Body image and impulse control disorders are deeply intertwined. Negative body image can cause and maintain impulse control disorders, and impulse control disorders frequently worsens how we feel about our bodies.
How Negative Body Image Drives Impulse Control Disorders
- Chronic dissatisfaction with physical appearance depletes psychological resources
- Body shame — a particularly painful form of shame — directly drives impulse control disorders
- Comparison of body to social standards is a primary impulse control disorders trigger
- Body image concerns often involve the same negative self-evaluation patterns as impulse control disorders
How Impulse Control Disorders Affects Body Image
Impulse Control Disorders can worsen body image through reduced self-care motivation, changes in appetite and weight, and a general negative lens that extends to physical self-perception.
Addressing Body Image and Impulse Control Disorders Together
- Body neutrality: Not requiring positive body feelings, just reduction of hostility
- Body functionality focus: What your body does vs. how it looks
- Intuitive eating: Reconnecting with hunger and satisfaction cues disrupted by impulse control disorders
- Therapy: CBT and ACT effectively address both body image and impulse control disorders