Appearance Concerns

It is normal to feel dissatisfied with your appearance from time to time. However, if you are too concerned about your appearance it can have a big impact on your life in many ways, such as your mood, how you socialise and how you take part in activities like work, study or hobbies. It can also add to financial stress, as trying to change your appearance can be very expensive. The good news is that you can learn to accept your appearance as it is and to lessen the influence your appearance concerns have on your life.

Caring Less About Your Looks: This workbook is designed to help you understand the factors that keep you overly focused on your appearance, and introduces strategies to lessen the impact of appearance concerns on your day to day life. It is organised into modules that are designed to be worked through in sequence.  We recommend that you complete one module before going on to the next. Each module includes information, worksheets, and suggested exercises or activities.

Module 1: The Impact of Appearance Overconcern

This module provides some general information about appearance concerns, and discusses how being overly concerned about your appearance can have negative consequences in different areas of your life.

Module 2: What Keeps Appearance Concerns Going

This module explores, and provides a model of, how appearance concerns are maintained.

Module 3: Appearance Focused Attention

This module explores ways you can start to decrease the amount of time you spend caught up in thinking about your appearance.

Module 4: Body Checking and Reassurance Seeking

This module explores how checking and reassurance seeking behaviours maintain appearance concerns, and introduces strategies to reduce or eliminate these behaviours.

Module 5: Appearance Altering Behaviours

This module explores how trying to change your appearance can backfire by keeping appearance concerns going, and outlines steps to reduce appearance altering behaviours.

Module 6: Avoidance and Safety Behaviours

This module explores how avoidance and safety behaviours maintain appearance concerns, and introduces strategies to help you to re-engage with avoided situations and activities.

Module 7: Overvaluing Appearance and Self-Management Planning

This final module addresses overvaluing of appearance head on, explores how to live in line with other values you hold, and includes a self-management plan to help you to stay on track.

Download the entire workbook

Click the link above to download all modules in this workbook at once, as a zip file.

We have a range of other resources relevant to appearance concerns which you may find helpful. 

  • If you are highly preoccupied with specific features of your appearance and how to minimise or hide these perceived flaws, rather than just your appearance in general, then you may wish to refer to our body dysmorphia resources.  
  • If your appearance concerns lead you to change your diet or exercise significantly, you may find our disordered eating resources helpful. 
  • People with high levels of appearance concerns tend to view themselves in a negative light overall. Our resources for improving self-esteem can be helpful for this.

Last Updated: 13/07/2022

Also in this section
Overview Looking After Yourself Looking After Others For Clinicians