By Eva Fisher, PHD What do you want to accomplish in life? What are your goals, hopes, and dreams? Therapy and medication enabled me to overcome body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) when I was thirty-six. Since then, my goal has been to raise awareness about this debilitating yet underrecognized body image disorder. I wanted people with… Read more »
By Katharine A. Phillips, MD 1. Certain medications are recommended for treating BDD, especially moderate to severe BDD. The right medication usually substantially improves BDD symptoms. It can even be lifesaving. It may be hard to believe that a simple pill can substantially improve BDD symptoms and sometimes even take them all away. After all,… Read more »
Eve Fisher, PhD “Stop behaving like your father!” I remember my mother scolding me after one of my emotional outbursts when I was young. My father would often yell and raise his voice when he was upset about something my mother, my brother, or I had done. My mother’s admonition to not act like him… Read more »
by Scott M. Granet, LCSW Disgusting, ugly, deformed, monster, freak, alien, defective. How many of these words have you used to describe how you feel about yourself and your appearance? No psychiatric disorder is good to have, but I don’t know any other that so often results in people feeling so awful about themselves. It… Read more »
To anyone seeking relief from Body Dysmorphic Disorder, First, I want to acknowledge your brave decision to seek help and resources on your journey to recovery from body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). You have found an incredible organization, The International OCD Foundation, with vast information and material to help you better understand the disorder and the… Read more »
By Fanny Alexandra Dietel, PhD, and Ulrike Buhlmann, PhD I have worried about my appearance for several years. Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) has ruined my jobs, my relationships, my life. Still, it took me such a long time to seek help. This scenario — and the long journey of suffering attached to it — is… Read more »
PLEASE NOTE: The following blog post contains discussion of topics that may be upsetting, including suicide. Please take care of yourself as you read this article. If you are in crisis, know that help is only a call or click away at 1-800-273-8255 or suicidepreventionlifeline.org. by Chris Trondsen Recently, I went through a box filled with… Read more »
by Eva E. Fisher, PhD I am writing this post while gazing out the window at a beautiful Colorado landscape. Today is the first time in almost a month that the temperature is moderate (in the low 80s), and the sky is clear of smoke. I am looking forward to taking my cat for a… Read more »
by Kellie Smith I will never forget the first time I looked in the mirror and thought that I no longer resembled a human being. When I looked at my face I saw something atrocious, something that needed to be hidden. I was 16 years old and was unaware that I was experiencing my first… Read more »
by Dr. James Claiborn People with BDD struggle with what they see when they look at themselves. They often report seeing aspects of their appearance that are distorted, deformed or perhaps just ugly. What any of us see when we look at anything is the product of perceptual processing. Understanding what is involved in perceptual… Read more »
