News

We’re taking part in the Big Give!

We are looking for a group of individuals to join our small but mighty fundraising team.

You might be someone with great fundraising ideas, or brilliant at reaching people on social media, perhaps you are good at organising activities… get in touch today on volunteers@bddfoundation.org

15th – 22nd May 2023

Why we are raising funds

This ‘Big Give’, we are fundraising for our Overcoming BDD Program, and we need your help.

BDD is still very poorly understood and a severely debilitating condition. Over 1.1Million UK people live with BDD. The condition can be managed with therapy (CBT) but NHS waiting lists can be 2 years long (it also takes an average 10 yrs to get an official medical diagnosis). Which is a potentially fatal wait; suicide rates for BDD sufferers are 4500% more than the national average.

To reduce suffering and waiting times for treatment of BDD, our clinical practitioners have developed the ‘Overcoming BDD Program’, which enables up to 30 individuals to join a 20-week programme of specialised CBT based treatment in a group context online – it has proven to be effective in measurably reducing BDD based anxieties and motivating behaviour change. For £5K we can get 30 people onto our program, giving them a chance at engaging in life saving and high quality treatment. If we over achieve, we will fund even more rounds of the program.

This is why further funding for this program is more important than ever.

The Big Give has promised to match fund £2500.

Benefits of the Program

So far, we have seen such fantastic outcomes for individuals who have taken part in previous iterations of this program.

“The online programme has given me my life back! I struggled to receive the correct help on the NHS. This debilitating and misunderstood condition has held me back and made my life a misery. Now I am better able to manage my BDD and live a more fulfilling life.”

The program has given BDD sufferers the opportunity to function day-to-day, re-enter the workplace, engage with family or social events, reduce their pre-occupations, manage anxieties, develop effective coping skills and support one another on the journey.

“I am less anxious about going out, I haven’t had one panic episode before leaving the house, I’m able to get dressed and start my day, even if I am not happy with how I look – I think the main tool the course helped build was resilience to these thoughts.”

So how can you get involved? Get your thinking caps on and roll up your fundraising sleeves! Any funds donated on to this page during the week of 15th – 22nd May will contribute to our overall goal. We need to raise at least £2500 and we are looking to our community to come together in a collaborative effort to make this happen.

If you have an idea you’d like to chat through with us, please email volunteers@bddfoundation.org. We’d LOVE to hear from you.

Kitty speaks with Dr. Rebecca Wilkinson on The Thinking Mind Podcast

Kitty courageously shares her story of BDD and journey of recovery.

In this podcast episode, Kitty explores her experience of ‘feeling different’, feeling like a failure in adolescence, and then first realising she had BDD. She discusses some of her common safety behaviours, checking compulsions and the all consuming experience of BDD.

“I certainly wasn’t seeking perfection, I was seeking normality. How can I blend in with everyone else… I felt that everyone was staring at me all the time.”

Kitty managed to endure her time through school, despite her symptoms of BDD already being very overwhelming. When she moved back home, things became unbearable. Luckily, a family friend highlighted to her that BDD might be what she was going through, and from here her journey of recovery began. After reaching out to the BDD Foundation, she began engaging in therapy and first started her involvement volunteering with the BDD Foundation.

“I thought I was the only person in the world feeling like this. I didn’t see a future for myself, at all.”

They also explore the treatment for BDD, exposure and response prevention exercises, and the important and common issue of shame experienced in BDD and how we can reduce this feeling.

“My average time to get ready at the age of 18 or 19, was around 4 hours. I ached all over from being hunched over in the mirror. I was honing in and trying to pick up on every problem with my face, but I couldn’t fix it.”

Kitty and Rebecca also speak about the topic of relapse, a very common experience for individuals with BDD. She shares the pain of relapse, finding the motivation to ‘try again’, re-engage in therapy and the journey up to present day.

“I felt the most hopeless that I’d felt throughout my journey. I had to step back from work and move back in with my parents, and just totally retreated from the world. I didn’t know how I was going to get out of it.”

Kitty found the drive to try again, after being house bound for months. She shares the hurdles she overcame through this and the feeling of starting from scratch. However, she found that the work she had done before, supported her ability to engage in the exercises again and strengthen those new pathways.

“The second time around it’s been more gradual. That doesn’t mean there aren’t days where the BDD is more in charge than I would like it to be, but it’s been a more consistent recovery. Mainly, what’s made the difference is being kinder to myself, being gentle with myself and not beating myself up when I can’t do something.”

