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==  Histrionic Personality Disorder ==

Pronunciation: his-tree-ah-niks. To hear press http://www.alphadictionary.com/sounds/histrionics.mp3

Histrionic personality disorder (HPD) is one of the most common found in the United States and effects 40% of inpatients, effecting more women then men by about 4:1 ratio. This disorder can easily be mistaken for immaturity however a person does not grow out of the selfish state of being. You may perceive people with HPD to be very dependent, rude and demanding, shallow, and far from genuine. "The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III-R) for concept of the histrionic personality disorder reflects a tendency to be self-dramatizing, attention seeking, overly gregarious, seductive and manipulative, exhibitionistic, shallow, frivolous, liable, vain, and demanding". Histrionic Personality Disorder is considered to be in the dramatic cluster when classifying different groups of personalities. These behaviors are overwhelming and can be difficult to deal with. People with HPD have a high need for attention, make loud and inappropriate appearances, exaggerate all of their behaviors and emotions, cave stimulation and usually make a big deal about nothing. However you may find that someone with HPD can be charming, lively or funny in small doses. It is very important to realize that those who suffer from HPD often may seem completely confident and into themselves, can easiliy rejected from those around them which "may lead into depression and suicidal ideation."

Treatment Treatment involves psychotherapy and sometimes medication, psychodynamic treatment and cognitive therapy treatment. However, the characteristics listed above, can make it very difficult for a therapist to do their job. HPD patients "can often make the therapist feel incompetent, responsible, and obliged toward the patient. It is important that one analyst be assigned to the patient and very early off in the treatment with these incompetent expectations "to assign responsibility to the hysteric and to maintain aloof and highly prefessional integrity."

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