I'm 22.
I think I have BDD (Body Dysmorphic Disorder)...
. For the last several months I have been so self conscious of my skin to the point where I am covering up in the morning with foundation (which I take from sister) , I spend hours each night reading up on how to improve my skin. I spend hours looking in the mirror. I can't look people in the eye - it's on my mind from the moment i wake up to the moment i go to bed. I could go on...
I'm going to show you two photos I took right now. I have been seeking opinion on general forums and chatrooms - people say my skin is fine but why when i wake up every morning before work am I there looking and getting paranoid, I spend a good 30 + mins putting on make up to cover up - i wish i didnt makes me late often to work, I'm a guy i shouldn't have to put make up on like this when i dont want to but feel I have to.
It's getting to me big time.
(taken last night)
iphone 4 camera:
main camera photo:
excuse the face cream but i do that nightly too!!
Taken this morning just as i work up with main camera:
Now I need some serious response. Yes these photos people say my skin is fine ...so why when i look in the mirror i see blackheads, and marks and things i want to cover? what is lying the mirror, camera or my mind?!
so confused right now.
please help.
Don't take this the wrong way----but you have a problem! I think bdd would be right on the money if I had to guess. Your skin is crystal clear. I would kill for your skin! I would die and come back to life if that's what was required. I would walk across hot coals at a Tony Robbins conference 10X if I had to. I think you get the picture. You're 100% clear! Enjoy your face, because you sure as hell wouldn't if you had mine.
Don't take this the wrong way----but you have a problem! I think bdd would be right on the money if I had to guess. Your skin is crystal clear. I would kill for your skin! I would die and come back to life if that's what was required. I would walk across hot coals at a Tony Robbins conference 10X if I had to. I think you get the picture. You're 100% clear! Enjoy your face, because you sure as hell wouldn't if you had mine.
I know and that's why I think i got a problem...because I did have bad skin a few years ago pimples etc ....and now I'm not a vain person but I look in the mirror and think I need to cover up all the time. It's like a paranoid obsession. I'm not even a vain person.
I'm at a loss as to why I'm like this but BDD seems to fit all my symptoms.
I actually think I've developed a bit of bdd, but because my face IS so bAd. I pick and pick and i just make it worse and worse! I too spend a TON of time in the mirror and putting on makeup (I'm a girl tho so I do the whole shebang not just foundation! Lol) it's an endless cycle. Anyway, maybe see a doctor about it or seek council wherever you need to for bdd. I know a lady who had it really bad, and it seemed to get progressively worse. She picked at her skin where she had NO blemishes, but she literally created them. Well, they were really just horrific scabs. And then she cut all her hair off....yeah.
If you seriously think that you have BBD you should seek help for it. There are medication that can help you. As far as I know there are no medication that are approved for BDD but there are medication that you can use to treat the symptoms of BDD. Take a look in the emotional and psychological effects of acne thread of this site and you will see quite a few members suffer from BDD and they could give you advice and good support.
Your skin looks amazing but with BDD there is nothing that could be told to make you believe you have great skin. Please seek professional help. You don't need to suffer.
Agree with Like Moonlight. Your skin is literally flawless.
Please read: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1672181/pdf/nihms12745.pdf
There's nothing wrong with your skin, but you do need to get some help for your self confidence issues. Also, please, discard the mirror if you find yourself looking in it too much - you can find teeny, tiny, invisible flaws on anybody's skin if you look close enough for long enough. None of us are lying to you to make you feel better - this is the internet after all!
Probably because you used to it's still on your mind. It's a hard thing to get over. Being scared to look at your face and then trying to "catch" anything before it starts or gets worse. It will probably fade over time, but it will help to get Cognitive Behavioral Therapy or something similar