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What is body dysmorphia?

166 Answers
Last Updated: 09/15/2023 at 5:48am
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Top Rated Answers
BalancED
July 6th, 2016 4:30am
From how I understand it, body dysmorphia is a reaction to perceived flaws on one's own body. Feelings of anxiety or self-hatred could come up following fixation on a certain body part(s), whether or not anybody outside of the sufferer can perceive the same flaws or not.
Anonymous
July 5th, 2016 4:06am
Most of us have something we don't like about our appearance — a crooked nose, an uneven smile, or eyes that are too large or too small. And though we may fret about our imperfections, they don’t interfere with our daily lives. But people who have body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) think about their real or perceived flaws for hours each day. They can't control their negative thoughts and don't believe people who tell them that they look fine. Their thoughts may cause severe emotional distress and interfere with their daily functioning. They may miss work or school, avoid social situations and isolate themselves, even from family and friends, because they fear others will notice their flaws.
Anonymous
July 3rd, 2016 1:47am
This is a type of anxiety that causes a person to view themselves differently and causes you to spend a lot of time worrying about your appearance.
Anonymous
July 1st, 2016 12:13pm
I feel it is when you think your body looks horrendous regardless of what anyone else says to you. It is looking in the mirror and feeling utter shame for your body isn't good enough. It is a thought planting into the very core of our brain since we're young and to abolish it completely would be hard, but not impossible.
Anonymous
June 30th, 2016 4:17pm
Body dysmorphia is avoiding mirrors, it's seeing something that others don't, its feeling flawed. It's hiding or trying to correct a part of you that you find disgusting. No matter the reassurance you get it is always there, always visable to you and because you think of it you notice it more. You hide it away and do what you can to be hidden from it. It's feeling ashamed. It is scary feeling so strongly about something you cant change but it is anxiety and it can be helped.
politePond33
June 29th, 2016 7:13pm
A mental illness involving obsessive focus on a perceived flaw in appearance that is what badly dysmorphia
courageousPeace95
August 11th, 2019 6:57pm
Body dysmorphia is a mental health condition that affect some people and makes them struggle with their body image. People can struggle with real problems of their body, or can think that they have problems (although there is any). This mental health condition can affect the daily-life, for example, people tend to avoid social meetings or try to cover their body with larger clothes or with makeup,... In my personal opinion, some of these problems that people tend to see on themselves are related to the way society them to create the "perfect body image". The struggle is real, and if you know someone with that condition, please, help them
Anonymous
December 7th, 2021 10:56pm
Body dysmorphia is a mental health condition, its an anxiety disorder related to body image. You spend a lot of time worrying about your appearance. You worry a lot about a specific area of your body and spend a lot of time comparing your looks with other people's look. Sometimes you may look at yourself in mirrors a lot or avoid mirrors altogether as it can be very triggering. You go to a lot of effort to conceal flaws, for example, by spending a long time combing your hair, applying make-up or spending a lot of time choosing clothes. These obsessions and behaviors cause emotional distress and have a significant impact on your ability to carry on with your day-to-day life.
meteoritee
January 17th, 2020 3:06am
Body dysmorphia is being uncomfortable with your own proper body. It's kind of like being thrown off by certain things, because the things on your body aren't the same as how you feel in your mind. For example, I'm nonbinary, and I get a lot of dysmorphia because of my chest. It makes me feel uncomfortable, so I wear a binder to help that feeling. Body dysmorphia is common in people who have been transitioning to a different gender identity, or those that feel that they're a different gender than what their organs say they are. It's a confusing feeling, and can hurt mental health a lot.
theheartproject
January 11th, 2020 5:29pm
It is a mental disorder whereby someone can't stop thinking about one or more effects or flaws on their body. They tend to keep looking at mirrors or compare themselves to others' appearances. the condition is incurable and it could be lifelong. it could easily lead to depression or compulsive behaviors. most people suffering from body dysmorphia avoid social interactions while many avoid photos. It could cause changes in moods. counselling and antidepressant medication helps a lot. A psychiatrist is best fit to help someone who has this disorder.
Anonymous
December 23rd, 2021 12:15pm
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. Having BDD does not mean you're vain or self-obsessed. It can be very upsetting and have a big impact on your life. You should see a GP if you think you might have BDD. They'll probably ask a number of questions about your symptoms and how they affect your life. They may also ask if you've had any thoughts about harming yourself. You may be treated by the GP, or they may refer you to a mental health specialist for further assessment and treatment. It can be very difficult to seek help for BDD, but it's important to remember that you have nothing to feel ashamed or embarrassed about. Getting help is important because your symptoms probably will not go away without treatment and may get worse. You can also refer yourself directly to an NHS psychological therapies service (IAPT) without a referral from a GP.
