What Is She?

I was reading about personality disorders when I came across Histrionic, and immediately thought of a woman at work. What do you guys reckon? Some of the points below do not suggest Histrionic, but I'm including them anyway to give a proper description of her personality, she may not be Histrioni after all, or she may be something else entirely, or just normal.

- She is 40 years old, and overweight. Possibly verging on obese (I say this to point out she doesn't focus any attention on her image)
- From what I know, she has few close friends; she attends night classes mainly to meet people; she has told my friend that her cat is more important than her husband, and her mother seems to be her best friend. Also from what I can tell, she doesn't seem to have been able to make friends at classes
- A number of times she's claimed she's dieting, but it lasts a few days before she's overeating again. The reason I mention this is because she seems to be too attached to food. When our company has clients visit, leftover food is left in our canteen. When she walks in, her eyes light up and she rushes over and usually doesn't even swallow before eating something else. She is way too attached to food.
- Seemingly she doesn't see alot of her husband 'cos he's in the pub and whatnot.

Now, the main stuff:

- She loves the attention of men. Before I started working at this place, and while she was married, she got very attached to a guy. He wouldn't even so much as flirt with her, but she still got the wrong idea and one day when driving him home (she would wait 30mins for him to finish, then drive the opposite way to her normal route) told him she wanted to leave her husband for him. There was absolutely no basis for that at all. That guy has gone on to date and have a baby with another woman at work, and before she left through pregnancy, this woman pretty much despised her for ending up with the guy.
- While she doesn't do anything special too attract attention (she wears ridiculous clothes, horrible colours, not trying to be mean but she looks a fat mess), she definitely loves it when she has it. If I or my male friends talk to her in a friendly way, she will usually spend the rest of the day staring at us from her table, or when she walks by, or even come over to talk when she has the chance.
- Before I realised what she was like, she told me she wanted to sleep with me, and would tell me about what she and her husband got up to in the bedroom (or on a bus, as it turned out). Admittedly, I initiated some of it, but she was very willing to disclose info, although I got the feeling she was making stuff up to sound exciting.
- I have been told that back in the day (by which I mean, before our fallout, since which she has held back on her extroverted nature), she would ask other women at work if I'd said anything about her (in the sense of wanting her, not talking trash behind her back). I was also told that one time she voiced her annoyance at me directing my attention to a male friend once he was walked in the room, instead of carrying on my conversation with her. Of course a 19yr old will talk to his 18yr old friend instead of chatting to a horrible 40yr old woman.
- We had a fallout over something I can't remember, since which she hasn't been as upfront about her feelings. It is obvious though that she gets the impression she is in with a chance with one of us, because we only have to walk past her and she has the biggest grin on her face.
- She is very easily annoyed. Last month she ignored me for 2 weeks because she thought I was ignoring her. If I didn't say hello in the morning, to her I was shunning her and being nasty. I didn't even figure anything was wrong until one day mid conversation she said 'but you can't blame me for the past 2 weeks', before she explained what she meant. Also, in her words I was having 'f***ing moodswings'. What did she mean by that you ask? If I said something to her at one point in the day, then BAH GOD walked past her later the same day without saying a single word, I was on a moodswing - nice as pie one minute, nasty the next. As she told me this she was getting pretty annoyed at me, which I couldn't fathom, and even went so far as to lie to me about things I did and didn't say when I told her she was talking rubbish.
- Alot of the time she easily comes out of her stubborn ignoring periods. She can give you evil eyes one minute, then after a simple 'hello' you can see the happiness on her face, with her HUGE grin. She looks like someone just proposed to her.

Sorry this was so long, I'm sure I've left so much stuff out.

Guy,
I really don't know anyone with HPD so I did a little research on the web and here is some information I hope will be helpful to you.

