your daily functioning and life skills.
Further, treatment in residential settings combines evidence-based therapies with whole-person experiences to challenge negative beliefs and practice vulnerability for the healing process.
A Mission For Michael (AMFM) provides treatment for adults experiencing various conditions. Personality Disorder support is a phone call away – call 866-478-4383 to learn about our current treatment options.
See our residences in Southern California’s Orange County & San Diego County.
Take a look at our homes on the east side of the Metro area in Washington County.
View our facilities in Fairfax County, VA within the DC metro area.
With locations in California, Virginia, and Washington, A Mission For Michael helps people from around the country start their recovery process from avoidant personality disorder.
Our understanding clinicians have experience working with those who feel isolated, working alongside you to rebuild your confidence and challenge the long-standing patterns that make you feel stuck.
Call us or fill in our confidential messaging form today to explore your treatment options and let us help you break the cycle of fear and avoidance.
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