RELATIONSHIPS: GENERAL QUESTIONS

1. You’ve identified that your relationships are your greatest concern or that your relationships are very difficult for you to cope with.

2. Next, do your best to identify which relationship problem is presenting you with the most difficulty. Or, identify which relationship problem you most frequently experience. (Click on one of the options below.)

3. I experience similar problematic issues in my relationships, such as difficulty in setting boundaries, saying no, or asking for what I need. These problems cause painful emotions, and I often handle them in the same ineffective way, such as by withdrawing, getting angry, attacking the other person, or becoming passive even when I don’t want to be. Go to CHECKLIST: PROBLEMATIC RELATIONSHIP PATTERNS.

4. I often feel frustrated in my relationships, or I frustrate others, but it’s usually related to my use of drugs or alcohol. Go to CHECKLIST: DRUG AND ALCOHOL ADDICTION.

5. I often avoid interacting with people or engaging in social events because I feel very sad, disappointed, unhappy, or hopeless most of the time. Go to CHECKLIST: DEPRESSION.

6. I experience difficulties in my relationships because my mood sometimes fluctuates between extreme highs and lows. I’ve experienced periods of time when I’ve felt excessively energetic, irritated, or outgoing; and I’ve experienced periods when I’ve felt very sad, disappointed, unhappy, or hopeless nearly every day for at least a few weeks. Go to CHECKLIST: BIPOLAR DISORDER.

7. I often get angry at other people and yell at them or lash out at them because they do things that bother me. I notice that my anger quickly increases until finally I explode.Go to CHECKLIST: ANGER CONTROL PROBLEM.

8. I experience problems in my relationships because I often avoid people who have hurt me, or I avoid people who trigger memories of a traumatic event in my life.Go to CHECKLIST: POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER.

9. I generally don’t have many meaningful relationships in my life, despite the fact that I’d like to. I think that my own long-standing habits or ways of looking at the world often prevent me from forming relationships. (For example, you might feel incapable of forming relationships, be afraid of being criticized, be overly dependent on others, be afraid that others will abandon you, avoid making decisions, think other people don’t pay enough attention to you or give you the credit you deserve, be very suspicious of others, or manipulate others for your own benefit.) Go to CHECKLIST: PERSONALITY DISORDERS.

10. I’m frequently very suspicious of other people and their motives, and I have experienced hallucinations, such as seeing, hearing, or smelling things that other people can’t perceive, or I have strongly held beliefs that other people disagree with or doubt (for example, you might think that the newscaster on television is talking directly to you despite the fact that other people tell you she isn’t). Go to CHECKLIST: SCHIZOPHRENIA.

11. None of these statements describe my problem. I’d like to explore other symptoms. Go to PRIMARY QUESTION.

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