virtual
Member
- Jun 1, 2019
- 7
I have such a diagnosis. Unusually, extreme strong BDD, the psychiatrists does not know how to treat it, nothing helps. In my case, it took strange forms: I dream of living in an artificial cybernetic body or virtual reality (realizing that this is impossible and suffering unbearably because of it, I can do nothing about it and somehow remove it from my head). I hate organics. I cann't live in this body, my mind does not accept it, I can not look in the mirror.
LastFlowers
the haru that can read
- Apr 27, 2019
- 2,170
I'm sure a psych doctor would diagnose me with it as it no longer matters whether the flaws are real or not, nor does it matter whether one is truly attractive or truly ugly.
The definition seems to have changed.
It used to be an obsession over a very minor or completely imaginary flaw.
Nowadays, the elephant man could be diagnosed with BDD.
The diagnosis presently seems to be based more on how much time and energy you spend on thinking about your looks and how much they affect your life. Then they use their own judgement to decide if you are over-reacting or not. And the judgement is coming from someone who does not have to live in their patient's body.
All of which I take great offense to, as the name of the disorder implies that the subject is delusional.
Meanwhile they could be labeled with the disorder and experience very painful feelings about very real physical detriments.
I think the term body 'dysphoria' (which is strangely isolated to the trans community) is a lot more accurate in a lot of cases, rather than 'dysmorphia'.
And while being appropriate (and even reassuring) for certain people who are genuinely and objectively out of their mind in regards to how they think they look..
The more real the flaws become, the less room there is for objectivity in the therapist's office.
Considering how the term is used now, and the fact that my main reason for ending my life is the way I look. I don't doubt I'd be thrust into that category of BDD.
However, I would walk right up on out of that box, because I think it is rather insulting and dismissive in my case. And in many others.
Either way, not a fun thing to deal with whatsoever. There is a high likelihood of suicide attempts and "successes" for those with this disorder. A very distressing state of mind.
The definition seems to have changed.
It used to be an obsession over a very minor or completely imaginary flaw.
Nowadays, the elephant man could be diagnosed with BDD.
The diagnosis presently seems to be based more on how much time and energy you spend on thinking about your looks and how much they affect your life. Then they use their own judgement to decide if you are over-reacting or not. And the judgement is coming from someone who does not have to live in their patient's body.
All of which I take great offense to, as the name of the disorder implies that the subject is delusional.
Meanwhile they could be labeled with the disorder and experience very painful feelings about very real physical detriments.
I think the term body 'dysphoria' (which is strangely isolated to the trans community) is a lot more accurate in a lot of cases, rather than 'dysmorphia'.
And while being appropriate (and even reassuring) for certain people who are genuinely and objectively out of their mind in regards to how they think they look..
The more real the flaws become, the less room there is for objectivity in the therapist's office.
Considering how the term is used now, and the fact that my main reason for ending my life is the way I look. I don't doubt I'd be thrust into that category of BDD.
However, I would walk right up on out of that box, because I think it is rather insulting and dismissive in my case. And in many others.
Either way, not a fun thing to deal with whatsoever. There is a high likelihood of suicide attempts and "successes" for those with this disorder. A very distressing state of mind.
I'm not quite sure what the disorder means in a clinical sense, but I have extreme issues related to physical appearance that affects me very deeply. It is half of why I hate living.
This disorder can be much more painful than severe depression and anxiety disorder (I also have them). Literally every minute of being in this body causes disgust and suffering, it interferes with sleep and eat, I have lost emotions and feelings (all), coordination of movement is disturbed. I can't walk outside a house: in 2018 I've left the house 3 times. The psychologist say that he had never seen anyone with such low self-esteem and that I had the highest level of anxiety of all the patients he had ever treated. It really is a disorder.
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