Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) followed online would be effective in combating disorders of the image of the body or dysmorphophobia, according to the results of a study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ).
Dysmorphophobia (fear of bodily dysmorphia) is a psychiatric disorder that relates to bodily defects. This physical defect refers to a fear. The person who suffers from it fears having a too big nose or a misshapen face for example. The significant suffering which results from it alters life in society (love, friendship, family, professional life).
Swedish and British researchers conducted a survey with 94 adults suffering from body image disorders or dysmorphophobia to understand whether remote TTC could be more effective than supportive therapeutic monitoring. CBT teaches you how to change your way of thinking, which can help you overcome this disorder in the long run. This mode of therapy helps to progressively overcome disabling symptoms, such as: rites and checks, stress, avoidance and inhibitions, aggressive reactions, or distress causing psychic suffering.
Online monitoring allows lasting effects
Study participants participated in either online cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) via the Internet or supportive therapy for 12 weeks.
The findings of this study showed that 56% of patients who followed the program based on cognitive-behavioral techniques have improved their health and the quality of their life. Only 13% of patients who followed conventional supportive therapy observed improvement in their mental health. Scientists observed that these benefits lasted for 3 months after treatment. 39% of participants are no longer diagnosed as suffering from disorders related to body image.
Read also:
Body dysmorphia: when the complex turns to obsession
To be ugly to be sick of it
Dysmorphophobia: a bad connection in the brain involved
