Table of contents
What is body dysmorphic disorder (BDD)?
The UK’s National Health Service (NHS) describes body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), or body dysmorphia, as a mental health condition where a person spends a lot of time worrying about flaws in their appearance.” Often, these flaws go unnoticed by other people. BDD is most common in teenagers and young adults, but it affects people of all ages and genders.
The BDD Foundation’s website explains that “The term Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) describes a disabling preoccupation with perceived defects or flaws in appearance. It can affect all genders, and makes sufferers excessively self-conscious.” People with BDD tend to focus on particular aspects of appearance, rather than seeing the bigger picture. They also tend to overestimate the amount of attention their perceived imperfections attract from other people.
The impacts of BDD
BDD will often interfere with a person’s daily functioning and affect their relationships, work and social life. It can also lead to depression, self-harm and, at its worst, suicidal feelings. It sometimes said that BDD can lead to anxiety, but it seems more accurate to say that anxiety is already part of BDD. So, it may contribute to anxiety and how anxiety shows up in one’s life.
How people with BDD cope
The way people with BDD see themselves causes them distress. And the way they imagine other people see them does too. They will sometimes use rituals to reduce these painful feelings. Another method is to avoid social situations. These strategies sometimes work to reduce painful feelings, so they are used repeatedly until they can no longer be let go of. (This is similar to the compulsive behaviours in OCD.) Unfortunately they do not address the original issue of people how with BDD see their bodies.
Therapy for BDD
Despite there being evidence since the 1990s that talking therapies work, people with BDD tend to seek physical changes to their bodies rather than seek psychological care. These include surgery, dental treatment and skin treatments. There is some evidence that these do not help BDD and sometimes make it worse.
Self-help resources and sources of support
Here are some sources of self-help and support.
The Body Dysmorphic Disorder Foundation
The BDD Foundation’s website contains a wealth of information, support and resources.
Mind
Mind, a leading UK mental health charity, also has a page on BDD.
National OCD/BDD Service
This a London (UK)-based service with an international reputation for dealing with severe BDD (as well as OCD).
Related articles on BDD
Here is an article on BDD in the US magazine Seventeen. It is written together with psychiatrist Katharine Phillips MD and others. The article explains that BDD is not just vanity. And it takes the view that BDD is not an eating disorder and has more in common with severe anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD.)
Professional resources
A paper by Holland & Tiggemann [1] concluded that there is much correlational research supporting the maladaptive effect of social media use on body image and disordered eating. However, more longitudinal and experimental studies are needed.
References
A systematic review of the impact of the use of social network sites on body image and disordered eating outcomes. Body Image. 2016 Jun;17:100-10. Holland G, Tiggemann M. doi: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2016.02.008. Epub 2016 Mar 18. Retrieved 08 March 2018.