This is such an insightful and important conversation, thank you Kitty and Rebecca.

Listen Here

Triathlon Fundraiser

A beautiful and important tribute in memory of Conrad Colson, organised by his friends to raise funds for the BDD Foundation

A dedicated team of 5, to include Max Wakefield, Matthew Butcher, James Laird, Ashish Kapur & Basma El Rharbi, are taking on the challenge of The Huntsman triathlon in the New Forest on 14th May 2023.

The Huntsman course is a fast one! A start with a swim in Ellingham Lake, followed by a bike through the beautiful New Forest National Park and finally a run through the Hampshire countryside. This is a huge and impressive challenge to endure, all for important and much needed funding.

For every donation up to £10,000 they have match funding to double it. 

This is such a fantastic opportunity to raise up to and over £20,000 for the BDD Foundation, funding which is desperately needed to provide crucial services, support, advocacy and research.

The challenge is in memory of Conrad Colson, a highly valued fundraising volunteer for the BDDF who won us many grants, funding, and relentlessly committed himself to raising awareness of the condition.

Conrad tragically lost his life to BDD, and the team are continuing in Conrad’s legacy. In carrying on where he left off, they are aiming to raise as much as possible.

We are honoured and proud of the team for taking on this challenge in the name of Conrad and the BDD Foundation.

Please support them by sponsoring their efforts. Any donation big or small is hugely appreciated. Good luck guys!

ABC News Reports on Muscle Dysmorphia

Muscle Dysmorphia is a type of BDD that causes an individual to see themselves as smaller or ‘less muscly’ than they are.

Muscle Dysmorphia can lead to excessive weightlifting, overtraining even when injured, restrictive diets, disordered eating, and often steroid abuse. It can often cause an individual to prioritise working out over other commitments such as relationships, work or family life. It affects men more than women and causes significant distress, with devastating consequences on someone’s life.

As explained in the video, who spoke with Justin Baldoni, Noah Neiman & our volunteer George Mycock, many men suffering from this will begin to tie their masculinity to how they look and experience a compulsive need to ‘be big’.

Noah explains that even as a fitness professional “even I was self-conscious. I was at home feeling I should have done some more sit ups, I felt that I didn’t look good.”

As a form of BDD, the pre-occupation with muscle size and shape causes those suffering to carry out obsessive and compulsive behaviours in the hope of achieving a particular, often very unachievable body shape. Often, individuals experiencing MDD look entirely normal or are already very muscular.

“The more you focus in on it, the more you find flaws… the more distorted your perception becomes.”

As the speakers in the video disclose, MDD often causes suicidal ideation, attempts and completion.

If you or someone you know is struggling with these symptoms, please reach out to our helpline on support@bddfoundation.org or find out more on our Muscle Dysmorphia information page.

The BDD Foundation speaks with The Times

Recently, the Times newspaper spoke with families who lost loved ones to BDD and us at the BDDF to highlight the crucial need for referral to specialist centres in the treatment of BDD.

Trigger warning: This post contains multiple references to suicide.

The brave families of Charlotte Comer, George Rogers and Liam Leggatt share their experience of caring for, and losing someone to BDD, as well as the desperate need for better understanding and specialised treatment for those suffering with BDD. Tragically, Charlotte, George and Liam all took their lives due to BDD, leaving their families to fight for those still struggling.

Charlotte is described as “beautiful, so intelligent and really funny but the illness just stripped everything from her.”

“Charlotte did not receive her BDD diagnosis until her early twenties, having first been misdiagnosed with another condition. The illness would shape the rest of her life, leading her to drop out of university twice and leave jobs that she had loved. She was unable to attend her grandmother’s funeral or her sister’s wedding.“

Following a referral for specialist treatment, after an ongoing battle for this, Charlotte’s referral failed to progress after a clinician from Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust stopped this from happening. This referral was Charlotte’s chance at life saving care.

In a landmark decision, the coroner found that failings by the trust “probably caused or contributed to her death” and that her death “was contributed to by neglect”.

George Rogers also failed to receive appropriate care and treatment for his BDD. His family found it incredibly challenging for his diagnosis and symptoms to be taken seriously, highlighting the lack of understanding and lack of acknowledgement for the severity of BDD. One clinician had even made comments about his brother’s hair, the feature he was most concerned about, leading them to question whether the individual was equipped to handle BDD. 

