News

Fundraising Round Up

So far this year, we’ve had a really positive response to our call out for more community fundraisers, with individuals taking on various challenges in support of the BDD Foundation!

A huge thank you to Joey Millburn for completing his extraordinary ‘Budgy Smuggler Trek’ challenge in support of the BDD Foundation. Joey trekked an incredible 52km from North to South of Dartmoor, navigating rugged and boggy terrain. This demanding journey, typically taking 12-15 hours, was a true test of endurance, and Joey’s determination shone through as he raised both vital funds and awareness for our cause. Joey raised an incredible £720 to support our core services. We’re so grateful for Joey’s commitment to breaking the stigma around BDD. Thank you, Joey, for your remarkable efforts!

We would also like to express our gratitude to our trustee, Dr. Amita Jassi, for completing her first half marathon this September in support of the BDD Foundation. Amita’s dedication to our cause was clear, as she trained and fundraised with passion, helping to raise awareness and break the stigma surrounding BDD. Her efforts not only supported the foundation financially but also inspired others in the BDD community. Amita also exceeded her target, raising an amazing £1225. Thank you, Amita, for your incredible commitment and for being a true leader in our mission!

✨Inspired? Get in touch on fundraising@bddfoundation.org! ✨

Autumn Webinar Series

Coming very soon…

This autumn, we’re hosting an online webinar series featuring talks on a range of BDD related topics, presented by individuals with both lived experience and clinicians in the field.

Webinars will be running on Wednesday evenings (UK time).

💻 Stay tuned for more details. We can’t wait to share more!

Media Opportunity

We are urgently seeking individuals willing to speak about their challenges in accessing BDD treatment on the NHS or currently going through treatment.

We are urgently seeking individuals willing to speak about their challenges in accessing BDD treatment on the NHS or currently going through treatment. We’d also like to hear from parents or carers who are supporting someone trying to access treatment.

This is for a BBC documentary. Individuals must be willing to speak openly about their experience and possibly on camera. If this is not possible, we can look at anonymisation options.

👀 Who are we looking for?

  • Individuals living in the North of England
  • Willing to speak about your experience ideally on camera
  • Currently in treatment or trying to access treatment

📩 Please email us on media@bddfoundation.org with the following info:

  • Your age & location
  • The NHS trust you are accessing/ trying to access treatment from
  • A short description of the difficulties or failures you have experienced

Volunteer Facilitators Needed – Overcoming BDD Programme

We are looking for volunteers to facilitate on our Overcoming BDD 20 Week Programme

About the organisation

The BDD Foundation is the UK’s only charity dedicated exclusively to raising awareness and alleviating the suffering caused by Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). BDD is a serious mental disorder, which causes devastating distress and interferes substantially with the ability to function in life. It affects about 1-2% of the population and causes many unnecessary cosmetic treatments as well as a high rate of suicidality and self-harm.

As a charity we are committed to providing support and services for people with BDD, ensuring that those with lived-experience are central to this provision to encourage hope and recovery through the essence of peer-support.

About the project

The BDD Foundation (BDDF) has successfully delivered 7 iterations of the Overcoming BDD Programme, where self-guided Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Body Dysmorphic Disorder (CBT-BDD) was delivered in a peer support group context.

Outcomes from the groups – which ran firstly via a face-to-face group and then via an online group – were positive, with participants experiencing both a decrease in scores on the Appearance Anxiety Inventory as well as an improved overall quality of life.

For the next iterations, we are looking at increasing our volunteer base so that we can run multiple online groups at the same time.

About the role

We are looking for 2 new volunteers to co-facilitate the online sessions. The time commitment is 2.5 hours per week, for 20 weeks (October 2024 – March 2025), plus 2 training sessions before the role commences.

We invite applications from people with lived-experience of BDD, as well as people who have received CBT or trained in the principles of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, and who have skills in group facilitation or peer-support.

This is a unique and rewarding role, with the opportunity to support and guide individuals through the 20 week group therapy programme. You will have the chance to work alongside some amazing facilitators who have delivered the programme previously, and develop your own skills in peer support.⁠

What do previous Facilitators say?

