Dr Christian Jessen is a popular gay TV doctor in the UK. He made some interesting comments recently on BBC Radio 4 about his own personal experience of being gay and having body dysmorphia. Which is interesting in itself .. because many consider him a bit of a dream boat [Dr Christian]: Body dysmorphia .. in a nutshell, its what you see in the mirror isn't really how you actually are. I was a sort of tall skinny teenager desperately, desperately, insecure and uncomfortable in my own skin and I think that had a lot to do with sexuality ... and just terribly uncomfortable with 'me'. Gangly and all the rest of it. From that develops this sort of insecurity and this fervour to try and change one's self externally - its external. And I think it can be mistaken for vanity and of course its not vanity .. its much deeper and darker than vanity and it can be very destructive. So you attempt to change how you are but then you look and see .. check in on your progress ... nothing's changed in your head ..that image in the mirror is still the gawky gangly boy. [Interviewer: So thats still what you see?] [Dr Christian]: I'm better now. I'm much better ... but its something you live with ... its something you never get rid of but you learn how to manage. [Co-host]: very common isn't it, in the gay male community, in gym culture, you see a lot of people who think ... you think you're an ugly duckling and you're now a swan but you still haunted by that feeling of being an ugly duckling. [Dr Christian]: And I think its that sort of childhood 'not fitting in' feeling different not feeling masculine .. growing up gay and that doesn't seem to fit in with societal norms of masculinity and 'father and mother' and all of this... and its horrible. Being a teenager is awful enough anyway .. it was a horrible time ... but being a GAY teenager where everything around you doesn't match whats going on 'in here' is really difficult. And I think some people deal with it really well - and are in an environment that helps to nurture it - and others really handle it badly and it manifests in all sorts of very destructive ways and I think body dysmorphia can be one of them. BBC Radio 4 - Saturday Live, Dr Christian Jessen - you probably won't be able to use the link unless you are in the UK.
Very interesting, thanks for sharing! I also have body dismorphia, so I can relate. He certainly isn't an ugly man, by any stretch. This is off topic, but are you a Clash fan? I just saw your avatar, and I like them a lot. <3<3
