Those with body dysmorphia have a distorted view of how they look, while those with gender dysphoria suffer no distortion. They have feelings of anxiety and depression, as they truly know who they are on the inside, despite this not fitting with their biological sex.
Both men and women – about 40% of people with BDD are men, and about 60% are women. People of almost any age (from age 4-5 up into old age): BDD most often begins around age 12 or 13. Two-thirds of people with BDD experience onset of the disorder before age 18.
While you can "self-test" yourself or your child for gender dysphoria, this should only be considered the first step toward a diagnosis. Even as adults, people can have difficulty articulating their true feelings or identifying the sources of those feelings.
There are two subtypes of BDD: Muscle Dysmorphia and BDD by Proxy.
Though gender dysphoria and body dysmorphia are two different things, it's very possible to experience both disorders, sometimes at the same time. For example, someone who has gender dysphoria may also become preoccupied with breast size.
BDD can be about any part of your body, and contrary to what some may have assumed (myself included) perceived fat or flab is only one of many types of BDD fixation.
Gender dysphoria history: Of the 55 TM patients included in our study, 41 (75%) reported feeling GD for the first time by age 7, and 53 (96%) reported first experiencing GD by age 13 (Table 2).
You may feel: certain that your gender identity conflicts with your biological sex. comfortable only when in the gender role of your preferred gender identity (may include non-binary) a strong desire to hide or be rid of physical signs of your biological sex, such as breasts or facial hair.
For some, gender dysphoria can develop early in childhood. One study showed that, on average, study participants reported their earliest memory of gender dysphoria between the ages of 4 and 6 years old. By the age of 7, most study participants could remember experiencing some feelings of gender dysphoria.
The Link Between Gender Dysphoria and Body Dysmorphia
While we can conceptualize gender dysphoria and body dysmorphia as two different things, they are often not mutually exclusive. Transgender and non-binary folks may experience both simultaneously. Gender dysphoria and body dysmorphia are interconnected.
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. It affects both men and women.
Reverse BDD: In many ways, reverse body dysmorphia is the opposite of BDD. Individuals with this condition may believe they are thin while living in a larger body. Therefore, they may routinely buy clothing several sizes too small without trying it on.
The exact cause of gender dysphoria is unclear. Gender development is complex and there are still things that are not known or fully understood. Gender dysphoria is not related to sexual orientation. People with gender dysphoria may identify as straight, gay, lesbian or bisexual.
While symptoms of gender dysphoria often appear in early childhood, it's not uncommon for them to first appear during adolescence or, in some cases, even adulthood.
Causes of gender dysphoria
Occasionally, the hormones that trigger the development of biological sex may not work properly on the brain, reproductive organs and genitals, causing differences between them. This may be caused by: additional hormones in the mother's system – possibly as a result of taking medication.
Structure of the GD Brain
Looking at the volume of the cortex using voxel-based morphometry, Simon et al found that females and male-to-female gender dysphoric individuals had a smaller grey matter volume in their left somatosensory and primary motor cortices in comparison to cisgender male controls.
A strong desire to have the genitals and secondary sex characteristics of another gender. A strong desire to be or to be treated as another gender. A strong belief of having the typical feelings and reactions of another gender.
Today, individuals who have a gender identity different from that associated with their assigned sex at birth are considered to represent normal variation. They are only considered to have a mental health condition if their gender identity causes them problems with functioning or distress.
According to DSM-5-TR, the prevalence of gender dysphoria is 0.005–0.014% for adult natal males and 0.002-0.003% for adult natal females.
If you are experiencing gender dysphoria, you may feel more comfortable wearing clothes initially designed for other genders. However, gender dysphoria does not explicitly relate to sexual arousal from wearing these clothes, unlike transvestic disorder.
When viewing themselves in photographs, patients with BDD underutilize parts of the brain used in seeing the face's overall shape and size, he said. "If you just see the pieces of your face, and not seeing how they fit into the whole, then it's going to look distorted," he said. "That's how we interpret the findings."
Feeling shame or disgust about your body or appearance, especially the specific things you think are problems. Some of the most common words people with BDD use to describe themselves or parts of their body include “ugly,” “hideous,” “deformed,” “abnormal,” “defective” or “unattractive.”
BPD patients showed more facial disgust and social smiling but less contempt than the non-patient group. Attachment style influenced these results: facial behavior related to disgust was found to be prominent in BPD patients with unresolved trauma.
marked incongruence between your experienced and expressed gender and your primary or secondary sex characteristics. strong desire to be rid of your primary or secondary sex characteristics. strong desire for the primary or secondary sex characteristics of the other gender. strong desire to be of the other gender.
Gender dysphoria can be lessened by supportive environments and knowledge about treatment to reduce the difference between your inner gender identity and sex assigned at birth.