For the Professional

Borderline Traits, Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) and co-occurring conditions are some of the most difficult and complicated diagnoses to treat.

Families of young adults with these diagnoses look to you for guidance and as a professional you take pride in never giving up, no matter how intense or complex the case.

For nearly a decade, you have turned to our JCAHO-accredited Optimum Performance Institute (OPI) as one of the most trusted and responsible programs in the country to help you provide the best possible Transitional Care for your men and women ages 17-28.

Your clients come to us from throughout the world: From home, residential treatment centers, wilderness programs and from hospitals.

When OPI realized that the comprehensive skills, curriculum, rapid stabilization and integration techniques we developed over the years also were needed specifically by young adults diagnosed with Borderline Traits, Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) and co-occurring conditions, we opened our breakthrough OPI Intensive Program as an integrated, sub-specialized part of OPI.

As always, we continue to work closely with you, the referring professional, who remains involved in the on-going treatment and final disposition of the client.

OPI’s Young Adults Struggle With Many Conditions And Diagnoses Including:

Irrespective of diagnostic categories, we are an environment where people can begin to understand their diagnosis and simultaneously learn to cope with it in the real world with support from their Individual Therapist/Case Manager and our team of clinicians and staff.

How Do I know my Client with these Diagnoses is Appropriate for OPI Programs?

  • Perhaps your client seems ready to move forward but in your professional opinion needs more structure than out-patient, but less structure than an inpatient hospital, setting.
  • Perhaps your client is miserable at being un-able to move forward and become independent but refuses to recognize the amount of supervision and one-to-one support YOU know is needed to help them meet their goals.
  • Perhaps the family is just as miserable but can’t bring themselves to take the hard steps necessary to deal with the situation because it represents a failure on their part.
  • Perhaps you realize that “the earlier the intervention, the better the outcome” but the family “just doesn’t see it”.

OPI is not suitable for young adults who have used intravenous heroin or other opiates or who are in Stage 4 substance abuse characterized by escalating use of alcohol, drugs or “hard drugs” accompanied by deteriorating physical condition and inability to control use. OPI is also not appropriate for individuals with eating disorders severe enough to require medical oversight or individuals with a history of physical violence or aggression.

How Do I know my Client with these Diagnoses is Appropriate for OPI Programs?

1. Continuity of Care

We work with you to provide the continuity of care you have initiated with your client.
OPI keeps you informed with reports and assessments so you can remain updated on the progress of your client*. Finally, we support the bridge you have built with family and client, allowing you to stay in touch with the family and on top of the treatment.

In this manner, your standard of care for your client can be maintained. As the client resumes under your care, there will be a sense of continuity which is reassuring.
* in accordance with HIPAA regulations

2. Treatment for Borderline Men ages 17-28

The OPI Intensive Program is one of the few residential programs in the world treating young adult men with Borderline Traits, Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) and disorders of emotion regulation.

Today, experts are finding that Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is an under-diagnosed disorder within the male population. Historically, BPD has been diagnosed three times as often in women as in men.

Now experts have begun to consider the issue of BPD as it occurs in males.

Neurological studies have found that both men and women with BPD have functional differences in identifiable brain regions, specifically the prefrontal cortex – the part of the brain responsible for impulse control and decision making.

According to studies, men with impulsivity are more vulnerable to substance use and violent behavior, more likely to behave impulsively and self-destructively, including drug use. Women with BPD tend to have more symptoms associated with mood swings, a sense of emptiness, and problems in relationships.

For a man, his behaviors may often result in misdiagnosis, not to mention significant legal consequences as well as a poor quality of life.

3. OPI Intensive: Diagnosis and 17-Year-Olds

It has been our experience that the earlier the intervention, the better the outcome. Perhaps one of the most complex and difficult transitions we undergo takes place within the 17-18-year-old period. It is an extremely difficult and important time.

Young adults are faced with difficult decisions: Completing high school, moving to college or work, trying to establish healthy peer or mentoring relationships. This is most relevant for those who seem to be demonstrating Borderline Traits.

We believe it is essential that young adults described as having Borderline Traits or Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) and co-occurring conditions receive the help they need. Only in this way can they get a “jump-start” on learning to set and reach goals, explore their unique abilities and start believing in a life worth living.

What Will The OPIPrograms Do For My Client That Other Programs Can’t?

OPI teaches Young Adults how to apply DBT to their real life so they can move forward and discover a life worth living.

  • One therapist/case manager per participant following them throughout their stay.
  • One DBT-trained Independent Living Specialist for every two participants ensuring continued oversight and safety.
  • Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and Mindfulness techniques are combined with techniques for individuation perfected over time by the Optimum Performance Institute. Together they mobilize young adults to find direction, balance and greater responsibility for their lives.
  • Participants work with OPI Departments of Education, Career Development, Volunteer Services, Extracurricular Activities
  • Beautiful, staffed Apartments (genders are separated) with swimming pools, workout rooms, etc.
  • Access to a plethora of activities at OPI and in the greater L.A. area.
  • Improv groups, writing workshops, a chemical dependency track (if appropriate), goals workshops, Transitional Living Skills and more
  • For many young people the opportunity to have DBT and Mindfulness skills reinforced by peers and adults permits the opportunity to learn that there is no perfect decision, helping them tolerate the ambiguities associated with setting goals and moving forward .

Phase One: Immersion:

OPI specializes in the use of DBT to treat young adults between the ages of 17-28 of all genders who are struggling with emotional dysregulation and interpersonal issues. Adaptable clinical sophistication supports participants along a continuum of care, ranging from severe needs to support with independent living. OPI flexes support depending upon a client’s needs. Participants reside in modern apartments to respect their ability to self care and to provide real world interactions. Situated in Los Angeles, our team connects participants with schools, employment and volunteer opportunities, along with weekly recreational and cultural outings throughout Los Angeles!

This is the process that makes Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) stick: OPI teaches participants how to apply DBT and Mindfulness techniques to their real life so they can move forward.