“After George took his own life, a coroner compiled a prevention of future deaths report over the trust’s failure to ensure that there was always a lead practitioner when transferring patients between services. James Rogers believes that intensive treatment at an earlier stage might have made all the difference for his brother.“

For Liam, his family have questioned why he didn’t receive more specialised or intensive treatment. They had not been aware of the extent or severity of his condition since he was able to hide it from loved ones (a common response for people with BDD experiencing a huge amount of shame and embarrassment). However, this was also not identified by his care provider or escalated appropriately.

“You do feel a bit deflated, let down. It feels like there was a lack of support without a network behind.”

Professor David Veale explains in the article that it can often take 10 years from the onset of symptoms for patients to receive adequate treatment. He explains that

“Waiting lists are not too bad once you get referred. The obstacle is getting the referral, either because of funding reasons or because it’s not recognised, perhaps, as being sufficiently severe. I often puzzle myself in terms of why people . . . don’t want to refer patients.”

The impact BDD can have on people’s lives, for many is unimaginable, and requires good quality, specialist and ongoing treatment. With treatment, individuals can and do recover and are able to live functioning and fulfilling lives.

The article highlights the concerning issue that Community Mental Health Teams are often not referring patients who meet the criteria for specialist treatment. If you or a loved one are struggling to access the specialist care you deserve, we would encourage you to keep pushing for what you need.

If you require further advice and support on accessing treatment, please reach out to our e-helpline on support@bddfoundation.org or visit our page on treatment for BDD for more information.

Read The Times article

Announcing our 10 year Anniversary Conference

Save the date for our Conference – Saturday 4th November at 20 Bedford Way in London.

This year we are celebrating the 10 year anniversary of the BDD Foundation, whilst looking towards the future.

Our conferences are an opportunity to bring together our wonderful BDD community in a supportive, inspiring and informative space. Individuals with BDD, their family and loved ones as well as mental health professionals and students will all have the opportunity to learn about the condition, innovative approaches to treatment as well as hearing inspiring stories from those who are in recovery. It is a day not to be missed!

We have some really exciting speakers lined up, as well as a community support room, interactive activities and lots of wonderful stalls.

Keep an eye out for more updates and ticket sales!

Monki x BDDF

Monki launches underwear capsule collection in collaboration with Body Dysmorphic Disorder Foundation

More Than My Reflection

This March coinciding with International Women’s Day, Monki joins forces once again with Body Dysmorphic Disorder Foundation (BDDF) to further raise awareness around Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD).

In collaboration with the BDDF, Monki is launching a limited-edition underwear collection featuring positive affirmation messages, serving as a reminder to the wearer that they are unique, and that they are more than their reflection and what they see on the outside. The capsule includes two mesh bras and briefs. One set features positive affirmations on the inside of the underwear for the wearer to read, but also reflected the correct way when looking at the mirror, for an instant confidence boost. An encouraging self-love reminder. The second set features various body illustrations, one of the brand’s signature prints.

As part of the ongoing partnership between Monki and BDDF, a donation has been made to support BDDF’s work and expand on educational resources.

“The purpose of the campaign is to raise awareness of the disorder and how it affects a person’s psyche, wellbeing and self-confidence. As a brand which creates fashion for girls and young women, we have a responsibility to our community to be as inclusive and transparent as possible when it comes to body and beauty representation. Diverse casting and transparent retouch guidelines are two of the areas we have worked with since day one. That’s why this ongoing collaboration with BDDF is important to us — we strive to empower women to feel good about themselves without aspiring to unattainable norms,” says Simone Van Starkenburg, Brand & Marketing Director at Monki.

Monki has showcased a series of personal portraits from three media volunteers who have suffered from BDD and have used their experiences to educate and inform the public about this under-diagnosed and distressing disorder.

They describe how it started, how it manifested, their lowest point, and how they have gotten to the other side. They also share advice on how to support someone potentially going through this or to someone who knows a person that is suffering from this disorder. The purpose is to enlighten, inform, educate on the disorder, encourage to seek help, and to never give up.

As part of the campaign, Monki put up posters and distorted mirrors across the UK, including London, Manchester and Birmingham. It’s wonderful to see the BDD Foundation, and most importantly BDD as a condition being recognised and amplified. You can find many more of the shared images on our Instagram, we have loved seeing them!

In November 2021, BDDF, supported by Monki, started a petition directed at the EU Parliament calling for transparency on altered images on social media. This pushed for changes to ensure that organisations, companies, and influencers are legally required to state when images have been manipulated for paid content online. This tapped into an already important and ongoing movement where we in recent years have seen changes in law changes to legislation in Norway and France. Since the petition’s launch, we have managed to accumulate over 40,000 signatures — but it doesn’t stop there. So far, the petition has been a catalyst in pushing for a similar UK legislative change, which is why it is still important to support us by signing the petition.

