Body Image Concern Test — Free 10-Question Self-Check

The Soundary Body Image Concern Check (SBIC) looks at your thoughts, feelings and behaviors about your appearance and body over the past 4 weeks in 10 questions. It asks about behaviors that look like opposites — repeatedly checking your reflection in mirrors or windows, and, on the other hand, avoiding mirrors or photos because facing a part you dislike is painful — and also whether you spend far longer than needed getting ready to go out.

It goes on to ask about feeling that people are staring at or silently judging a particular part of your appearance, how much your mood and confidence swing with how you look that day, comparing yourself with others or with images on social media, trying to hide disliked areas with clothes, hair, makeup or posture, repeatedly seeking reassurance such as “Do I look okay?”, putting off or avoiding gatherings, classes or presentations because of your looks, and getting stuck for a long time on ways to change your appearance, such as procedures, cosmetic surgery or photo-editing apps. Each item has four answers, from “Not at all” to “Almost always”, and it takes about 2 minutes.

In this check, both looking in the mirror again and again and avoiding it altogether add to your score. They point in opposite directions, but both are signs that appearance worries are steering your behavior. Checking or hiding can seem to ease the anxiety for a moment, but when these behaviors repeat, the worry tends to grow over time. So when you look at your result, it helps to notice not just the total but the main ways you respond to appearance worries.

Scores are also shaped by what is going on around you. In a week of long social media scrolling, around events with lots of photos, or in periods when you often stand in front of new people, like a new school year or a new job, your score may come out higher than usual. Caring about how you look is natural in itself. This score does not rate your appearance; it measures how much room thoughts about your appearance are taking up in your daily life and self-esteem.

SBIC is not a translation of a standardized questionnaire; it is a set of 10 items developed by Soundary. Because it has not yet been clinically validated, its bands are provisional cut-offs based on the number of items and response frequency. Its distinctive feature is that it focuses on how you perceive and treat your appearance, not on how much you eat or on weight-control behavior. The result is a screening reference, not a diagnosis, and a high score does not in itself mean that you have any particular condition.

Appearance concern can shift little by little with practice. Noticing the moments when you check the mirror or compare yourself with others, pausing, and then shifting your attention to what your body does for you can help. After living that way for a while, retake the check and compare it with your previous result. If working on it alone feels like too much, exploring it together with a counselor is also a good option.