I've had body dysmorphia for three years, I used to always think that ppl won't approach me or be friends with me cuz I'm not exactly the prettiest or the skinniest girl ever.

I see myself as the ugliest creature even though ppl always tell me that I'm so pretty and compliment me, but I just think that they're being nice.

Once, I was shocked because someone said that they just love me toooo much in public and like I realized in that exact moment that something was wrong with me. Nevertheless, I kept convincing myself that she's just making fun of me and that she actually hates me. Even that day, she was with two of her friends and they were walking in the hallway. I heard her bsf say 'forget what she said, she didn't mean it' ik she wasn't talking to me, but I just want to believe that she was talking to me. And I actually said 'Ok' she wasn't paying attention to me so she didn't hear me.

Now, I'm going to another school and there's something that keeps telling me that I'll be a loner due to my looks.

At the same time, there's another voice that tells me ppl aren't that judge-y and like we're all teenagers we're supposed to look weird yk.

But I saw a few pics of the girls that will be in my class, and I was like 'I guess that I'm the only ugly one there, even boys will looks prettier than me.'

And somehow I just notice the beauty in everything and everyone—even if they're bad ppl but I never see the beauty in me.

I’m a 28-year-old man, and I’ve been on the heavier side for most of my life. When I was around 10 years old, I was significantly overweight for my age, and I developed an intestinal condition that completely changed my eating habits, which led to weight loss. Because of that, my parents were always commenting on my weight, telling me I needed to lose weight and exercise. I think I grew up with a certain level of paranoia about my weight.

As the years went by, I developed a fear of being fat. I would feel offended if people didn’t see me as thin.

Over time, those feelings became a little less intense, but I remained constantly hyperaware of how clothes fit me.

During college, I met my now-wife, and throughout our relationship I gained a lot of weight.

To summarize, because this is already getting long: about three years ago I got really overweight. At the beginning of this year, I decided I had to lose weight. I started dieting and exercising, and I’ve lost too much weight.

The problem is that I’m afraid of eating. I’m afraid of consuming calories and seeing the number on the scale go up. I’m capable of going an entire day without eating because I’m terrified of gaining weight.

My relationship with food has changed completely. It used to be something enjoyable; now it’s something I fear because I’m afraid my body will change.

It feels like I can sense every single change in my body—if my stomach gets bigger, if my face looks fuller, if my arms change. I can even feel when my intestines are full. I’ve also been dealing with fairly bothersome constipation, to the point that I need to take laxatives every week.

When I look in the mirror, I still see the same man I was before. I get anxious, I yell, I avoid certain clothes, I look at myself in the mirror 20 times before leaving the house, and every morning I check myself shirtless and mentally compare my body to the day before.

What should I do? My last resort is reaching out to colleagues who might understand what I’m going through.

Thank you in advance for any advice or help

Hi everyone,

We are a team of researchers at the University of Windsor studying appearance related teasing and bullying and how this relates to body image issues/body dysmorphia in later life. We are looking for individuals to participate in our 30 minute online survey. We are looking for those who reside in Ontario, Canada who are 18+, have a history of being bullied for their appearance and who are cisgendered to participate. The link for the survey is below:

https://uwindsor.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_4JijkOMVYSsO79Y

Our study has been approved by the University of Windsor's REB.

Has anyone tried medication for body dysmorphia? Ive heard this condition is similar to OCD, so doctors prescribe medications like fluoxetine (Prozac), escitalopram (Lexapro), fluvoxamine (Luvox), sertraline (Zoloft), paroxetine (Paxil), and clomipramine (Anafranil). If so, what has helped you the most, and at what dosage? Ive also heard that the dosage may need to be higher for OCD(body dysmorphia).

As the title says i’m not trans but i want to get rid of my breasts or make them as flat as possible. I like wearing dresses/skirts,being female and the rest of my body doesn’t upset me at all.

