Body Dysmorphic Disorder
Help in Hampshire
Kind, effective support to quiet the harsh inner critic and build a gentler relationship with yourself, in person across Hampshire or online.
Compassionate Help for
Body Dysmorphia
Kind, effective support to quiet the harsh inner critic and build a gentler relationship with yourself, in person across Hampshire or online.
Over 23 years of care · Practice of the Year 2025 · Completely confidential
It is not vanity, and you are not alone
Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) is a recognised mental health condition, closely related to OCD. It involves a distressing preoccupation with how you look, often focused on something others barely notice, and it can take up hours of your day.
BDD is not vanity or being self-absorbed. It is a genuine and often painful condition, and it is nothing to be ashamed of. Importantly, it is also treatable, and with the right support things really can get easier.
Please talk to your GP too: BDD is a recognised condition, and NHS guidance recommends talking therapies such as CBT, and sometimes medication, as effective treatments. A GP can help you access these. Cosmetic or surgical procedures rarely ease BDD and can make it worse, so therapy for how you feel is often the more lasting path. Our support works alongside your medical care.
Three supportive, evidence-informed approaches
We shape the right combination around you. For BDD, CBT has the strongest evidence base, and counselling and hypnotherapy can support the journey alongside it.
CBT
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is the most researched treatment for BDD. It helps you challenge distorted thoughts, gradually reduce compulsions such as mirror checking, and build a more balanced view of yourself.
Counselling
A safe, confidential space to explore the roots of how you feel, such as past experiences, low self-esteem or anxiety, and to develop kinder, healthier thought patterns.
Hypnotherapy
Used as a complementary approach, hypnotherapy can support relaxation and self-acceptance, helping ease the anxiety that so often surrounds BDD.
Loosening BDD's grip, gently
Therapy will not ask you to pretend the feelings are not there. Instead, it helps you relate to them differently, so they take up less space over time.
- Softens the distorted picture of how you see yourself
- Eases compulsions such as mirror checking or constant comparison
- Builds self-compassion and a kinder relationship with your body
- Reduces anxiety and low mood that often travel with BDD
A calmer, kinder relationship with yourself
BDD can make daily life and relationships feel exhausting. It does not have to stay that way. With patient, compassionate support, many people find the preoccupation loosens its hold and life opens back up.
Whenever you feel ready, we are here to walk that path with you, at your pace.
Questions you may have
Is BDD just vanity?
No. BDD is a recognised mental health condition, closely related to OCD, and it can be deeply distressing. It has nothing to do with vanity, and it is not something to feel ashamed of.
Should I see my GP as well?
Yes, we recommend it. NHS guidance suggests talking therapies such as CBT, and sometimes medication, as effective treatments for BDD, and a GP can help you access these. Our support works alongside that care.
Can therapy really help?
Yes. CBT in particular has strong evidence for BDD, and counselling and hypnotherapy can support you alongside it. Everyone is different, and we shape the approach around you and your pace.
Would cosmetic surgery fix it?
Usually not. Cosmetic or surgical procedures rarely relieve BDD, and can leave the distress unchanged or worse. Working on how you feel about yourself tends to bring more lasting relief.
Is what I say confidential?
Yes. Your sessions are private and treated with the strictest confidence. In the rare situation where there is a serious risk to your safety, a therapist may need to involve others to help keep you safe, and they would talk this through with you.
Is support available online?
Yes. We offer sessions in person at our Hampshire practices and online across the UK, so you can begin from wherever feels most comfortable.
Take a gentle first step
Start with a free, no-pressure consultation. A relaxed, confidential chat, a chance to be heard and to ask anything, with no cost and no obligation. Whenever you are ready, we are here.
hello@oliptherapy.co.uk · Samaritans 116 123, free any time
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