  • “It’s overall an incredibly rewarding process. In particular it can be heartwarming hearing about individual recovery ‘wins’ that people have as a result of the programme. E.g. Being able to go swimming with son for the first time ever.”
  • “I am confident that I learn as much from attendees as they do from me. Their honesty, insight, openness and support to one another is like nothing else, and I’ve had moments that bring up a lot of emotion because their experience resonates with me so much. I feel genuinely humbled and honoured to be a part of their BDD journey. It’s challenging at times, but so rewarding.”
  • “Hearing so many success stories about changes they had made, hearing so much positivity around them being with other people with the same MH condition as them. Plus from a personal point of view, learning so many ways for me to manage my own BDD, and working with some other amazing facilitators!”

How to apply

Please submit a CV and a personal statement (max 600 words) to gem@bddfoundation.org which highlights the following:

  • Your (direct/indirect) experience with BDD
  • Why you would like to apply for this position
  • Your relevant experience (either as an expert-by-experience, an expert-by-training or both)
  • What relevant skills and qualities you have

Please submit your CV and personal statement to gem@bddfoundation.org by 11.59pm on 1st September 2024

Please note, this post is open to those based in the UK, age 18+ and is subject to an enhanced DBS check.

Seeking Media Volunteers with Muscle Dysmorphia

We are looking to engage with individuals who are open to speaking about their experience with Muscle Dysmorphia on our social media and for national news publications.

No media experience required, but it’s helpful to be comfortable speaking on the topic, willing to have a photo of yourself shared, and consider the responsibility of representing both yourself and the BDD Foundation in the online space.

We support all our media volunteers through the process of speaking with the media and ensure you feel comfortable and supported for each opportunity to may engage with.

Please reach out to volunteers@bddfoundation.org if you are interested in being involved!

I, ADONIS; A powerful film on Muscle Dysmorphia

I, Adonis paints an excruciating vision of the poorly understood condition known as Bigorexia (Muscle Dysmorphia) in this visually striking short film. 

I, Adonis, written and directed by Angelo Raaijmakers, offers a gripping and unfiltered look into the reality of living with Muscle Dysmorphia. This powerful film draws from personal experience to shed light on a condition that is often misunderstood and overlooked.

With a mission to increase awareness and empathy, I, Adonis reveals the intense struggle and profound pain endured by those affected by Muscle Dysmorphia. The film delves into the hidden world of sufferers, uncovering the obsessive behaviours and rituals that dominate their lives behind closed doors.

Muscle Dysmorphia is a severe and often debilitating condition, one that can be difficult to recognise in loved ones until it reaches a critical point.

Don’t miss the premier —visit Alter on the link shared below.

Watch Here

Carrie-Ellise’s Recovery Story

“I still have a way to go before I can sit in a hair salon and not blur my eyes in front of the mirror; however, I no longer stress over bad hair days, I just swish my glasses into the hairband position.”

Once an impossible dream, here I am lounging outside in the midday sun.

I’ve not checked the mirror today, though I’m not quite bare-faced because I’m still wearing yesterday’s makeup. I haven’t gotten so far in my recovery that I can just grin and bear it all. Day-old makeup is a step in my desensitisation process. Still, I’m acutely aware that someone could stroll up the path and see me raw.

My husband approaches and I fight the instinct to shrink away. Instead of increasing facial camouflage, I slip my glasses up to form a hairband. This is not entirely innocent, rather a reconfiguration because I’m covertly concealing my hair parting. My hands jerk to cover my face, though I keep them on my book until the sensation fades.

Seven years ago, four layers of window-dressing shrouded me in perpetual darkness. Facing daylight demanded days of preparation, fighting through rituals, as I struggled to make my face publicly acceptable. I would wash and reapply makeup until my skin burned, rendering me housebound and without groceries for yet another day.

At the height of my struggle, I wore sunglasses until friction blistered my nose and ears, their arms hooked on for dear life. Even those lesions became part of my camouflage, a temporary deformity I rationalised as diverting attention from my perceived imperfections. But instead, BDD was trying to manifest itself in physical ways, to prove, look, I am deformed.

When at my local Sainsbury’s, the security guard asked, “Why the sunglasses indoors?” I replied with a rehearsed excuse, “I’m recovering from surgery.” Then I avoided that store for a year, driving 45 minutes out of my way for a pint of milk.

After waiting 22 years to “grow out of it,” as my friends assured me I would, I self-prescribed an exposure exercise: a bodybuilding competition, because once I’m lean then I’ll be happy, right?

