Tallulah Willis, the daughter of Bruce Willis and Demi Moore, has recently opened up about her struggles with body dysmorphic disorder (BDD).
On May 16, the 27-year-old actress posted a few pics on Instagram and wrote a long note on how she spent her days being hyper-focused on her appearance.
In the post, she said she was told she looked exactly like her dad since her birth, so she “punished” herself for not looking more like her mom.
“I resented the resemblance as I believed wholly my ‘masculine’ face was the sole reason for my unlovability – FALSE,” Tallulah wrote, “I was/am inherently valuable and worthy, at any life stage, at any size, with anyhair do! (As are you).”
She also shared that she has learned that “aging happens without your control, time passes and your face can change” and “you need to soothe the wound within your soul before trying to ‘fix’ the outsides.”
Moore commented, “Beautifully realized, Beautifully expressed, Beautiful to witness.”
Tallulah has always been open about her BDD, sharing her mental health struggles.
BDD is a mental health disorder in which you can’t stop thinking about one or more perceived defects or flaws in your appearance — a flaw that appears minor or can’t be seen by others, according to Mayo Clinic, but you may feel so embarrassed, ashamed and anxious that you may avoid many social situations.
Tallulah went on to list a few things that she follows to help her when she is in a “BDD spiral,” such as “putting a towel over the mirror, taking mirrors down, and putting in place self-boundaries so she can only look in the mirror when she’s brushing her teeth and washing her face,” according to Health.
Some of her other strategies include taking breaks from social media, reading fantasy fiction books, finding a safe person, circle, or community, going for a walk, listening to music, taking a bath and using body oil/lotion. Furthermore, she said she writes and breathes to tackle her BDD.
Posting a message for people who might also have BBD, Tallula wrote, “We all want to feel good, and confident but when it creeps into a deeper, spookier place where it begins to devour your essence bit by bit, ask for help.” “Do not feel ashamed, this is not a ‘stupid, vain issue’ this is a genuine psychological pain and I see you so clearly and witness the validity in your struggle,” she advised.