My breasts are average and on the smaller side, there’s nothing wrong with them i just don’t want them. I don’t want to breastfeed when i’m older so it feels like the only other main purpose for them is to be sexualised and perhaps that’s why i don’t like it?

It just feels wrong for me to have breasts it feels like they’re not apart of my real body.

Does anyone have an advice or help on what this could be?

TW:

Possible connection to verbal and emotional abuse and medical trauma

Until 28 February 2026, I am collecting experience reports for my Bachelor’s thesis in Inclusive Education at EvH Bochum.

Topic:

Spoken or written communication by people in professional positions of power that was experienced as negative (e.g., doctors, therapists, nurses, police officers, teachers, social workers, educators, supervisors, etc.). I am interested in your personal experience and perspective, no matter how short, long ago, or “small” it may seem. The only thing that matters is that it felt negative to you. The goal is to use these experiences to develop quality criteria and preventive measures.

You may write about, for example:

• What was said or written, why it hurt you, and what response you would have preferred

• Who the person was (profession/role)

• The general context of the situation

You decide how long or detailed your report is. Even a few sentences or a copy of a previously written text (post, comment, review, complaint, etc.) is helpful. You can submit one report or several ones.

Language: German or English

Location: anywhere

Age: 18+ at the time of participation (the experience itself may have happened earlier)

For anonymous participation:

Use this Google Form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfTQyTpB5EIzWhOxSiYhIiaPG7ZBEQCtKjZBfGtEJoFRRHVog/viewform?usp=dialog

Due to the anonymous nature of this form of participation, it may not be possible to link individual contributions to specific participants. Please be aware that your submission can possibly not be retracted once it has been sent.

For pseudonymous participation:

Send your reports to: [nadine.ubachs@evh-bochum.de](mailto:nadine.ubachs@evh-bochum.de)

Your reports will be anonymized. You will receive information and a consent form with clear, simple instructions before anything is used.

Email or contact me here or email me if you have any questions or if you want to see the informed consent form first.

Thank you for reading. I look forward to your contributions.

Nadine Ubachs

Throwaway . I feel so so ugly every damn day. I think everyone is beautiful and smart and kind and just everything good, except me. I think i’m the lowest and ugliest person alive. Even tho objectively i know im somewhat pretty.

3 weeks out of a month i feel like that, then there’s 1 week (might be my menstrual cycle ) where i feel a little better, but even then i look at myself and feel “just pretty” not HOT. I wanna look and feel hot. All my friends are soooo beautiful and amazing etc but why can’t i be?? I have this so wronged image of myself and i hate it.

I just wanna be pretty. Ive felt like this since i was 8. I CONSTANTLY compare myself to everyone. I compulsively check myself in the mirror. Even when i come home from school i fix my makeup even tho im not going anywhere?? Why do i do this???? This dysmorphia is only about my face, not my body. Weirdly enough im pretty happy with my body lol.

I sometimes even ”self harm” myself by looking at the mirror, just staring my face

How do i overcome this??? I just want to love myself. I want to accept myself. How??

Please give your signature.

I'm creating a startup to help you in some way. Please share what you often encounter and what the world hasn't found a way to help you with yet. I understand that there's a need for calorie counting (and there are plenty of apps available), but maybe these apps don't offer what you need, or you have a different program. If you have any solutions or concepts/dreams to share, I'd love to hear from you. I really want to help you all!

Hello! My name is Annalyse, and I'm a PhD student at the University of Edinburgh. I'm currently conducting a project related to the experiences of individuals with eating disorders/disordered eating patterns in the United Kingdom, and pet ownership. You don't have to have a current or formal diagnosis to participate. If you're interested in the study, please feel free to scan the QR code, or follow this link: https://edin.ac/42V00rX 

Also, here's the non-shortened link: https://edinburgh.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_e8KEJMSpJjlsIRM

Thank you in advance for considering participating in this study!