Over four months, I trained six days a week. Then, during peak week, I chugged 6 litres of water daily and tapered my calories down to 450. I stepped on stage, abs defined, my face thinned out, and I made it into the top ten, only to realise I’d built a body as unhealthy and unsustainable as the pills I popped. My bikini sparkled, my skin glistened, and my stage makeup concealed a dark truth; my lips had turned grey from injecting myself with unregulated tanning agents.

BDD learned to exist on a new frequency, and I judged myself on an unreasonable scale, measuring body fat by the millimetre whilst swallowing dodgy fat burners and diuretics. After I binged my way back to normal, a real medical crisis erupted one morning and sparked a dilemma: Do I call an ambulance or apply makeup?

I imagined the paramedics, revolted by my face, and decided to leave them something nicer to look at. It’s better to be dead wearing makeup than to show my raw face in public.

I wobbled to the bathroom and set out my instruments. If I died doing eyeliner, it would be the most honest way to go.

Stumbling into the GP’s office the following day, the medical form asked, “What is your eye colour?” I had no idea; I hadn’t seen my eyes in daylight in over two decades since I closed my curtains at thirteen. And with nobody to call because I had ghosted myself into reclusivity, I had to guess the answer: blue?

Lacking a proper vocabulary, I shared how I injected myself and took under-the-counter supplements, meanwhile remaining silent about my two-decade mirror obsession because, to me, it was nothing more than a “vanity curse,” my shameful, dirty little secret.

Discovering The Broken Mirror by Dr Katharine Phillips finally put a name to my situation: Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). I was eager to consult Dr Phillips, except she was in America and I was tethered to my mirror in Britain. Even if I could get beyond my pre-travel rituals, flying had become an excess baggage nightmare, requiring me to stow mirrors, lights, and window coverings.

My recovery began with a single decision: to peel away the layers from my windows. Inch by inch, I unravelled the blinds and peeled back the curtains, shielding below a ball cap or behind sunglasses, taking small steps forward and then retreating, until I could finally face myself. All the while, audiobooks, movies, and music distracted my self-criticising voice.

In 2019, I flew to New York to meet Dr Phillips. Her diagnosis gave me new self-awareness, and I came away with a surprising side diagnosis: non-purging bulimia, another bodybuilding souvenir.

Today, I’m happily married and settled in Washington, and my active recovery is structured around these core practices: I restrict my makeup routine to just 15 minutes, and I often glance in the mirror no more than twice a day, occasionally forgetting until evening. I avoid interacting with my reflection when outside my home, hyper-vigilant of every reflective surface. Headphones replace sunglasses, and audiobooks not only provide a distraction, but have given me back my voice.

A year ago, in my journal, I recognised a tone change. I called it “Bogey Maid,” inadvertently giving my BDD a name and separation. Now I turn my scars into stories.

Moments ago, I finally checked my mirror. Close to the window where I can see my blue-grey-green, colour-confused eyes. I recognise my face looks normal, adding another increment towards recovery.

Sitting here right now, the warmth I feel is not a flush of embarrassment or shame, just a friendly kiss from the sun.

Thirty-five years of worrying about my face, chasing superficial fixes, and hiding behind camouflage led to nothing but isolation where I tiptoed near death. But just one inch of daylight led me here, to my husband, my cat, and a life.

I still have a way to go before I can sit in a hair salon and not blur my eyes in front of the mirror; however, I no longer stress over bad hair days, I just swish my glasses into the hairband position.

I’m thankful for Dr Phillips, the BDD Foundation, and every researcher who studies and supports those of us living with this not-so-invisible and destructive disorder.

If my experiences sound like they could be your own, or if your feelings seem misaligned with what’s considered typical, don’t delay seeking help as I did. BDD isn’t something you simply outgrow, and it’s not a universal experience. With the right approach and support, freedom awaits you too.

About Carrie-Ellise Poirier…

In 2005, a bidding war on eBay unexpectedly launched Carrie-Ellise Poirier into the literary world.

Having navigated 30 years of Social Anxiety and Body Dysmorphic Disorder, and driven by a relentless pursuit of recovery, Carrie’s life has been a series of unexpected turns, from securing a coveted role as a flight attendant with a premier airline to competing in a bodybuilding contest.

Today, Carrie channels her unusual experiences into her writing, establishing Bogey Maid as her platform for promoting positive body image while finalising her forthcoming coming-of-age memoir.

