Why is the term ‘Body Dysmorphia’ being used so casually?

By Zahra Zenner

Body dysmorphia is a term I have seen used a lot recently online. I have also heard people express that it is a term being used too casually. 

The definition of body dysmorphia published by the NHS is: 

‘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.’

Having this disorder can be debilitating for those who suffer from it. 

Personally, I don’t think it is a term that should be used lightly, one should make the distinction between a moment of insecurity when looking in the mirror and an actual disorder. Body Dsymorphic Disorder (BDD) was first recognised in 1891. According to bddfoundation.org ‘Dysmorphia’ first appeared in Histories of Herodotus, referring to the myth of the ‘ugliest girl in Sparta’, a quote from this mention that stood out to me was ‘when one of these ideas occupies someone’s attention repeatedly on the same day, and aggressively and persistently returns to monopolise his attention, refusing to remit by any conscious effort; and when in particular the emotion accompanying it becomes one of fear, distress, anxiety, and anguish, compelling the individual to modify his behaviour and to act in a pre-determined and fixed way, then the psychological phenomena has gone beyond the bounds of normal, and may validly be considered to have entered the realm of psychopathology.’ This highlights how debilitating suffering from living with body dysmorphia truly is.

I’ve noticed it seems like an ice breaker for people to bond over just by blatantly saying they have “body dysmorphia”, whether they actually have it or not, this shows the impacts of the society we live in. I remember someone labelling our current society as ‘narcissistic’. This stood out to me because a big part of my childhood was constantly being aware of my appearance. I don’t mean like when I look in the mirror, I mean accidentally looking at a camera app or retaking selfies a million times. But it’s normal for my generation. As a new phone comes out the selfie camera gets even better and it probably will up until you can see each and every individual pore on your face. If only we were as aware about the importance of being confident in ourselves, as we are about how we look at every individual angle.

I’m not here to tell anyone if they do or don’t have body dysmorphia. But I know a word of advice I’ll continue to share is that we are much more critical about ourselves than others are of us. Everyone is obviously familiar with their own face but the issue lies when one becomes too familiar and notices ‘flaws’ that start to pile up into an intolerable amount. A stranger doesn’t know each and every flaw of yours when they walk past you, on the contrast they would notice features in your face that you might not appreciate enough.

Something about bonding over insecurities stands out to me. That’s why I think the term body dysmorphia is being used very casually nowadays. Awareness about body dysmoprhia is a great thing but only as long as the term is used correctly. When the term is used with honesty and accuracy there is no issue.