How Repeated 15–Minute Assertiveness Training Sessions Reduce Wrist Cutting In Patients with Borderline Personality Disorder

Objective: The aim of this work was to examine a possible treatment for patients with borderline personality disorder who have wrist–cutting syndrome, a condition characterized by repeated, superficial wrist cutting in a non–suicidal fashion. Within the current healthcare system in Japan, the average amount of time a doctor can spend with a psychiatric outpatient is about 8 to 15 minutes. We, therefore, examined whether repeated 15–minute psychotherapy sessions to improve patient assertiveness would be effective for reducing wrist cutting and possibly other forms of self–mutilation.

Methods: We treated 13 patients diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and wrist-cutting syndrome with assertiveness training during 15-minute, biweekly therapy sessions over a course of one to four years.

Results and Conclusions: At the conclusion of psychotherapeutic treatment, 69% of outpatients showed a statistically significant reduction in wrist–cutting behavior.