Feeling Good about the Way You Look: A Program for Overcoming Body Image Problems - Hardcover

Wilhelm, Sabine

4.06

33 ratings by Goodreads

9781593852948: Feeling Good about the Way You Look: A Program for Overcoming Body Image Problems

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1593852940 ISBN 13: 9781593852948

Publisher: Guilford Press, 2006

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In a society where a blemish or “bad hair” can ruin an otherwise perfect day and airbrushed abs dominate the magazine rack, many of us feel ashamed of our bodies. If dissatisfaction with your looks is a distressing preoccupation, this compassionate book offers a way to break free from the mirror. Harvard psychologist Sabine Wilhelm leads you through a step-by-step program that helps you fight the urge to spend hours “fixing” your skin and hair, working out, or shopping for flattering clothes. Reality-check exercises based on cognitive-behavioral therapy demonstrate how to identify unfounded beliefs about your appearance. Once you understand the negative thoughts and feelings that distort your self-image, you’ll be able to shed lengthy grooming rituals and overcome the embarrassment that keeps you from enjoying life. With Dr. Wilhelm’s expert guidance, you’ll learn to replace self-doubt and insecurity with confidence and a positive outlook. Whether you’ve spent thousands on plastic surgery or avoid trips to the beach, dating, or socializing, you owe yourself this opportunity to make peace with your looks. If you or someone you care about is struggling with a body image problem, effective care is finally at hand.

Health care professionals, see also the related treatment manual: Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Body Dysmorphic Disorder.

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Review:

"Millions of people suffer from body image concerns. Some are paralyzed by them. Here, Dr. Sabine Wilhelm offers a systematic, scientifically based program of self-treatment. For many, this will be a welcome alternative to expensive professional therapy."--Harrison G. Pope Jr., MD, Harvard Medical School; coauthor of The Adonis Complex

"Dr. Wilhelm, one of the few experts on the treatment of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), has written a landmark book for the millions who suffer from this under-recognized and often disabling illness. For those struggling to overcome the torment of BDD, this book offers invaluable guidance and hope."--Katharine A. Phillips, MD, author of Understanding Body Dysmorphic Disorder

"Dr. Wilhelm is one of the world's experts in body image and a pioneer in the treatment of body image disturbance through cognitive-behavioral therapy. This is an authoritative, lucid, wise, and engaging book. More than that, it is an important book--it will change lives. If you are constrained by anxiety and shame about your appearance, Dr. Wilhelm maps out the road to freedom--to feeling truly and authentically good about the way you look."--Nancy Etcoff, PhD, Harvard Medical School; author of Survival of the Prettiest

"As someone who experienced body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), when you’re at your lowest, you really believe you will never have a normal life...This book can and will help many people. I wish there had been a book like this when I was at my lowest points!"--LG, Massachusetts

"Until now, very little self-help material was available on body dysmorphic disorder, a distressing condition that can lead sufferers to depression, unnecessary cosmetic surgery, and even suicide. If you are struggling with body image problems or care for someone who is, this excellent book offers very helpful guidance."--David Veale, MD, London, UK

Synopsis:

In a society where a blemish or "bad hair" can ruin an otherwise perfect day, and airbrushed abs dominate the magazine rack, many people feel ashamed of their bodies. Whether they've stopped socializing because of an imagined defect or spent thousands on skin care, hair growth products, or plastic surgery, "Feeling Good about the Way You Look" helps men and women, with exaggerated concerns about their appearance, break free from the mirror and get their lives back on track. Self-assessment tools help readers understand their problems and decide whether they should be evaluated for body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), a severely distressing level of dissatisfaction with one's body. Step-by-step guidelines teach them to overcome discouraging thoughts, curtail obsessive appearance rituals, and see themselves realistically. With a chapter for friends and family members who suspect a loved one may be struggling with body image issues, this is the perfect starting point for those who want to help themselves or someone they care about make peace with their looks.

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