Body Dismorphic Disorder
Body Dysmorphic Disorder in Adolescence
By: Student Name
Life Span Development
TEACHER NAME
December 3, 2011
What is Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD)? BDD is defined by the DSM-IV-TR as a condition marked by excessive preoccupation with an imaginary or minor defect in a facial feature or localized part of the body.
BDD also involves compulsions. A compulsion is something a person does to try to relieve the tension caused by the obsessive thoughts. For example, a girl with obsessive thoughts that her nose is horribly ugly might constantly feel the need to check her appearance in the mirror, apply makeup, or ask someone many times a day whether her nose looks ugly.
Compulsions can provide temporary relief from the distress, so someone with BDD can feel a strong or irresistible urge to keep doing them. Someone might repeat compulsions almost constantly, and they can take up a lot of time and energy. They can feel like the only way to escape the bad feelings caused by the bad thoughts.
How does this disorder affect children?
Last year my 5-year-old cousin Jillian started kindergarten. One day she came home from school and told her mother she wanted long hair like the rest of the girls in class. My aunt reassured Jillian that her short hair was beautiful and not everyone has the same hair. My aunt came across a Sesame Street video on you tube called “I love my hair”. She showed Jillian that its ok to be proud of your hair.
The media’s view of what is beautiful has an impact on children and adolescents. Teenagers see on TV what they are supposed to look like. And at times what the media portrays as beautiful is not healthy. Photos of rail thin models in a fashion campaign portray the image that in order to fit in those clothes they must look that thin.
By: Student Name
Life Span Development
TEACHER NAME
December 3, 2011
What is Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD)? BDD is defined by the DSM-IV-TR as a condition marked by excessive preoccupation with an imaginary or minor defect in a facial feature or localized part of the body.
BDD also involves compulsions. A compulsion is something a person does to try to relieve the tension caused by the obsessive thoughts. For example, a girl with obsessive thoughts that her nose is horribly ugly might constantly feel the need to check her appearance in the mirror, apply makeup, or ask someone many times a day whether her nose looks ugly.
Compulsions can provide temporary relief from the distress, so someone with BDD can feel a strong or irresistible urge to keep doing them. Someone might repeat compulsions almost constantly, and they can take up a lot of time and energy. They can feel like the only way to escape the bad feelings caused by the bad thoughts.
How does this disorder affect children?
Last year my 5-year-old cousin Jillian started kindergarten. One day she came home from school and told her mother she wanted long hair like the rest of the girls in class. My aunt reassured Jillian that her short hair was beautiful and not everyone has the same hair. My aunt came across a Sesame Street video on you tube called “I love my hair”. She showed Jillian that its ok to be proud of your hair.
The media’s view of what is beautiful has an impact on children and adolescents. Teenagers see on TV what they are supposed to look like. And at times what the media portrays as beautiful is not healthy. Photos of rail thin models in a fashion campaign portray the image that in order to fit in those clothes they must look that thin.