BPD Emptiness: What It Is and What It Feels Like (Psychologist w/ BPD)

In this video I explain emptiness in BPD: what it is, what it can feel like, and why it happens. I use descriptions from research and then break down two evidence based angles: the biosocial model (shutdown in response to emotional overwhelm) and mentalization (how identity develops through relationships and what happens when that process is disrupted).
I also talk about what can help, including the role of psychoeducation, DBT skills for emotion regulation, and mentalizing work to strengthen identity over time.

Sources:

Miller, C. E., Townsend, M. L., Day, N. J. S., & Grenyer, B. F. S. (2020). Measuring the shadows: A systematic review of chronic emptiness in borderline personality disorder. PLOS ONE, 15(7), e0233970. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone....
Miller, C. E., Townsend, M. L., & Grenyer, B. F. S. (2021). Understanding chronic feelings of emptiness in borderline personality disorder: a qualitative study. Borderline Personality Disorder and Emotion Dysregulation, 8(1), 24. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40479-021-00...
Neustadter, E. S., Fotopoulou, A., Steinfeld, M., & Fineberg, S. K. (2021). Mentalization and embodied selfhood in Borderline Personality Disorder. Journal of Consciousness Studies : Controversies in Science & the Humanities, 28(3–4), 126–157.
Sheena-Peer, L., Rafaeli, E., Berenson, K. R., Downey, G., & Kivity, Y. (2025). The urge to fill the void: Emptiness, impulsivity, and mentalizing in the daily life of individuals with borderline personality disorder. Personality Disorders, 16(5), 403–414. https://doi.org/10.1037/per0000721