School’s Project – Volunteers Needed

We are recruiting volunteers to support on an exciting new Schools Project!

The Project

The BDD Foundation, in collaboration with the specialist NHS team at the Maudsley Hospital, is soon to relaunch our Schools Project, designed to provide educational professionals with the knowledge and skills to identify signs of BDD. This is an early intervention programme, aimed at supporting adolescents to access timely support. We know that BDD commonly onsets in adolescence, and causes significant disruption to their education and social development. Understanding within schools still needs improvement.

Guided by clinicians, our volunteers will be delivering in-person interactive training workshops to school personnel, primarily in south London schools. Training will cover the signs and symptoms of both BDD and appearance anxiety, and will equip staff with knowledge on BDD as a condition, how to spot the signs in a young person, how to approach the topic, steps in helping them access treatment and support for the wider family network.

The Volunteer Role

We are looking for volunteers who are interested in supporting us to deliver this crucial work. The criteria for this role includes:

  • Direct or indirect lived experience of BDD (personal experience or caring for a child/ loved one)
  • Good understanding of the signs and symptoms of BDD
  • Ideally experience in one or more of the following: delivering training, public speaking, facilitating groups, professional presentations
  • Clear communicator, organised, and passionate about early mental health intervention

How to apply

Please submit a CV and a personal statement (max 700 words) which outlines the following:

  • Your (direct/indirect) experience with BDD
  • Why you would like to apply for this position
  • Your relevant experience (either as an expert-by-experience, an expert-by-training or both)
  • Your relevant skills and qualities

Please submit your CV and personal statement to gem@bddfoundation.org by 11.59pm on 22nd August

Interviews are due to take place week commencing 26th August

Volunteer Information Evening

Join us on Zoom, for a Volunteer Information Evening on 28th August at 6.30 – 8pm (BST)

REGISTER HERE


We are soon to be recruiting for a variety of volunteer opportunities across the charity. This online information session offers the chance to find out more about the following roles: ⁠

⭐ Overcoming BDD Programme Peer Facilitator⁠
⭐ E-Helpline Volunteer ⁠
⭐ Support Group Facilitator ⁠

There will be a short presentation about each of the projects/ roles available, followed by lots of time to ask questions about any of the positions you may be interested in. ⁠If you are interested in applying, you will still be required to submit a formal application. This is an information session only. ⁠

We look forward to seeing you there!

💡 Please note, we are currently only able to work with volunteers residing in the UK and aged 18+ due to insurance reasons.

Understanding BDD webinar in collaboration with OCD Action

Upcoming webinar: Join us on Tuesday 30th July at 7pm for a comprehensive webinar on Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) in partnership with OCD Action

Accredited CBT therapist Rebecca Robinson will discuss the common signs and symptoms of BDD, its impact on daily life, and the links between BDD and OCD. She will also cover treatment options, including medication and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for BDD. Adding depth to the discussion, Mia Hill and Andy Hall will share their lived experiences, providing personal insights and highlighting the impact of BDD. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn and gain support from both experts and those with lived experience.

Register for free.

Meet the Panel

Rebecca Robinson: Accredited CBT Therapist

Rebecca is an accredited CBT therapist, initially working as a registered mental health nurse working in both acute inpatient and community outpatient settings. She currently works with Prof David Veale and Dr Rob Willson in their specialist OCD and related disorders service, ‘Overcoming OCD’. Rebecca has a keen interest in BDD, providing training sessions on the subject as well as having seen numerous patients with the condition.

Andy Hall: BDD Foundation volunteer and lived experience expert

Andy developed BDD in his late teens and has been in recovery for over ten years. Since joining the BDD Foundation in 2016, Andy has passionately promoted hope for recovery by sharing his experiences with the community.

Mia Hill: BDD Foundation Youth Ambassador and OCD Action Youth Engagement Panel Member

Mia Hill is a 21-year-old psychology student and part-time staff member at OCD-UK, supporting young people with OCD. She is a youth ambassador for the BDD Foundation and a member of the OCD Action Youth Engagement Panel. Mia runs a mental health page on Instagram, sharing her journey with BDD and OCD to raise awareness and help others through her own experiences.

Register for Free

The Body Dysmorphic Disorder Foundation. Charity no. 1153753.