- Video chatting tools have exacerbated body image issues, leading to "Zoom dysmorphia" in some.
- The pressure to join calls with video can also hurt productivity.
- Setting boundaries around camera time can support your mental health and professional goals.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
Emma worries her colleagues think she's vain. On Zoom calls, she can't help but look at her own image, play with her hair, and tinker with the camera to find the most flattering angle.
But Emma isn't vain, she's living with body dysmorphic disorder, a mental health condition in which people obsess over their (often perceived) flaws so incessantly it disrupts their daily functioning and corrodes their well-being.
"It's as though every time I see myself, I have this extremely distracting magnifying glass zooming in on my imperfections," Emma, a 28-year-old in New York who requested to use her first name only in order to speak openly about her experience, told Insider.
Pre-COVID, that meant struggling to get through a workout in a mirror-lined gym without adjusting her clothes, hair, or makeup. During the coronavirus, it's meant Zoom meetings are demoralizing.
They're also distracting. Rather than listening to coworkers, Emma's berated by the voice in her head, which sounds like "a bully cycling through insults on loop," she said. It criticizes the dark circles under her eyes, the shape of her face, her hair, and her complexion.
And yet, she said, it's considered rude for her to keep her camera off. "People make a big deal about how they want to see each other in person, as it helps them connect," she said. "So, I politely oblige."
Mental health professionals say video call-exacerbated body image issues are on the rise, especially among people like Emma who struggled with self-image before the pandemic.
Some call experiences like hers "Zoom dysmorphia," or when more time looking at your own image leads to feelings of self-consciousness, body dissatisfaction, and pressure to change your appearance. In more severe cases, it can lead to disordered eating, excessive exercise, or the desire to seek cosmetic procedures - demand for which has been on the rise during the pandemic.
Even people with perfectly healthy self-images find too much "on air" time can skew priorities and blur boundaries, too. While there are ways individuals can make video calls work better for them, there's a shorter-term fix: Cut the pressure to keep the camera on.
Video chatting has relieved some appearance-related stressors, but exacerbated others
Video chats and apps have facilitated positive, even life-saving, connections during the pandemic - allowing grandparents to interact with constantly developing toddlers, healthcare professionals to spot people in precarious mental health, families to celebrate weddings and mourn deaths, and colleagues to feel like part of a team.
The reduced pressure to wear heels or squeeze into slimming undergarments has also improved some people's comfort in their own skin. "They're able to practice embracing their natural look, whatever that may be," licensed professional counselor Kristin Szostak, who serves as the site director of The Renfrew Center of Philadelphia, told Insider.
But increased screen time has also corresponded with increased anxiety, stress, and body dissatisfaction among young men and women alike, October research out of the UK found. Part of that is related to increased exposure to unrealistic body ideals and highly-altered faces.
"The number of filters available on social media and the number of ways you can change and contort your face is becoming an obsession that can lead to dysmorphia around your face," Szostak says.
So, too, can the sheer number of hours people are spending in front of a digital mirror. "I always knew my front teeth were slightly uneven, but on Zoom, it looks even worse and I cannot stand to look back at call recording," Olivia Moore, a PR professional in New York City, told Insider.
"I've definitely noticed more imperfections since looking at myself on Zoom all day," Natasha, a fitness professional in California, said. "This has ultimately led to a little more Botox."
Even therapists struggle, psychotherapist Haley Neidich told Insider. While working virtually with clients, she might think, "Why did you make that face?" or, "You don't look as professional as you think you do."
"My face is so much more expressive than I realized, and these concerns taking up any amount of my mental energy during a session ... has left me feeling pretty awful at times," Neidich said.
Looking at yourself so often, and looking at others so close up, is unnatural
Getty/Ivan Pantic
In the real world, there's no mirror reflecting your every move when you meet a date for coffee, enter a board room, or attend a seminar.
Not so on Zoom, which "puts you face-to-face with what you look like, often while in a vulnerable position at work with others looking at you, and there is the perception of external judgment as well," Neidich said.
It also puts you face-to-face with others in an way that eschews the concept of "personal space." New research suggests that the up-close interaction of a tool like Zoom can trigger the same physiological reaction as a threat or attack, Insider's Keyaira Kelly previously reported.
"From an evolutionary standpoint, if there was a very large human face close by to you, and it was staring right in your eyes, you were likely going to engage in conflict or mate. Neither responses are a good fit for a work meeting," Jeremy Bailenson, director of Stanford's virtual human interaction lab, told Kelly.
For some, they're not even a good fit for a family gathering. Kelly, a New Yorker in her 30s whose last name is concealed to protect her privacy, said appearing at a cousin's virtual baby shower was difficult. With a history of serious eating disorders and a long-held perception that she's ugly, Kelly avoided being photographed pre-pandemic.
Now, activities of daily living are like living in the spotlight when you prefer to shine backstage.
"I am always afraid of what my colleagues are thinking when they see me on camera, and I struggle with a constant fear of rejection whenever I'm invited to a FaceTime date," she told Insider.
On the other hand, the pandemic has offered some comfort. "I am dreading going back to the office every day because I won't be able to 'hide' from the world anymore," she said. "I will have to show my face in public again."
Feeling the need to 'show up' on Zoom can skew your priorities and blur boundaries
It's not just about body image. For Connie Bennett, an author in San Diego, turning the camera on is fulfilling in some instances, like during small, interactive "mastermind" group meetings.
But in others, like workshops with hundreds of other attendees, "showing up" isn't true to her goals. And yet, in one such instance, she said she was called out for joining with audio only.
"When I'm on tight deadlines, the last thing I want to do is put makeup on, clean up the piles of paper for my backdrop, make my curly hair look less frizzy, put on colorful clothes that look good on camera, etc.," she told Insider.
Without the camera, Bennett said she's better "able to get the [event's] great content and still stay on my book deadlines."
Set screen time limits, and put a sticky note over your image if you must
If video meetings and events are negatively affecting your mental health, productivity, or skewing your priorities, Szostak recommends setting aside some time each day to be screen-free. Even if you're just watching paint dry, you're at least giving your mind a health-promoting break from self-criticism and your eyes a hiatus from strain.
Better, though, if during that time you can pursue a hobby that takes you out of a self-judgmental loop and into a pursuit that builds self-confidence and identity outside of your appearance.
A practical tip: If you're prone to self-criticizing when seeing your face on Zoom, right-click your image and select "hide self-view." If you're on another platform that doesn't have a similar option, put a sticky note over your face, Neidich suggests. Shrinking your screen, too, can ease the stress of feeling others are in your personal space.
Keep in mind, however, in-the-moment techniques are just a quick fix for what could be a deeper issue that needs a longer-term solution. "This is an invitation to offer grace to yourself and to finally address body image and self-esteem issues that have likely been dealing with for years," Neidich said, "whether you've been aware of it or not."
Meanwhile, give yourself permission to turn off your camera, whether it's because you have a mental health condition or need to let out the dog.
"A part of learning to set boundaries in your life is honoring your discomfort and making adjustments where you need," Neidich said. "So many of us are just trying to get through the day right now, and if turning your camera off on Zoom makes it any easier, go for it."