Forensic psychologist says Amber Heard suffers from ‘histrionic personality disorder’


Forensic psychologist Dr. Shannon Curry told the court that Amber Heard suffers from two personality disorders, including borderline personality disorder.

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He is suing Heard for defamation over a 2018 article she wrote in The Washington Post, which her lawyers say falsely implies that Depp physically and sexually abused her.

What did the psychologist say about Amber Heard?

Forensic psychologist Dr. Shannon Curry said in court that Heard suffered from borderline personality disorder (BPD) and histrionic personality disorder (HPD), which may involve “manipulative tactics to try to get her needs met.”

Dr. Curry also said that Heard had not suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as the actress claimed, from her relationship with Depp.

Presenting evidence at trial on Tuesday, Dr. Curry discussed her observations from the clinical interviews she had conducted with Heard and said they were consistent with the disorders.

Forensic and clinical psychologist Dr. Shannon Curry testifies in the Fairfax County Circuit Courtroom (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

She said: “[There is] a tendency to be very self-sufficient but also to deny that self-sufficiency and to judge others critically based on these high standards.

“They could use manipulative tactics to try to satisfy their needs, very much in need of attention, approval, acceptance.

“They tend to distance people who are close to them. Initially they may seem very charming. They are actually very sophisticated socially.”

Dr. Curry added that the instability of borderline personality disorder may be driven by a “terror of abandonment.”

“When someone is afraid of being abandoned by their partner or by anyone else … they will go to desperate lengths to prevent that from happening,” he said.

Amber Heard listening to an audio recording of her and Johnny Depp arguing (Photo by JIM LO SCALZO/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

“Often, their partners will try to make them happy at first and allow themselves to be a punching bag, thinking they can somehow solve this problem…eventually it just overwhelms them.”

Dr. Curry added that one of the “distinguishing characteristics” of a histrionic personality disorder was the “dramatic presentation” that she said Heard had demonstrated.

“When people show these emotions with this personality disorder, there is a sense of shallowness,” he said.

“People watching them will feel like it’s almost a performance.

“This disorder involves extreme discomfort from not being the center of attention, extreme efforts to be the center of attention.

Dr. Shannon Curry has said that Amber Heard shows signs consistent with two personality disorders (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

“When they feel like they are not the center of attention, you will see some strange things [like] make up stories to try to get attention [or] assume the role of victim or princess.

“Those are two roles in particular that are pretty consistent.”

Under cross-examination, Heard’s attorneys questioned Dr. Curry about her possible bias, as she had been hired by Depp and had dined and drank with the actor and his legal team prior to her appointment.

Dr. Curry said that this had been part of the interview process.

What is histrionic personality disorder? Is it the same as borderline personality disorder?

According Khiron Clinicswhile “many clinicians argue that both borderline personality disorder (BPD) and histrionic personality disorder (HPD) are pretty much the same thing,” the two have “some key differences.”

The clinic has outlined an abbreviated and simplified breakdown of both disorders.

  • Efforts to prevent real or imagined abandonment
  • Intense and unstable relationships with the family.
  • impulsive behaviors
  • unstable self-image
  • Humor changes
Amber Heard listens in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va. (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
  • Discomfort in situations where one is not the center of attention.
  • Inappropriate sexually seductive/provocative behavior
  • rapidly changing emotions
  • Self-dramatization and exaggerated expressions
  • Easily influenced by external circumstances

“Both disorders are based on severe mood swings, impulsiveness and difficulty in relationships, which means that one disorder could easily be misdiagnosed by the other,” explains the clinic.

mental health charity Mind it also says that people with BPD may “constantly feel unsettled or intense,” while someone with HPD might “rely heavily on being noticed, or seek approval so much that it affects their everyday life.”

Can personality disorders be treated?

While a personality disorder cannot be cured as such, treatment is available to help address specific problems that occur when someone has a personality disorder.

According to the NHS, treatment for a personality disorder usually involves talk therapy – this is where a person talks to a therapist to better understand their thoughts, feelings and behaviours.

Amber Heard arriving in court for her libel trial (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Depending on the severity of a person’s disorder, treatment can last from months to years.

In some cases, someone may be prescribed medication to help treat problems associated with a personality disorder, such as depression, anxiety, or psychotic symptoms.

“Many people with a personality disorder recover over time. Psychological or medical treatment is often helpful, but sometimes all that is needed is support,” says the NHS.

How has the reaction been to Amber Heard’s ‘diagnosis’?

As news of Dr. Curry’s diagnosis spread on Twitter, reactions to her remarks have been somewhat mixed.

