B.D.D subject (body dysmorphia)

Shyangel

Shyangel

Well-known member
I use to have this problem...I would hysterically cry until I fell asleep sometimes...I would spend so much time crying while looking at myself in the mirror, picking obsessively at my skin, tearing my face apart until it looked like a bloody scabby mess...I refused to accept myself they way I was. I spent hours, alot of the time, the whole day putting on makeup, crying because no matter how much I put on I looked hideous. I inflicted pain on myself during this time.

What I did to stop obsessing over my appearance: I would just walk down stairs without even thinking or looking at my appearance. I would do this for a few days and I realized life was so much better when I didn't think about it. I realized I didn't die, or get made fun of when I went out. Life could go on with me looking the way I do. It was exposing myself to day to day life with myself looking as I do that made me realize it isn't that bad. I can get through life being me, looking like me. Still to this day, I put little to no thought into my appearance. I don't do my hair, I don't wear makeup, I don't dress up. Appearance doesn't matter that much to me. It causes to much stress so I just avoid it all together. I feel more confident in myself not dressed up, because I look like myself. I don't need all this glorified stuff on the outside to define me. The way I wake up in the morning, is the way I got through the rest of the day. This is my motto, and it makes my life so much easier.
 
hidwell

hidwell

Well-known member
Shyangel said:
I use to have this problem...I would hysterically cry until I fell asleep sometimes...I would spend so much time crying while looking at myself in the mirror, picking obsessively at my skin, tearing my face apart until it looked like a bloody scabby mess...I refused to accept myself they way I was. I spent hours, alot of the time, the whole day putting on makeup, crying because no matter how much I put on I looked hideous. I inflicted pain on myself during this time.

What I did to stop obsessing over my appearance: I would just walk down stairs without even thinking or looking at my appearance. I would do this for a few days and I realized life was so much better when I didn't think about it. I realized I didn't die, or get made fun of when I went out. Life could go on with me looking the way I do. It was exposing myself to day to day life with myself looking as I do that made me realize it isn't that bad. I can get through life being me, looking like me. Still to this day, I put little to no thought into my appearance. I don't do my hair, I don't wear makeup, I don't dress up. Appearance doesn't matter that much to me. It causes to much stress so I just avoid it all together. I feel more confident in myself not dressed up, because I look like myself. I don't need all this glorified stuff on the outside to define me. The way I wake up in the morning, is the way I got through the rest of the day. This is my motto, and it makes my life so much easier.
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You are a naturally beautiful woman inside and out Shyangel, and your empathy towards fellow SPW members is like a breath of fresh air .:)
 
Shyangel

Shyangel

Well-known member
hidwell said:
You are a naturally beautiful woman inside and out Shyangel, and your empathy towards fellow SPW members is like a breath of fresh air .:)
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I strongly appreciate that, Hidwell. Your are truly to nice to me. ^.^

I appreciate you being on this forum.:)
 
WeirdyMcGee

WeirdyMcGee

Well-known member
Shyangel said:
What I did to stop obsessing over my appearance: I would just walk down stairs without even thinking or looking at my appearance. I would do this for a few days and I realized life was so much better when I didn't think about it. I realized I didn't die, or get made fun of when I went out. Life could go on with me looking the way I do. It was exposing myself to day to day life with myself looking as I do that made me realize it isn't that bad. I can get through life being me, looking like me. Still to this day, I put little to no thought into my appearance. I don't do my hair, I don't wear makeup, I don't dress up. Appearance doesn't matter that much to me. It causes to much stress so I just avoid it all together. I feel more confident in myself not dressed up, because I look like myself. I don't need all this glorified stuff on the outside to define me. The way I wake up in the morning, is the way I got through the rest of the day. This is my motto, and it makes my life so much easier.
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I have tried this method of thinking as well... I don't have a scale or a mirror in my bedroom and when no one else is home for a weekend- I cover the mirrors with towels just so I don't accidentally walk past my reflection and see it from the corner of my eye.

I can't seem to accept myself but hearing that you have is inspiring, really.
Thanks for sharing!
 
O

ohheybbyitscorixx

Well-known member
I have it, but usually don't talk about it. It's related to my OCD. I will feel ugly, look in the mirror, get compulsions to pick at my skin, feel better for a few seconds, look in the mirror at what I've done to my skin and feel ugly all over again (and it just all keeps going in a cycle). I'm extremely ashamed of me not ever feeling good about myself. I have a list of like 10 plastic surgeries I'm planning on getting. I feel that being bullied/abused by my parents lead to this for me. It does make me more antisocial because I don't want to leave if I am ugly and it causes me anxiety. For me, the areas I am most concerned with are the areas that remind me of my parents or the ones that my parents made fun of.
 
O

ohheybbyitscorixx

Well-known member
Shyangel said:
I use to have this problem...I would hysterically cry until I fell asleep sometimes...I would spend so much time crying while looking at myself in the mirror, picking obsessively at my skin, tearing my face apart until it looked like a bloody scabby mess...I refused to accept myself they way I was. I spent hours, alot of the time, the whole day putting on makeup, crying because no matter how much I put on I looked hideous. I inflicted pain on myself during this time.

