TOWIE’s James Lock, 37, describes his battle with body dysmorphia and despite ‘knowing he looks good’ his ‘constant comparison to others’ led to surgery and steroid abuse
James Lock has revealed he suffers from body dysmorphia, which causes him to ‘constantly fight, compete and compare himself to others’.
The TOWIE star, 37, who has appeared on the ITVBe show since 2013, appeared on Good Morning Britain on Thursday to discuss his condition with presenters Susanna Reid and Ed Balls and Conservative MP and GP, Dr Luke Evans.
He admitted that criticism on social media led to him undergoing a number of surgical procedures – including a rhinoplasty, otoplasty (putting the ears back) and hair transplantation – as well as the use of steroids.
Although he admitted that he knows he is “a handsome man” and is “a confident man” to some extent, James admitted that he will “always find fault with himself.”
He told the trio: ‘I can sit here now and I know I look good and I’m in good shape, but I’ll still find fault… It’s a constant battle with yourself and even though you look look inside the mirror, you don’t see what other people see.’
James Lock has revealed he suffers from body dysmorphia, which causes him to ‘constantly fight, compete and compare himself to others’
He admitted that criticism on social media led to him undergoing a number of surgical procedures – including a rhinoplasty, otoplasty (placing the ears back) and hair transplant – as well as using steroids.
James talked about how he can be “rational” about his problems one minute, but the next he can be at work on a photo shoot and spend the entire day criticizing himself about the way he looks.
He said: ‘I can sit here and be rational about it, but a few days ago I’m doing a shoot and what should take half an hour takes a whole day because I find fault with everything and I compare myself to my competition.
“Remember, in the shows I’ve been in, we may all be friends, but we’re all competing.”
About his surgical procedures, he said: ‘I’ve had my eyes done, my nose done, you get carried away. Something that would have taken a few hours, a few photos, now takes a full day…
‘Sometimes I’m irrational. I look good, I’m in good shape, but I’ll still find faults – whether I’m on set or even if I’m going on holiday or doing a shoot for a brand, I’ll find faults.
‘I started with a hair transplant, I had my ears done, I had my teeth done, that’s the standard for everyone these days.
‘Recently I did another TV show and got a little injured. The injuries were bad, but not as bad as what I created in my head. So I had my eyes done, my nose done. You get carried away.’
James talked about how he can be “rational” about his problems one minute, but the next he can be at work on a photo shoot and spend the entire day criticizing himself about the way he looks.
Also in the studio, James was joined by Conservative MP and GP, Dr Luke Evans, who described social media as having a contributing effect on the way people see themselves.
He said: ‘[It’s important] James comes out and talks about it because that’s part of the problem. People come out and say, ‘He looks fine, what does he have to worry about?’ And actually that’s almost the problem in itself, because everyone is chasing this goal of looking a certain way, but we can’t achieve that.
He added: ‘We know that one in three children are ashamed of their bodies and one in five adults are ashamed of their bodies, and at the extreme end people are looking to surgery, eating disorders or steroids to fix this. ..
“That’s what worries me most.”