What is the best way to support someone with body dysmorphia?
Be consistent. People with BDD may seek reassurance about the way they look. Try not to get drawn into debates about their appearance and encourage others not to do the same.
Having BDD can negatively affect your relationships and interactions with your friends, significant other, coaches, teachers, and family members. You may be worrying that you are “a freak” or “unlovable.” This is not so. In fact, BDD is more common than you might think.
It might be tempting to tell someone with BDD that their symptoms are only in their head and that you don't see the things they see—but doing so can be dismissive. “To say that it's all in their heads…is a put-down,” Dr. Phillips says.
Do people with body dysmorphia realize they have it?
Most people with BDD don't get a diagnosis until 10 to 15 years after the symptoms become serious enough to meet the criteria for diagnosis. That's partly because they don't realize the thoughts and feelings they experience are signs of a mental health condition or because they're ashamed or afraid to ask for help.
Someone with body dysmorphic disorder doesn't see their body as it really is or as others see it. The "flaws" they focus on are things that others can hardly notice. They exaggerate them, so things seem worse in their minds.
What not to say to someone struggling with body image?
Avoid talking negatively about your body
This can be hard if you also struggle with body image issues but, although it might be tempting to talk about your body hang-ups with your loved one, this is detrimental.
How does body dysmorphia affect romantic relationships?
A big way BDD can affect your relationships is by making it difficult for you to be intimate with your partner. You might feel ashamed or insecure about your appearance, which makes it really hard to be present and connected with your partner. Physical intimacy is a large part of any romantic relationship.
BDD can cause extreme emotional distress, including feeling of anxiety, shame, depression and disgust. Even if sufferers' concerns about their appearance aren't noticeable to others, their distress is very real.
Body dysmorphic disorder is a mental health condition in which you can't stop thinking about one or more perceived defects or flaws in your appearance — a flaw that appears minor or can't be seen by others. But you may feel so embarrassed, ashamed and anxious that you may avoid many social situations.
Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), or body dysmorphia, is a mental health condition where a person spends a lot of time worrying about flaws in their appearance. These flaws are often unnoticeable to others. People of any age can have BDD, but it's most common in teenagers and young adults.
Facial dysmorphia is a mental health condition where the sufferer has a warped perception of the appearance of their face. This commonly includes distorted views on how their nose, skin and teeth look.
How does negative body image affect relationships?
Research shows that body image is interconnected with how romantic relationships are experienced and can impact sexual intimacy in both quality and quantity. Additionally, greater body image dissatisfaction has been linked to a less secure and more anxious attachment in romantic relationships.
What to do if your girlfriend is insecure about her looks?
If she's insecure about her looks, she might be nervous that she doesn't live up to societal beauty standards. You can encourage her to talk about her feelings by saying something like, “I want to know what's going on in your head. Can you talk to me about what you've been going through?”
Avoid Self-Isolation. Body dysmorphia makes people feel insecure about their physical appearance, so it's no wonder that people with this disorder will want to isolate themselves. ...
If left untreated, BDD can worsen with age. With proper treatment, care and support, a person may recover from unwanted thoughts about their appearance.
"The less efficient patients' brain connections, the worse the symptoms, particularly for compulsive behaviors, such as checking mirrors." People suffering from BDD tend to fixate on minute details, such as a single blemish on their face or body, rather than viewing themselves in their entirety.