What I did to stop obsessing over my appearance: I would just walk down stairs without even thinking or looking at my appearance. I would do this for a few days and I realized life was so much better when I didn't think about it. I realized I didn't die, or get made fun of when I went out. Life could go on with me looking the way I do. It was exposing myself to day to day life with myself looking as I do that made me realize it isn't that bad. I can get through life being me, looking like me. Still to this day, I put little to no thought into my appearance. I don't do my hair, I don't wear makeup, I don't dress up. Appearance doesn't matter that much to me. It causes to much stress so I just avoid it all together. I feel more confident in myself not dressed up, because I look like myself. I don't need all this glorified stuff on the outside to define me. The way I wake up in the morning, is the way I got through the rest of the day. This is my motto, and it makes my life so much easier.
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You give me hope that I can somehow lessen my skin picking. I've been doing it since I was 11 and feeling hopelessly not "good enough" in every sense.
 
O

ohheybbyitscorixx

Well-known member
Mickery said:
So looking at the definition on Wikipedia it seems I have this. Kinda knew but didn't know. I'm surprised to find it considered a part of OCD, that never occurred to me and I have no other OCD tendencies that I'm aware of.
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I guess because you are so focused on something about yourself. Someone with BDD has really obsessive thoughts about their appearances, which can lead to compulsions.
 
YellowBird

YellowBird

Well-known member
^agreed,definitely sabotages my social life,i can't focus on anything else but how ugly i am compared to everyone else,it also makes me so much more submissive,another reason i find it easier to talk to men,because i don't have to compare myself.Sometimes i even feel like a dude around other women,which triggers my hocd..aaaaah it's a never ending nightmare.
 
J

JustMe1987

Active member
YellowBird said:
^agreed,definitely sabotages my social life,i can't focus on anything else but how ugly i am compared to everyone else,it also makes me so much more submissive,another reason i find it easier to talk to men,because i don't have to compare myself.Sometimes i even feel like a dude around other women,which triggers my hocd..aaaaah it's a never ending nightmare.
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im sure like 80-90% of my SA have to do with BDD.
i keep think, if i was like that guy im sure i havent SA or maybe im just crazy.
 
YellowBird

YellowBird

Well-known member
it's truly terrible,if i were to tell someone what goes through my head when i get these episodes,they would run away from me,most of it makes no sense AT ALL and yet you can't think about anything else.
 
A

AGR

Well-known member
Yes I have since I was a kid,I hate my reflection and is definitely a big reason that I dont go out of the house or that I turned down some opportunities to be normal.
 
O

ohheybbyitscorixx

Well-known member
Olhos Abertos said:
Yes I have since I was a kid,I hate my reflection and is definitely a big reason that I dont go out of the house or that I turned down some opportunities to be normal.
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It must be hard dealing with that and being a male. They tend to get treated unfairly when they have problems regarding the appearance (although it's deeper than that). Even males getting abused and such is treated as funny or insignificant.
 
R

rebyoo

Well-known member
Could a kind person please explain to me what BDD is and how you know you have it? People have started mentioning to me that they think i have it, but best they can explain it is it's like anorexia but with how you look... Sorry that must seem like a very dumb question.
 
WeirdyMcGee

WeirdyMcGee

Well-known member
Wiki says:
Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD, also body dysmorphia, dysmorphic syndrome; originally dysmorphophobia) is a type of mental illness, a somatoform disorder, wherein the affected person is concerned with body image, manifested as excessive concern about and preoccupation with a perceived defect of their physical features.[1][2] The person complains of a defect in either one feature or several features of their body; or vaguely complains about their general appearance, which causes psychological distress that causes clinically significant distress or impairs occupational or social functioning. Often BDD co-occurs with emotional depression and anxiety, social withdrawal or social isolation.[3]

The causes of Body Dysmorphic Disorder are different for each person, usually a combination of biological, psychological, and environmental factors. Furthermore, mental and physical abuse, and emotional neglect, are life-experiences that can contribute to a person developing BDD.[4][5] The onset of the symptoms of a mentally unhealthy preoccupation with body image occurs either in adolescence or in early adulthood, whence begins self-criticism of the personal appearance, from which develop atypical aesthetic-standards derived from the internal perceptual discrepancy between the person's ‘actual self’ and the ‘ideal self’.[6] The symptoms of body dysmorphia include psychological depression, social phobia, and obsessive compulsive disorder. The affected individual may become hostile towards family members for no reason.[7]

BDD is linked to a diminished quality of life, can be co-morbid with major depressive disorder and social phobia (chronic social anxiety); features a suicidal ideation rate of 80 percent, in extreme cases linked with dissociation, and thus can be considered a factor in the person's attempting suicide.[8] BDD can be treated with either psychotherapy or psychiatric medication, or both; moreover, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are effective treatments.[9][10] Although originally a mental-illness diagnosis usually applied to women, Body Dysmorphic Disorder occurs equally among men and women, and occasionally in children and older adults. About 76% of parents think their child is either over conceited or simply lying about their condition.[11] Approximately one to two percent (1–2%) of the world's population meets the diagnostic criteria for Body Dysmorphic Disorder.[12]
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