Histrionic Personality Disorder
SYMPTOMS
A pervasive pattern of excessive emotionality and attention seeking, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by five (or more) of the following:

(1) is uncomfortable in situations in which he or she is not the center of attention
(2) interaction with others is often characterized by inappropriate sexually seductive or provocative behavior
(3) displays rapidly shifting and shallow expression of emotions
(4) consistently uses physical appearance to draw attention to self
(5) has a style of speech that is excessively impressionistic and lacking in detail
(6) shows self-dramatization, theatricality, and exaggerated expression of emotion
(7) is suggestible, i.e., easily influenced by others or circumstances
(8) considers relationships to be more intimate than they actually are

Psychotherapy
Individuals who suffer from this disorder are usually difficult to treat for a multitude of reasons. As with most personality disorders, people present for treatment only when stress or some other situational factor within their lives has made their ability to function and cope effectively impossible. They are, however (unlike other people who suffer from personality disorders), much quicker to seek treatment and exaggerate their symptoms and difficulties in functioning. Because they also tend to be more emotionally needy, they are often reluctant to terminate therapy.
Psychotherapy, as with most personality disorders, is the treatment of choice. Group and family therapy approaches are generally not recommended, since the individual who suffers from this disorder often draws attention to themselves and exaggerates every action and reaction. People with disorder often come across as "fake" or shallow in their interpersonal relationships with others. Patients often are express all feelings with the same depth of emotion, unaware of the subtleties of their own emotional states and of the vast range available to them.

Therapy should generally be supportive and good rapport will usually be easily established with the patient early on. Clinicians may often find themselves placed in a "rescuer" role, in which the therapist will be asked to constantly reassure and rescue the client from daily problems. Every problem is usually expressed in a dramatic fashion. Many times the therapist will be perceived as sexually attractive to the patient. Boundary issues in relationships and a clear delineation of the therapeutic framework are relevant and important aspects of therapy.

Approaches which take advantage of matter-of-fact and realistic assessment of situations and problems can also be important. Solution-focused therapy is often appropriate with this client. Most therapy approaches should not be focused on the long-term, personality change of the individual, but rather short-term alleviation of difficulties within the person's life. Few people could afford the time or cost required to "cure" someone of this disorder. This should be explicitly stated up-front at the onset of therapy to dismiss any thoughts the client may have of a "magical" cure for this disorder.

Suicidal behavior is often apparent in a person who suffers from histrionic personality disorder. Suicidality should be assessed on a regular basis and suicidal threats should not be ignored or dismissed. Suicide sometimes occurs when all that was intended was a gesture, so all such thoughts and plans should be taken with the same seriousness as with any other disorder. A suicide contract should be established to specify under what conditions the therapist may be contacted in case the client feels like hurting him or herself. Self-mutilation behavior may also be present in this disorder and should also be taken seriously as an issue of importance to discuss within therapy.

Therapists will find that taking a somewhat skeptical stance within therapy to be useful, due to the usual exaggeration of events and problems by the patient. By following a line of reasoning to its logical conclusion, the client can usually discover the unrealistic expectations and fears associated with many behaviors and thoughts. Since many people who have histrionic personality disorder will emphasize attractiveness ("style over substance") in their lives and relationships, discussing alternatives and trying out new behaviors may be helpful. The therapist can also help by pointing out, in session, when the client is using shallow criteria in which to judge another. The patient should eventually look to be able to do this themselves throughout their lives.

Insight- and cognitive-oriented approaches are generally largely ineffective in treatment of this disorder and should be avoided. People with this disorder are often incapable of examining unconscious motivations and their own thoughts to a degree where it is helpful. While these approaches can be a part of a larger treatment plan, they should not be the focus. Helping the client to examine interactions from a more objective point of view and emphasizing alternative explanations for behavior is likely to be more effective. Examining and clarifying a client's emotions are also important components of therapy.

Clinicians will often experience reactions to treating this disorder, because of the dramatic nature of the patient. Because of this possibility, therapists should be more attuned to their own feelings within the therapy setting and ensure that they are treating the patient fairly and with respect. As with Borderline Personality Disorder, individuals with histrionic personality disorder often find themselves discriminated against by mental health professionals because of the symptoms of their disorder. Clinicians and patients should be aware of this possible discrimination.

I am no expert, but this woman at work does not sound like she is histrionic. There are overlapping symptoms of personal disorders and other mental health issues. If you are really interested, you might want to check out some other disorders. My off-hand guess would be borderline personality disorder. possibly bipolar or other. I know a histrionic with ALL the traits and I would say your coworker doesn't entirely fit, so perhaps something else is going on with her. But that's just my best guess. I'm not a doctor.

I don't think she fits into any of the personality disorders. Maybe she's just eccentric, doesn't mean there's anything wrong with her. She does sound kind of creepy though, I'd stay away from her. I think she's just depressed, try looking under something other than PD's.