ISSUES
: Body Confidence
Chapter 1: Body Image
11
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You check the mirror at
every opportunity: checking
the mirror can become a
compulsive act and is a tell-
tale sign that somebody isn’t
particularly feeling good about
themselves. Body dysmorphia
is a form of Obsessive
Compulsive Disorder so it can
be easy to become obsessed
with attaining perfection.
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You openly downplay your
appearance to others: this
tends to be because people
have a fear of rejection. Think
about it: your parents are
pushing for you to do well in
your exams. You came out and
think you did OK but then tell
your parents that the exam was
really difficult. Why? Because
you want to reduce their
expectations of you so that it is
less likely you’ll feel rejected by
them if you don’t do well. It’s a
very clever tactic but it will not
serve you well in the long term.
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You’re a selfie addict: we all like
to take selfies now and again,
but there’s a line – and the very
fact that you’re reading this may
suggest that you know you’ve
crossed it. This is very similar
to obsessively checking in the
mirror in the sense that you’re
striving for perfection but also
ties into the social validation.
You want the perfect selfie to
post online for the best possible
reaction – right? The most likes.
The most love heart eye emojis.
It makes you feel good about
yourself. But that’s not good.
You should never be looking
externally for validation that you
look OK.
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You edit your photos or want
plastic surgery: by definition,
body dysmorphia means that
you have a tainted view of
yourself and see flaws that
either don’t exist or are barely
noticeable. There’s a difference
between editing out a spot
and changing your entire bone
structure. If you’re more inclined
towards the latter, then it could
suggest that there is a deeply
rooted issue buried away in
your self-esteem.
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You get anxious in social
situations sometimes: body
dysmorphia can cause social
anxiety – especially if you shy
away from meeting new people
or going on dates because
you’re worried that you don’t
look good enough. You’re doing
this because in your head,
you believe that people won’t
want to talk to you or won’t be
interested in what you have to
say because of your physical
appearance. You then cleverly
decide to avoid that situation
to prevent your anticipations
from becoming reality. We can
almost completely guarantee
that your anticipations will
never happen and deep down,
you know we’re right.
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You would never leave the
house without make-up on: this
could be one of the biggest tell-
tale signs of body dysmorphia.
You’re scared of people seeing
how you really look and fearful
that they would reject you
because your skin isn’t flawless
or because your hair isn’t
flowing. Make-up is great and
can be used in positive ways,
but there’s a difference between
enhancing your appearance
and hiding behind it.
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You’re always dieting and
picking at your body: body
shape and size is a big hang
up for a lot of people and it
isn’t surprising. Look at all the
photoshopped pictures you’ve
been shown since you were a
kid in magazines and across
the media. We all know they
aren’t realistic but they are
there to make us feel like we’re
not good enough in order to sell
us products. If you’re worried
about your body shape and
size, you could very well be
battling with body dysmorphia
– especially if you factually have
a healthy BMI.
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You bitch about how other
people look: the only reason
people ever talk badly about
how others look is to project
how they feel about themselves
onto other people. It’s a way
of basically saying “I feel bad
about myself but wait… don’t
focus on me, look at her and the
dress she’s wearing.” Once you
understand that, you’ll become
very powerful.
15 tips on overcoming body
dysmorphia
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We are not medical practitioners
and none of the advice below
should be used to replace any
advice you have been given
medically. If you suspect you
have body dysmorphia, we
