Understanding Body Dysmorphic Disorder

In a world obsessed with appearance, it is not surprising that body dysmorphic disorder, or BDD -- an emotionally painful obsession with perceived flaws in one's appearance -- has manifested itself as a troubling and relatively common problem for many individuals. In The Broken Mirror, the first and most definitive book on BDD, Dr. Katharine A. Phillips provided a comprehensive manual for patients and their physicians by drawing on years of clinical practice, scientific research, and professional evaluations of over 1,000 patients. Now, in Understanding Body Dysmorphic Disorder: An Essential Guide , the world's leading authority on BDD reaches out to patients, their friends, and their families with this concise and updated handbook.
BDD causes sufferers to be obsessed by perceived flaws in their appearance and may afflict as much as two percent of the population, or nearly five million people. Many sufferers are able to function well in society, but remain secretly obsessed by their "hideous acne" or "horrible nose," sneaking constant peeks at a pocket mirror, or spending hours at a time redoing makeup. Others find their lives disintegrate because of their appearance obsessions. It is not an uncommon disorder, simply a hidden one, since sufferers are often embarrassed to tell even their closest friends about their concerns.
Using stories and interviews to show the many different behaviors and symptoms of BDD, and a quick self-assessment questionnaire, Dr. Phillips guides readers through the basics of the disorder and through the many treatment options that work and don't work. With Understanding Body Dysmorphic Disorder: An Essential Guide, sufferers will find both helpful advice and much needed reassurance in a compact, down-to-earth indispensable book.

Katharine A. Phillips, MD, is Director of The BDD and Body Image Program at Butler Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island, and Professor of Psychiatry at Brown Medical School.

Preface
1: What is Body Dismorphic Disorder?
2: How Do I Know if I Have BDD?
3: BDD Comes in Many Forms
4: Painful Obsessions
5: Compulsive Behaviors: Mirror Checking, Grooming, Camouflaging, Dieting, and Others
6: How BDD Affects Lives: Social Avoidance, Problems with School and Work, Violence, Suicide, and Other Consequences
7: Gender and BDD across the Life Span
8: What Causes BDD? Clues to an Unsolved Puzzle
9: Getting Better: A Brief Treatment Guide
10: How to Successfully Treat BDD with Medication
11: Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for BDD
12: Cosmetic Treatments: Surgery, Dermatologic, Dental, and Other Treatments
13: Anorexia Nervosa, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and Other Psychiatric Disorders--What's Their Relationship to BDD?
14: Advice for Family Members and Friends
15: Getting Help for BDD
Glossary
Index