Anonymous
November 23rd, 2019 11:28pm
A body dis morphia is the fact someone is obsessed by something on their body. They saw thing that nobody notice and they want erase those "flaws". People with body dis morphia have a perception problem to see their body and their appearance. They can be convinced about a default that doesn't exist. It can build reaction like wanting absolutely hide a part of their body, want to lose weight or don't go out of their room. Speaking with someone who had a body dis morphia is really hard because they don't realize they have this problem. And tell them that they are sick isn't efficient.
Cam0331
January 27th, 2022 3:04am
Body dysmorphia can be an individual's negative opinion of their own body. They may have a desire to change their physical appearance in sometimes harmful ways. This can stem from negative portrayals of body image on social media. In addition, body dysmorphia can also be influenced by peer pressure. Often times, body dysmorphia is an unhealthy desire to change one's physical appearance based off of their own clouded judgement of themselves, when in reality, they are healthy and beautiful as they are. One way we can tackle this problem is by promoting positive displays of body image and limiting the promotion of unrealistic beauty standards.
Plantifulsoul09
November 7th, 2019 10:19am
Body dysmorphia : Body dysmorphic disorder is a preoccupation with an “imagined” defect in one’s appearance. Alternatively there may be a minor physical abnormality, but the concern is regarded as grossly excessive. Beliefs about defects in appearance usually carry strong personal meanings. A belief that his nose was too big caused one patient to feel that he would end up alone and unloved and that he might look like a crook. Symptoms and diagnosis : People with this disorder may frequently examine their appearance in a mirror, constantly compare their appearance with that of others and avoid social situations or photos.
Anonymous
March 18th, 2022 9:23am
Body Dysmorphia is a body image issue, and a mental health disorder if not related to gender issues. It may cause you to overly obsess over minor "issues" that others may not be able to see. Body dysmorphia is also linked to gender issues. For example, you might in your heart feel like a male and having a female body can trigger body dysmorphia. It can worsen over time and can lead to many other mental health issues such as eating disorders, depression, suicidal thoughts, substance abuse, obsessive compulsive disorder and anxiety. Source: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/body-dysmorphic-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20353938 It is very difficult to deal with and requires medical professionals to help, and diagnose. If you think you may be experiencing body dysmorphia please seek out professional help.
Anonymous
November 7th, 2019 8:10am
Body dysmorphia is the inability to see your body as it actually is. A very common example is someone looking in the mirror and literally seeing themself as fatter than they actually are. It is a common symptom of eating disorders, but not all people with eating disorders experience body dysmorphia by any means. This is not the same thing as body dysphoria. Dysphoria refers to an intense distress about something and most commonly body dysphoria refers to intense unhappiness related to parts and aspects of one's body that are traditionally gendered in society or that the person experiences as making them look like a gender they do not identify with.
avanef
November 3rd, 2019 11:24pm
It's a mental disorder characterized by the obsessive idea that some aspect of one's own body part or appearance is severely flawed and therefore warrants exceptional measures to hide or fix one's dysmorphic part on one's figure. There are many people who suffer from this and a lot of it can be traced back to how society shows off certain genders and their role within society, others can come from tv shows, movies, etc. A lot of times it happens to younger audiences usually around their teens is when people struggle with their confidence of themselves and can countine with them through college.
peacefulLight8704
October 17th, 2019 1:29am
Body dysmorphia can take a bunch of different forms in different people, but basically, it is a disorder where you are hyperfocused on certain small or imaginary flaws, or you blow certain parts out of proportion. Body dysmorphic disorder is related to Obsessive compulsive disorder. If you believe you have this, you should definitely talk to a school counselor, a psychiatrist, or a therapist, as this can be an extremely emotionally, socially, and physically taxing disorder of the mind. A ton of consequences could arise from it, so please, please talk to someone and reach out! People care :)
notarandomperson
October 12th, 2019 1:19pm
Body dysmorphia is simply a obsessive disorder where an individual feels quite discontent or unhappy with their body by obsessing over a flaw (or a few) and comparing themselves with others through pictures or social media. It's actually quite common, and while it's more common with females, it also is a problem with some males. Most times it's caused by abusive pasts, bullying, depression or low self-esteem. This might cause the individual to isolate themselves and avoid social gatherings. If ignored, it can escalate to depression, eating disorders and suicidal tendencies. While there is no cure, one can reach out for professional help to recover and reduce feelings of inadequacy.
callmejoy2022
March 20th, 2022 7:36pm
Body dysmorphia is a disorder that involves your brain telling you you have imperfections and defects that aren't necessarily there. This is a mental condition that someone should get help with. Symptoms include constantly checking yourself in the mirror, excessive exercise, trying to hide part of your body, being anxious about how you look, avoiding mirrors, and grooming. This disorder is linked with eating disorders but might not happen in all cases. There are tests online BDD foundation that could help someone decide if this is a disorder they have or help with convincing a friend they need to get help.
honeybun1614
June 15th, 2022 2:13pm
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. It makes you embarrassed or ashamed or anxious about the certain flaw which may or may not lead to avoid social gathering situations. It may make you so worried that it would start affecting the way you behave which is far from normal. You may take extreme measures to hide those flaws through various ways such as cosmetic surgical procedures or the use of heavy cosmetics etc. Extreme self-consciousness and preoccupation with physical appearance which will eventually cause you deep fear of being judged even when no one is judging you.
