Self-Diagnosis Information

BDD Foundation

https://bddfoundation.org/information/do-i-have-bdd-test/

This questionnaire has two main uses:

1. It can be used as a screening questionnaire to tell whether you might have BDD.
2. The questionnaire can also be used as a measure of the severity of your symptoms so you can use it before and after any treatment and provide feedback on whether your symptoms have improved or not. The questionnaire comprises of just 9 items. The range is 0-72 where 72 is the most severe.

International OCD Foundation

https://bdd.iocdf.org/about-bdd/do-i-have-bdd/

A mental health professional — preferably a BDD specialist — will look for the following in order to make a diagnosis of BDD:

Preoccupation with appearance: People with BDD are preoccupied with one or more aspects of their physical appearance, believing that these body areas look ugly, abnormal, deformed, or disfigured. People with BDD obsess about the disliked body areas, usually for at least an hour a day (and typically much more).

Insight Regarding BDD Beliefs: Most people with BDD are mostly convinced or completely convinced that they look ugly or abnormal, even though other people don’t see them this way.

Repetitive Compulsive Behaviors: BDD preoccupations fuel repetitive compulsive behaviors that are intended to fix, hide, inspect, or obtain reassurance about the disliked body parts. On average, these behaviors consume from 3–8 hours a day. They are usually difficult to control or stop. These behaviors may include the following:

• Camouflaging (trying to hide or cover up the disliked body areas)
• Comparing (comparing the disliked features to those of other people)
• Mirror checking, or checking other reflective surfaces (such as windows or cell phone screens)
• Excessive grooming
• Reassurance seeking/questioning of others about appearance
• Skin picking to try to improve the skin’s appearance
• Changing clothes frequently
• Excessive tanning
• Excessive exercising or weight lifting
• Excessive shopping
• Seeking cosmetic surgery, dermatologic treatment, or other cosmetic procedures
• Social anxiety and avoidance

Significant Distress or Impairment in Functioning: These preoccupations with appearance and repetitive compulsive behaviors cause significant emotional distress (e.g. sadness, anxiety, irritability/anger, self-consciousness), and/or get in the way of day-to-day functioning.  BDD symptoms usually interfere with one’s ability to engage in valued life activities such as working, going to school, or spending time with family/friends.