Around 1 in 50 people in the UK struggle with ‘Body Dysmorphia’: A mental health condition where an individual spends a considerable amount of time worrying about their appearance. This may be a result of their negative self-appraisals or social media pressures to look a certain way, or from experiences of bullying.
Therefore, ‘Body Dysmorphia’ is a delicate and sensitive subject area, which can have a huge negative impact on an individual’s wellbeing and how they view themselves. Young people and adults experiencing this, can feel anxious about their appearance and get so distressed, that they may wish to self-harm, experience low mood and shame, have social anxiety, or / and experience guilt, despair and embarrassment, due to how they feel they look.
This, can then lead to low self- esteem and poor identity to who they are as individuals. Leading some people to hide from difficult emotions and participate in ‘risk taking behaviours’, such as alcoholism, drugs, isolation from others, eating disorders and excluding themselves from hobbies and peer groups. This then leading to fears about what others may feel about them and how they feel about themselves.
At ‘One 2 One You Matter’ we wish to highlight, that everyone is beautiful, unique, loved, needed and “You’re not alone”.
We would like to raise awareness of the impact that Poor self-image can have on our wellbeing and the need for further early intervention in this area. We need to improve multi-agency working, across voluntary, charitable, social, health and educational teams, in the aim to address this issue for young people and adults.
And remember, there is only one YOU. So, BE YOU!
EVERY BODY is beautiful, unique, loved and needed in society.
You Matter!