SIGN THE PETITION

Why has the BDD Foundation decided to collaborate with Monki?

We see Monki as an ideal fit for a collaboration with the BDD Foundation.  As a brand, they have long-standing ethical policies around their marketing. They strive to challenge beauty norms in their casting from ethnicity to body shape and size and have championed a pioneering #NoFilter campaign. They do not airbrush out features such as stretch marks, body hair, birthmarks etc. Their body positive attitude, inclusivity and continued dedication to the cause signifies that Monki is a brand that genuinely cares about the wellbeing of their community and the BDD Foundation is proud to partner with them.

More stories from the community

Beating BDD Podcast #28 – Tilly Kaye

“I feel very comfortable in my body today. I’m inside looking out at the world, and it’s a much more stable place to be.”

After suffering with BDD for many years, Tilly is now reaping the benefits of all the time and effort she put into recovering from the condition. Her story proves that if you keep putting in the work, you will get something out of it.


You can download the transcript for this episode here:

Tilly-Kaye-show-notesDownload

Alex & Bryony’s West Highland Way Fundraiser

The West Highland Way is a 96 mile route in Scotland which Alex and Bryony aim to complete in 6 days. On the 7th day they will climb all 1345 metres of Ben Nevis (the tallest mountain in the UK)!

Alex and his partner Bryony are walking the West Highland Way in June 2023, to raise funds for the BDD Foundation. As someone who lives with BDD, Alex is passionate about raising awareness of BDD and being an important voice for the many people out there who are yet to speak about their condition or get support.

“I have been diagnosed with this disorder for a while now and at times it can be debilitating for myself and massively impact those who love me.”

Alex has engaged with support from the BDD Foundation, including support groups, retreat days and listening to the Beating BDD podcast. The recommended treatment for BDD is antidepressant medication combined with intensive CBT, however current waiting times in the UK to receive such psychological intervention can be lengthy.

“It is therefore essential that this charity continues to be accessible for people suffering with BDD and their loved ones.”

Alex and Bryony have chosen a walking challenge, as being outside in nature and walking helps them both manage the distressing and unwanted feelings caused by BDD.

“We are both fully aware that there are people diagnosed with severe BDD who are unable to leave the house and face the world. We aim to complete this walking challenge so that we can give these people hope that no matter how difficult things may seem, they can improve with the right help and support.”

Please support Alex and Bryony in this fantastic challenge, and help contribute to our essential ongoing support services and research.

Donate to Alex & Bryony’s Fundraising Page

More stories from the community

Healing through Community and Connection

Beau (aka @DadBod_Cyclist) shares his experience of BDD as a result of devastating and heartbreaking childhood trauma.

Beau has spent time understanding his past, in order to move forward in his journey of recovery. BDD has impacted all areas of his life and ability to function.

‘I’ve had long stretches of periods of time where I couldn’t leave the house. The weight on me felt so heavy it felt as though it was crushing my organs.’

Someone described to Beau what BDD was in more detail, explaining that it’s a recognised and treatable illness. This is when he began understanding the nature of the condition. He realised BDD was what he was experiencing, now and for years before then, and was able to begin working on healing.

‘It’s very hard to contextualise for someone that hasn’t experienced BDD, what it actually means. It’s like standing in front of one of those fun mirrors at a circus that is ever evolving and changing. I never know what I am going to see when I look in the mirror.’

Beau has discovered a love for cycling as part of his healing from BDD. Before he explored this, he explains that ‘I didn’t want to be a cyclist…everything I knew about cycling and cyclists just looked visually like everything that I’m not.’

However, finding a community and connecting with others through a welcoming and inclusive club, has been an essential part of Beau’s recovery. He reflects that ‘the community aspect of cycling, is the thing that gets me out of bed.’

Beau is on a mission to make change in the cycling industry and shift the perception of what it means to be a cyclist, and allow people to be cyclists simply ‘because they are turning the pedals.’   

A huge amount of gratitude to Beau for sharing his experience. It’s such a powerful and important story for others to hear, and we hope many of our readers can resonate with Beau’s journey.

Beau’s Instagram: @DadBod_Cyclist

Video by Hammerhead

More stories from the community

The Body Dysmorphic Disorder Foundation. Charity no. 1153753.