As college students, or at least students who live on social media, we are surrounded by images of what society thinks we should and shouldn’t look like. I think it’s time we educate ourselves on a recurring problem in both young women and men all over the country: body dysmorphia.

Admittedly, I’m not a doctor, psychologist or person with the credentials to diagnose myself or anyone else with any type of mental illness. I find it necessary, though, to promote the awareness of this disorder as well as give my own opinion on factors that may being playing a roll in the development of the disorder.

Body Dysmorphic Disorder is defined by the Anxiety and Depression Association of America as “a body-image disorder characterized by persistent and intrusive preoccupations with an imagined or slight defect in one's appearance.”

The individuals that are diagnosed with this illness have symptoms that may go undetected by people whom they are close with, that is, if they are able to keep to themselves for a good period of the day. These symptoms range from avoiding mirrors, to skin picking, to focusing on one part of the body for hours and comparing it to the way other people’s bodies look. This type of illness consumes one’s entire life. It is a daily struggle where you wake up thinking about the part of the body you do not approve of and you go to bed thinking about that same part of you. It is also common for the people that suffer from said disorder to suffer from other mental health disorders like depression and associated eating disorders.

A 2015 study shows that Body Dysmorphic Disorder is prevalent in .07% to 2.4% of today’s population. The disorder is 9% to 14% common in dermatology patients, which truly shows how thoughts on outside appearance is a key factor in the disease, considering the skin is the largest organ in the human body.

Now, if you are one of the million users of the app “Instagram,” I can guarantee that you have seen images of airbrushed, perfectly contoured skin, tiny waists zipped into corsets made of spandex that are given an “athletic” look, large breasts, thick thighs and muscular looking butts on both women and men who are hanging out on the beach drinking a mimosa or eating a donut.

Let me just say it for everyone…WHAT THE F***? A perfect body and they’re eating donuts?

These images of what “perfection” looks like in our society, being repeated every single day, seem to be playing a role into our own personal ideas of what we, as humans, should look like. How can we constantly scroll through our favorite apps, looking at our favorite celebrities, and not compare them to our own bodies?

Being a female college student, I do in fact make these comparisons myself. I also hear it every day. “I just want Kate Upton's boobs.” “Jen Selter? It’s not fair that my butt can’t look like that.” Again, I’m not saying that every female whom I’ve had these conversations with has Body Dysmorphic Disorder, but I do think that the images we are exposed to contribute to Body-Dysmorphic thoughts.

Why can’t we be happy with our little boobs or our big boobs or our one little stomach roll? Why are we constantly trying to transform ourselves into something society deems as acceptable or “hot”? Is it so we can post it on Instagram and pretend we are those models and celebrities that we love to hate so much?

The easiest way to get yourself out of this warped idea of reality would be to try your best to accept yourself for who you are. If you don’t like something about yourself, get over it. Even if it seems as if doing so is getting more and more difficult as technology becomes more accessible and prevalent, it will be so rewarding in the end.

As a survivor of anorexia, I will openly say that experiencing obsessive thoughts about your own body and the way it is perceived by the rest of the world is all-consuming. You become so engrossed in feelings of inadequacy that it becomes a part of your daily routine and you see nothing wrong with it.

In a perfect world, idolizing something unattainable would no longer be an issue, and being your own person would be viewed as admirable. In reality, though, we need to be aware of the difference between simply wishing and obsessing, and if we are obsessing, we need to seek help.

If you or a loved one is believed to be suffering from Body Dysmorphic Disorder, or if you’d like to donate, visit bbdfoundation.org for more information.