Dr. Jessica Taylor, a licensed psychologist with a Ph.D. in forensic psychology and author of Sexy Psycho: How the Patriarchy Uses Women’s Trauma Against Themhas spoken out about the diagnosis on Twitter, calling it a move to “recast” Heard from an abused woman to one who is mentally ill.

Dr. Taylor tweeted: “Well, as if I needed any more evidence that this vile society will use anything to diagnose abused women as mentally ill, Amber’s case is a step by step on how to reframe women with BPD.” .

She also wrote: “You realize thousands of women who have been through this exact thing will see Amber and know exactly what it’s like to be jerked off by a biased psychopath and then hear how they have a personality disorder and then be discredited. . Occurring in UK, US, CA, NZ, AUS. Common.”

Speaking to National World, Dr Taylor said: “Amber’s case may be terribly public, but there are thousands of other women who have gone through this same process in private – sitting in court for weeks and hearing described as disorderly, manipulative, mentally ill, and emotionally unstable.

“It is vital that everyone understands that these diagnoses are not widely accepted medical conditions, they are highly controversial and controversial psychiatric labels. They are also introduced, very often and very successfully, in family law cases, private law cases, and even criminal law cases where a woman alleges domestic or sexual abuse. It’s like clockwork, frankly.

Amber Heard standing as the jury leaves for lunch in the Fairfax County Circuit Courtroom (Photo by STEVE HELBER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

“Most people believe that psychiatric categories, such as personality disorders, are scientifically proven, that they can be reliably diagnosed and evaluated, and that psychologists in these cases are objective evaluators of a physical mental disorder. Unfortunately, neither of these beliefs is accurate.

“Borderline personality disorder is widely known in critical psychology and psychiatry as a ‘junk diagnosis,’ and I haven’t heard anyone use the term ‘histrionic personality disorder’ without irony in years, given that it is considered a discredited disorder. based solely on misogyny dating back to ancient Greece.

“Histrionic personality disorder was born from the diagnosis of ‘hysteria’, which could only be given to women. The words “hysterical woman” in the DSM-II in 1968 were changed to “histrionic woman” in the DSM-III in 1980, after leading psychiatrists theorized that “histrionic women were labile, self-centered, seductive, frigid and children”.

“Simply put, it is outrageous that in 2022, a psychologist would testify on the stand that a woman had ‘histrionic personality disorder’ considering the mass of evidence that it is nothing more than an invented and misogynistic label to bash women. .

Actor Johnny Depp sits to testify in the Fairfax County Circuit Courtroom in Fairfax, Va., on April 25, 2022 (Photo by STEVE HELBER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

“And as controversial as this may get, the same arguments can be made for BPD. Another garbage diagnosis thrown at women, with women at least seven times more likely to be diagnosed and significantly more likely to be diagnosed during and after trauma or abuse, and interestingly, in bisexual women, who are overrepresented in BPD diagnoses .

“Diagnosing a woman with BPD or HPD is the tactic of a legal team trying to discredit a woman. I see him every day. Thousands of women are going through what Amber is as we speak, not knowing how to protect themselves or defend against a psychiatric diagnosis they didn’t even know existed.

“You only have to look at how these diagnoses have been used against multiple high-profile women to silence and control them for years to see what they are really for.

“The legal team used personality disorder to discredit a woman because they believe it positions her as crazy and unbelievable. That is the crux of this. It’s not a medical diagnosis, it’s a political etiquette and a well-known tactical move in a larger game of chess.

“And this tactic shows that we have never stopped reframing abused women as crazy, deviant and disordered.”

Amber Heard speaking with her attorney in the courtroom (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Many others took to Twitter not to defend Heard but to communicate that people with personality disorders are not inherently abusive and that the stigma of personality disorders should not be perpetuated because of their association with Heard.

One person wrote: “In light of a psychologist announcing that a professional diagnosed Amber Heard with bpd, can we remember that she’s not abusive because she has bpd, she’s abusive because she’s an abuser? There’s already an exhausting stigma around her.” No, I don’t need more sorrow!

Another tweeted: “Just because Amber Heard is diagnosed with BPD and HPD does not mean that people with these diagnoses are mean, abusive, or in any way less human. Let’s not start perpetuating the stigma: Anyone and everyone can be dumb, not just those with personality disorders.”

“Friendly reminder that Borderline Personality Disorder ≠ abusive. BPD is throwing herself around a lot with #AmberHeard. I don’t know if he was diagnosed with BPD or not, but please don’t assume that everyone with BPD is a manipulative, abusive monster, as that is simply not true,” wrote another.



Reference-www.nationalworld.com

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