Understanding the Borderline Mother: Helping Her Children Transcend the Intense, Unpredictable, and Volatile Relationship

Christine Ann Lawson

Sep 2000 · Jason Aronson, Incorporated

About this ebook

The first love in our lives is our mother. Recognizing her face, her voice, the meaning of her moods, and her facial expressions is crucial to survival. Dr. Christine Ann Lawson vividly describes how mothers who suffer from borderline personality disorder produce children who may flounder in life even as adults, futilely struggling to reach the safety of a parental harbor, unable to recognize that their borderline parent lacks a pier, or even a discernible shore. Four character profiles describe different symptom clusters that include the waif mother, the hermit mother, the queen mother, and the witch. Children of borderlines are at risk for developing this complex and devastating personality disorder themselves. Dr. Lawson's recommendations for prevention include empathic understanding of the borderline mother and early intervention with her children to ground them in reality and counteract the often dangerous effects of living with a 'make-believe' mother. Some readers may recognize their mothers as well as themselves in this book. They will also find specific suggestions for creating healthier relationships. Addressing the adult children of borderlines and the therapists who work with them, Dr. Lawson shows how to care for the waif without rescuing her, to attend to the hermit without feeding her fear, to love the queen without becoming her subject, and to live with the witch without becoming her victim. A Jason Aronson Book

Ratings and reviews

My mother is a borderline personality with diagnosed skitzophrenia....it was hell growing up with her. I read this book back in the late 90s early 2000 and it helped me not only identify the symptoms, but, it confirmed I was not crazy! Thank you for writing this book!

Have only read the Sample, yet feel SO VINDICATED as the 'bad child' of a Queen/Witch/Hermit borderline. Thank you, SO MUCH, for sharing your knowledge about such a destructive condition. Too bad the adults/parents who NEED it MOST, rarely seek it!

Loved it. A must read for daughters of borderline mothers.

About the author

Christine Ann Lawson, Ph.D., is a clinical social worker in private practice in Indianapolis, Indiana. She has previously served as adjunct faculty at Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis, and Butler University.