Anonymous
April 4th, 2019 3:48pm
Body dysmorphia is when you see your body differently to how it is in reality. For example, when you look in the mirror you see yourself as incredibly overweight or incredibly underweight, when in reality you arent. Of corse this applies to more than just weight, it could be height, a certain body part exaggerated etc. Body dysphoria is commonly associated with eating disorders however that isn’t the only place it can be found, there is more to it than just weight. Some further examples could be, nose size, leg length, thigh gaps and of corse there is a lot more!
Anonymous
September 30th, 2018 10:22pm
Body dysphoria is when a person feels as if their body doesn't fit their mind, or the gender their mind feels they are. An example of this would be if you feel like a man, but your body is the body of a woman. This is when someone would be transgender, to try to get their body to fit their mind. Another example of body dysphoria is when someone feels gender-neutral (otherwise known as non-binary) but they have the body of a man. They feel like they should have a gender-neutral body, but they are still stuck in the body of a man.
Sweetlistener98
December 15th, 2018 10:47am
Body dysmorphia is a fear that comes from an unreal vision of your own body and appearance, caused by an excessive concern for your image. It can be increased by the comparison with other people. The person affected takes others as an example to follow, even if it is an unreachable goal, because of the fact that everybody is different and has got unique features. Moreover, this condition is often not supported by real evidence, but who suffers from it cannot see the truth, like if he/she has got a default image of him/herself in the brain and if it is not treated properly, it can lead to death.
Anonymous
January 5th, 2019 6:51pm
Body dysmorphia (BDD) a mental disordrer, where the person suffering see themselves as severly flawed, even when it isn't true. These flaws are only imagined or when the flaw is actually real, it is very exaggerated. The thought of this imagined/exaggerated flaw takes possesion of the victims mind, just like eg. depression does. It is often present by anorexia and bulimia. These people see themselves as fat, even after they are already badly underweight. There is a opposite disorder to anorexia, where the victim percieves their body as too small. The victiim of BDD often compares their flaw and avoids showing it (for example, anorexics can wear clothes that hide their body). BDD also hasy high rates of suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts. It affects men and women.
CornMonkey
February 3rd, 2019 10:13am
Body dysmorphia, in short, is when somebody sees their body differently from how other people see their body. Somebody with body dysmorphia may see themselves as much heavier than other people see them, like I have, or they may see themselves at much lighter than other people see them. For example, somebody who has body dysmorphia may think their thighs are much too big while others mat not think that at all. On the other hand, somebody that has body dysmorphia may feel that their wrists and arms are much skinnier than they actually are. This can lead to poor body image or even eating disorders.
professionalcallie23
March 23rd, 2019 3:57am
Body dysmorphia is a mental illness, that causes you to see a distorted version, or flaw of yourself. It can cause people to believe that there is something wrong with them, even though that’s not the case. Humans are very beautiful in every sense of the word. If you are having problems with your self esteem, or the way you are viewing yourself it would be best to talk with a professional in your area who can better diagnose you, and give you methods that can help you cope! I hope that this answer helped you, and you can come to me if you have any other questions!
Anonymous
March 23rd, 2019 8:46am
Body Dysmorphia is when you are preoccupied by focusing on a part of your body that you are not satisfied with and preoccupied with ways that you can change that part. For example, you may be preoccupied with the thought that your thighs are too big so you may focus on that aspect of your body, you may continuously look at that body feature and may think of ways to change it. It is also when you have poor body image and are constantly preoccupied with thoughts surrounding your body image that it may impact on concentration or on your daily life.
GentleLlama
March 30th, 2019 8:01pm
Body dysmorphia is a focus on a part of someone's body they may feel insecure about. It could be anything from toes to elbows! It's a perceived flaw the person may have about themselves. It could be something very extreme in their mine or minor. Sometimes people have insecurities about themselves that no one can see. Other people may not even know they are insecure! If someone has body dysmorphia it could be because they'd prefer to a look a different way than they do. Everyone's body is different and beautiful in its own way. Everyone is built differently and that's what makes the world such a diverse awesome place!
crazyathlete89
July 6th, 2019 2:54am
Body dysmorphia is when you feel uncomfortable in your own skin. For example, your stomach might "feel" fat. You might be self-conscious that you are too skinny or that you are "fat". You may not like your body or feel like you were meant to be born in a different one. Body dysmorphia feels like parts of the body feeling wrong. It basically means you don't like your body and that it is not what society idealizes it to be. People try so hard to fit in and judge their self worth on what their body looks like. And then it makes them feel uncomfortable,do body checks, restrict calories, etc.