#stpd safe

💌 𓂃 Terrestrial / Silicate StPD ˖

a term for one who either suspects, has traits of, or otherwise cannot be 100% sure has StPD, but still find it important enough to mention as one relates to StPD experiences and needs to note how one interacts with others.

examples may include people who aren't able to properly self diagnose for whatever reason, are in the process of getting diagnosed, are a system member with traits the rest of the system lacks, or are unsure whether their symptoms are pervasive enough to be a disorder.

ᰔ 01 : made by ' the lovingly adored '

ᰔ 02 : generally just gave these a very earthy vibe since that’s what terrestrial refers to, so yeah! Finally finished cluster a , will move on to cluster c soon!

ᰔ 03 : tagging @radiomogai & @archive-of-archives & @beyond-mogai-pride-flags & @pdsarchive (if you would like to be added in the future send me an ask)

What is StPD?

StPD is a personality disorder characterized by abnormalities in thinking, paranoia, social anxiety, derealization, passing psychosis, and "unconventional beliefs". It's a disorder on the schizophrenia spectrum and is generally considered to be moderate.

StPD has generally been found to have 3 major categories of symptoms:

Cognitive-Perceptual: Odd beliefs, perceptual disturbances, ideas of reference, paranoia/suspiciousness

Interpersonal: Few close relationships, social anxiety, restricted affect (tendency to not experience and/or express strong emotions)

Disorganized/Oddness: Odd speech/thought, odd behavior

But "odd" sounds like such a subjective term. What does that even mean? Some examples:

Believing in the supernatural

Superstitious beliefs and behaviors

Linking outcomes to indirect behaviors (e.g. believing that being angry at someone is why they got sick)

Believing that others are talking about you, or that things are referring to you

Dressing in a way that is atypical for one's culture

Struggling to process speech or language

Speaking slowly and flatly, with a lot of pauses

What causes StPD?

StPD is thought to be caused by a combination of genetics and environmental factors. Individuals who have relatives on the schizophrenia spectrum and then experience chronic stress and/or trauma are much more likely to develop schizotypal symptoms.

Scientists have also found some differences in the brain structure and chemical functioning in individuals with StPD. They have:

Less volume in the temporal lobe (the part of the brain that processes auditory information and memory encoding)

Structural and anatomical differences in the striatum (a structure in the brain that is part of the motor and reward systems and affects cognition, planning, decision-making, motivation, reinforcement, and reward perception)

Some research has indicated that StPD patients may have greater presynaptic dopamine release, which means that more dopamine is released. However, this is correlational, not causational. This means that we don't actually know if the StPD causes these brain regions, or vice versa, or if there's an unknown third thing causing them both.

Diagnosis and treatment

The diagnostic tool PDQ-4+ (the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire 4, which can be taken for free here) is often used for screening. The Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire may also be used.

StPD may be treated with medication. These are usually antipsychotics, but may also be antidepressants.

Psychotherapy may be used to treat StPD. Research in this area is incredibly sparse; little is known about best treatment methods. However, one known treatment is social skills training. This can help people with StPD develop and maintain relationships.

References:

Cluster B version

DPD Puppy & AvPD Kitty

OCPD Bunny & PPD Koi Fish

SzPD Jellyfish & StPD Swordfish

Art posted is an edited picrew:

Paranoid Personality Disorder

Schizoid Personality Disorder

Schizotypal Personality Disorder