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2023年5月30日 · Body checking often includes behaviors like flesh pinching, body part measuring, and compulsive weighing. In some cases, people who body check might feel for their bones or muscles to reassure themselves that their bodies are “acceptable” according to their
- Overview
- What is body checking?
- What’s considered compulsive?
- The link between body checking and disordered eating
- What else can potentially lead to compulsive body checking?
- How to reduce body checking behaviors
- The bottom line
Few people get through a day without looking in a mirror, assessing the fit of their clothes or taking stock of their overall appearance.
Body checking, in the era of continually updated selfies, may be more common now than ever. But how do you know if it’s healthy — or if it’s become a compulsive behavior?
Body checking is the habit of seeking information about your body’s weight, shape, size, or appearance.
Like many behaviors, body checking exists on a continuum. It can range from completely avoiding looking at your body, to casual checking as part of your preparations for the day, to compulsive and anxious check-and-check-again behavior loops.
Everyone checks the mirror in the office restroom before a meeting or in their bathroom before a Zoom hangout to be sure there’s no spinach in their teeth. Lots of people step on a scale every few days to make sure they’re in a healthy weight range for them. And plenty of people take measurements or before-and-after selfies to track their fitness journeys.
According to research, though, this can lead to negative feelings when done too often. Compulsively pinching loose skin, measuring body parts, weighing yourself multiple times daily, and other monitoring behaviors can all end up worsening your mood.
Body checking can become problematic if it:
•interferes with your ability to think clearly or concentrate
•takes up too much of your time
•makes you stop or strictly limit your eating
In a 2004 study, researchers found that body checking is closely associated with disordered eating. For people with disordered eating, body checking can become a way to try to reduce anxieties about:
•weight gain
•food
•eating
•calories
Thoughts about food or weight may trigger a threat response. As a result, checking the body repeatedly may become an attempt to cope with the physical and emotional symptoms that go along with confronting a perceived threat.
Excessive body checking is also associated with some other anxiety-related health conditions.
A 2019 study involving 386 participants showed that people with obsessive-compulsive disorder, illness anxiety, panic disorder, and body dysmorphic disorder all experienced anxiety they felt could be reduced if they engaged in checking behaviors.
Researchers asked the participants in the above-mentioned study to recall a checking episode. They were asked to rate their negative feelings before, during, and after the body checking behaviors.
The participants rated their negative feelings higher before checking and lower afterward. Researchers think that completing the check brought a temporary feeling of certainty that eased the worries of these participants.
However, this outcome — which relied on participants’ memories of what happened before and after checking episodes — conflicts with evidence from other studies.
Other research using real-time data, such as a 2013 study and a 2015 study, found that body checking increased negative feelings instead of reducing them.
If body checking is adding to your worries or interfering with your day-to-day life, you may want to consider some of these strategies to reduce your dependence on this coping mechanism:
•Take a break from social media. In a 2018 study, researchers found that posting selfies and other social media behaviors can worsen anxieties about body size and shape.
•Notice what makes you want to body check. Figuring out what situations provoke the impulse can help you avoid those triggers or find ways to reduce their impact.
•Keep track of the checking behaviors for a day. Noting how many times you body check in a 24-hour period may help you understand how much time you spend on the behavior. It can also help you set a target for reducing the number of times you’re doing it.
•Try something new to manage anxiety. Once you know when you’re vulnerable to body checking, you can prepare some alternative coping strategies to try instead.
•Consider talking with a therapist. If body checking is increasing your anxiety, lowering your self-esteem, or interfering with your day-to-day life, it’s a good idea to talk with a professional therapist — whether it’s online, in person, or in a group setting. A trained therapist may be able to help you understand your motivations and develop healthier strategies for managing your worries.
Body checking involves examining, measuring, or monitoring something related to your body — usually your weight, size, or shape.
A certain amount of body checking is completely normal. But it can become problematic if the behavior is compulsive and interferes with your ability to go about your daily life.
You may be at a higher risk of compulsive body checking if you have disordered eating, an anxiety disorder, or an inaccurate view of your body or health. Social media exposure can also make the problem worse.
If body checking leaves you feeling anxious or depressed, or disrupts your work or social life, there are strategies that can help, including working with a trained therapist.
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2022年10月18日 · FAQs. Summary. Body checking involves a person repeatedly seeking information about their body shape or size using scales, mirrors, or other methods. This behavior may become unhealthy...
- Louisa Richards
- Occasionally checking the body using mirrors or a scale is a typical part of life. However, if someone is body checking obsessively or has consiste...
- A person needs to become aware of their behaviors and triggers. Seeking professional help to address this may be useful. Additionally, a person may...
- Experts suggest that body checking may have a link to anxiety disorders and be a result of negative attitudes and thoughts toward a person’s shape...
Compulsive body checking behaviors are considered to overly emphasize the importance of one‘s body and its shape, which often occurs as a symptom in people with obsessive–compulsive disorder and eating disorders like anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa.
2022年11月30日 · 40-44: Every 2 years. 45 and above: Every year. Individuals with existing health problems may need more frequent health checks as well. For example, those with diabetes would see their doctor at least every six months to keep track of blood sugar control, cardiovascular health, vision, loss of sensations, and so on.
2022年9月22日 · Body checking entails continuously seeking data about your body’s weight, size, shape, or overall appearance. 1 It’s relatively common for people to occasionally body check at different points throughout their lives. However, for some, body checking can become compulsive and lead to negative self-perceptions, as well as body image problems.
2020年7月23日 · By Kate Mooney. Jul 23, 2020, 05:45 AM EDT. LEAVE A COMMENT. Do you stop to examine your reflection regularly? Or turn your attention to one particular area of your body with laser focus? These types of behaviors may fall under body checking.
