Laroche has Borderline Personality Disorder

Jyoti
ENC 1102
Professor Myers
Research paper.
2779
8/21/2008

Laroche has Borderline Personality Disorder

Laroche is an orchid poacher in Susan Orlean’s book The Orchid Thief. He is also portrayed in Jonze’s movie Adaptation, which contains the screenplay of the Orlean’s book The Orchid Thief. Laroche exhibits several symptoms of borderline personality disorder (BPD). According to DSM-IV-TR (American Psychiatric Association 2000), BPD is a pervasive pattern of instability of interpersonal relationships, self-image, and affects, and marked impulsivity beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts. BPD is diagnosed in a person who exhibits five (or more) of the following symptoms. Firstly, this person shows frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment. Secondly, this person exhibits a pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships characterized by alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation. Thirdly, this person displays identity disturbance portrayed by markedly and persistently unstable self-image or sense of self. Fourthly, this person is impulsive in at least two areas that are potentially self-damaging e.g., spending, sex, substance abuse, reckless driving, and binge eating. Fifthly, recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats, or self-mutilating behavior manifests in this person. Sixthly, this person has affective instability due to a marked reactivity of mood e.g., intense episodic dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety usually lasting a few hours and only rarely more than a few days. Seventhly, this person experiences chronic feelings of emptiness. Eighthly, this person has an inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger e.g., frequent displays of temper, constant anger, and recurrent physical fights. Ninthly, this person has a transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociative symptoms. It is important to recognize BPD as it occurs in 1%–1.5% of the general population (Torgersen 2005). Although it has been shown to be more common among women than men in clinical settings (Morey), this difference may be largely the result of sampling bias (i.e., more women seek treatment), because no gender difference in prevalence has been found in community-based studies (Torgersen et al. 2001). Approximately 11% of psychiatric outpatients and 19% of inpatients met the criteria for BPD (Clarkin). Approximately 70-75% of patients with BPD have a history of at least one deliberate act of self-harm. The mean estimated rate of completed suicides is 9% in people with BPD (Linehan). Morbidity in the BPD population includes failure in social relationships, developmental delay, and occupational impairment. Health care costs in patients with borderline pathology are enormous, and treatment dropout rates are extraordinarily high. Therefore, it is imperative that health care professionals, including nurses recognize and treat BPD to help their patients and to reduce morbidity and mortality from this disease. Laroche exhibits a pattern of splitting, which is idealizing and devaluing objects on several occasions. He has an unstable self-image. He is impulsive in areas regarding sex, substance abuse, and reckless driving. Laroche has intense mood changes. He is chronically feeling lonely, displays inappropriate temper and he shows transient paranoid ideation. Hence, Laroche has borderline personality disorder.

One of the signs of BPD exhibited by Laroche is splitting that is, idealization and devaluing or having a love and hate relationship. This is evident when Orlean describes Laroche as eccentric based on his extreme passion and abandonment of various objects like turtles, Ice Age fossils, orchids, and fish. (3-4). In Adaptation, Laroche admits to the phase of extreme passion for one of the object, fish, when he quotes “I once feel deeply, you know, profoundly in love with tropical fish. Had 60 goddamn fish tanks in my house. I skin dived to find just the right ones. Anisotremus virginicus, Holdacanthus ciliaris, Chaetodon capistratus. You name it. Then one morning, I woke up and said, ‘Fuck fish.’ I renounce fish, I will never set foot in that ocean again. And there hasn't been a time where I have stuck so much as a toe back in that ocean” (Jonze). Laroche exhibits this model of idealization and devaluation not only with fish, but also with turtles, Ice Age fossils, orchids, mirrors, and photography. This proves that Laroche exhibits a pattern of unstable and intense relationships characterized by alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation thereby meeting this criterion of BPD. The cycles of attachment and detachment with various objects like, turtles, Ice Age fossils, orchids, and fish, could incorrectly characterize Laroche with Bipolar disorder. One of manic or mixed (manic-depressive) episodes, usually accompanied by major depressive episodes, characterizes bipolar I Disorder. Bipolar II disorder exhibits one or more major depressive episodes accompanied by at least one hypomanic episode (Paris). Laroche does not exhibit any major depressive episodes. Hence, both Bipolar I and II disorders do not apply to his diagnosis. The cycles of extreme attachment and abandonment exhibited by Laroche are characteristics of splitting or a love and hate relationship with objects, and hence dispose him towards BPD.


Along with splitting, another symptom required for BPD diagnosis exhibited by Laroche includes identity disturbance, portrayed by markedly and persistently unstable self-image or sense of self. In the book, The Orchid Thief, Laroche describes himself to the judge presiding over his trial as “Frankly, Your Honor, I’m probably the smartest person I know” (Orlean 8). This vividly describes Laroche’s eccentricity and inflated self-esteem. Not only does Laroche thinks that he is the smartest person, his self-image is divine. He admits that every time he made a new hybrid by cross-pollinating orchids, he felt like God (Orlean 17). In contrast, Laroche describes that as a child he was a weird little kid and nobody liked me (3). This displays vacillations in Laroche’s self-image and he thereby meets identity disturbance requirement of BPD.


Along with unstable self-image, Laroche displays impulsive and reckless behavior without regard for consequences, another sign required for BPD. He displays this behavior while driving, smoking, and doing drugs. Laroche drives recklessly as portrayed in the quote " He crushed out his cigarette and steered with his knee while he lit another” (Orlean 15). In the movie, Laroche is asleep at the wheel while driving (Jonze). This implies Laroche has no concern for his own safety and the safety of others. Laroche scowls and smokes furiously in the movie showing his disregard for various proven ailments caused by smoking (Jonze). Not only does Laroche smoke, he is involved in illegally using and trafficking drugs as admitted by him in the movie “The cool part is, if the government doesn't know the drug exists, it ain't controlled. A Laroche kind of plan, if I do say” (Jonze). Thus by showing his impulsivity with substance abuse, reckless driving and smoking, Laroche meets the impulsive behavior criteria for BPD.