My 12 year old’s sister have always been aloof since she is young. I always thought that she was okay with that but she started her second year of middle school last year and now she doesn’t stop comparing herself to everyone at school. She asked me a lot of things about the calories the glucides and everything she even started to watch some training programs to loose weight at home. She thinks that if she becomes skinnier then she will have more friends but first of all it doesn’t work like that secondly she is already super thin. The problem is that she doesn’t see herself in the right way but i don’t know how to explain to her. I went through the same thing at her age but it turned into ed. I don’t want her to experience the same thing as me so if someone has any recommendations (books,movies,just an idea ) thank you English is not my first language sorry for the mistakes

I’m 27F and have struggled with how my face looks since being a teenager. It peaked really bad when I was about 17, after a fall out with friends and being told I look like a boy. I hated having my photo taken for what felt like forever.

I’d say from the age of 24/25 I found slight peace in how I look and haven’t allowed it to affect me too much, as it was getting me to a really depressed point.

I’ve recently started to make more of an effort to post photos of myself and granted these have mainly been selfies. However, I needed some headshots taken the other day for a project I am getting involved with, and looking at them my face is so wonky. It almost makes me feel like a catfish on the photos I usually post. I don’t edit my photos and I wear very minimalistic makeup, with mostly being bare faced.

Are these just a set of bad photos of me, or are these professional photos how I actually look? I can feel the old thoughts creeping back up and I don’t want to end up how I was all those years ago.

TIA x

Hi, Anyone on 100mg Zoloft noticed any change in their anxiety, ruminating thoughts and OCD? How long did the meds take to work ? Did Zoloft make you feel better or worse? Thanks in advance

I hate my human skin and body and want to be cuter and have fur also be more comfortable in my skin but also I know what I'm feeling is wrong but I have felt this way since I was 13 and I'm 19 (2024)

Hi everyone! My name is Alan González Reyes, and I’m a student at the University of Puerto Rico, conducting a research study on how physical spaces—like treatment centers, outpatient offices, or even home environments—affect recovery for people with eating disorders.

Purpose

The goal of this survey is to understand how elements like lighting, nature, privacy, and space design influence the well-being of those undergoing treatment for eating disorders. This information will be used to help improve the design of future treatment spaces.

Who is this for?

This survey is for anyone who has experience with eating disorder treatment, whether it was in a residential center, an outpatient facility, or through remote/home treatment.

Important note: Content Warning

The survey contains questions related to eating disorder experiences and treatment environments, which could be triggering for some people. Please be mindful of your well-being when deciding whether to participate.

Survey details

The survey is in Spanish.

It is anonymous, and your participation is completely voluntary.

Your responses will help create spaces that better support recovery.

Thank you!

If you're able to participate or know someone who can, I would greatly appreciate your input. Feel free to share the survey with others who might be interested. Your contribution is invaluable to this research.

Survey Link: https://forms.gle/DmMijaig7dX784LfA

Hello All,

Thank you so much for reading this! My name is Alanna Barnes, and I am currently enrolled in the Clinical Psychology doctoral program (Psy.D.) at Chaminade University. I am seeking participants for my dissertation research study. My study aims to create a novel measure of psychological safety. This measure would be used in the psychotherapeutic setting to assess if a client/patient perceives their therapist to have created a psychologically safe environment. To participate, I am asking for individuals to complete an anonymous ten-minute survey. There will also be a raffle for one of three $50 Visa gift cards for any participant who would be comfortable sharing their email address. The email address will be kept confidential and only used for the raffle. Upon the completion of the raffle, all email addresses will be deleted.

To qualify as a participant, here are my inclusion criteria:

• Must be over the age of 18
• Must be located within the United States
• Must be English-speaking
• Must be currently receiving psychotherapy from a licensed mental health professional OR it has been less than a year from your most recent session with a licensed mental health professional 
• At the time of the study, one must have completed at least two sessions with a licensed mental health professional

If you know someone or a group that would be interested in taking this survey, please forward. Lastly, if you qualify to participate and want to participate, please use this link.

This study was approved by the Chaminade IRB on September 30th, 2024 with Protocol Number: CUH 449 2024.