The three important components of this interview are patient history, health examination and clinical judgment. Patient history includes gathering information about previous medical conditions and medications.

Borderline personality disorder “Do you have long-term feelings of sadness?” “Do you have long-term feelings of anger?” “Do you find that your relationships usually get very difficult and end abruptly?” “Have you had thoughts of killing yourself on and off over the years?”

He/she will ask about past history of suicide, violence, legal problems, substance abuse, and other high risk activities. The psychiatrist will also ask whether you have had mental health problems in the past and when you first developed them. He/she will ask about any medical problems you have.