Another BPD symptom, in addition to impulsivity, exhibited by Laroche is affective instability due to a marked reactivity of mood e.g., intense episodic dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety. Laroche’s irritability is palpable when he is guiding Orlean in the search for the ghost orchid in Adaptation and is clearly lost. He starts in one direction, stops, and then goes in another direction. He scowls at Orlean when she requests permission to ask a personal question, “Look, we're not lost” (Jonze). This displays his denial of truth and thereby portrays his behavior as disturbed. Even when he was knowingly stealing orchids, he presumes his innocence. His dysphoria is prominent when he quotes after being caught red handed “They're gonna fucking crucify me” (Jonze). When punished for his crime, Laroche maintains his self-righteousness and demonstrates his irritability by stating, “I'm right, and I'll take this all the way to the Supreme Court. That judge can screw herself “(Jonze). Laroche’s irritability and anxiety exemplifies when instead of blaming himself for reckless driving he blames others by quoting “Where do these people learn to drive? The world is insane” (Jonze). This displays that Laroche behavior is unstable, easily irritable, and anxious. This adds to the list that qualifies him for borderline personality disorder.

In addition to affective instability, Laroche exhibits intense anger, another sign of BPD. On being caught poaching, his irritability is intense in the movie and he repeatedly pounds the steering wheel while yelling, “I can't believe I'm dealing with this! Like I could give a damn. If they fire me, I'll sue. I already did some legal research on this. They can't fire me. And I ain't going to quit” (Jonze). This displays Laroche’s intense anger and wrath. His anger exhibits in his foul language used chronically by him. His chronic frustration seems to arise from his unrealistic expectations as displayed in the movie “Yeah, yeah. The thing you gotta know is my whole life is looking for a goddamn profitable plant. And that's the ghost” (Jonze). Thus by pursuing the impossible, Laroche frustrates himself and is intensely angry with others and with him. His illogical thinking fuels his anger. This is evident in his quote, “I've done this a million times. Whenever everything's killing me, I just say to myself, screw it, and go straight ahead” (Jonze). Thus by showing marked irritability Laroche meets the criteria of intense anger for BPD.

Along with temper, Laroche displays chronic emptiness, another sign required for BPD. Laroche’s loneliness began from his early childhood, starting from when he was a weird kid and nobody liked him (Orlean 3). His loneliness is exemplified in the movie in his quote “ I had this idea if I waited long enough, someone would come around and just, y'know, understand me” (Jonze). Laroche tries to disown his loneliness by attributing it to others in his quote “I believe some folks were really spending time with me because they were lonely” (Jonze). This describes that he feels empty and it is too painful for him to admit it. Laroche’s chronic emptiness qualifies him for BPD.

In addition to chronically feeling empty, Laroche exhibits paranoid ideation, another symptom of BPD. When Laroche is caught red handed while stealing orchids, he asserts, “You know, I feel like I've been screwed. I've been fucking crucified" (Orlean 12). This exemplifies his paranoia. Laroche has an illogical plan for handling his fears. While he is lost in a Florida swamp, he quotes, “I've done this a million times. Whenever everything's killing me, I just say to myself, screw it, and go straight ahead” (Jonze). This displays Laroche’s illogical fear and suspicion towards the whole world and qualifies him for BPD. His paranoia mistakenly attributes to paranoid personality disorder. However, Laroche displays this paranoia only when he is stressed out e.g. when he is caught committing a crime or when he is lost in the woods. Thus, Laroche’s transient paranoid ideation disposes him towards BPD.

Laroche’s behavior misdiagnoses as other personality disorders different from BPD. Although attention seeking, manipulative behavior, and rapidly shifting emotions can also characterize histrionic personality disorder, Laroche’s behavior clearly exemplifies BPD by his self-destructiveness, angry disruptions in close relationships, and chronic feelings of deep emptiness and loneliness. His paranoid ideas or illusions are transient, interpersonally reactive, and responsive to external structuring and hence more indicative of borderline personality disorder than of schizotypal personality disorder, where paranoia and delusions are more permanent. Although paranoid personality disorder and narcissistic personality disorder characterizes an angry reaction to minor stimuli, Laroche's instability of self-image as well as the pursuit of self-destructiveness and impulsivity predisposes him towards BPD. Although antisocial personality disorder and borderline personality disorder characterize manipulative behavior, Laroche's behavior is not solely for gaining profit, power, or some other material gratification. He also has a moral aspect in his amoral schemes and hence he aligns himself with BPD (Orlean 6).

In conclusion, Laroche, as described in the book The Orchid Thief and the movie Adaptation, exhibits several signs and symptoms of borderline personality disorder. He idealizes and devalues objects or he displays splitting. He displays an inflated self-esteem and grandiosity. His impulsivity involves him in pleasurable activities that have a high potential for painful consequences e.g. poaching orchids, smoking, abusing drugs, and reckless driving. He shows affective instability, chronic emptiness, intense anger and transient paranoid ideation. Overall, Laroche meets seven out of the nine requirements for BPD as stated in DSM-IV-TR (American Psychiatric Association 2000) and hence has borderline personality disorder. Timely diagnosis and treatment of BPD is important. Untreated BPD is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality, and treatment differs from that of other psychiatric disorders. Various specialists are available in Jacksonville, Florida to treat adults with the therapies for borderline personality disorder. Consult the specialists at the Gillespy Consulting at (904) 642-2468 or Birkmire Behavioral Healthcare Jacksonville, Inc. at (904) 262-0303 for the treatment of BPD.




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