Professional modeling is an exciting and rewarding career for the few who qualify for it, but it is not without its downsides. The world of professional modeling is fraught with sky high expectations, hard work and focus. The pressure can become so great on professional models that they end up experimenting with addictive tendencies in an attempt to cope with the hardships of their profession. Sometimes professional models steer away from substance abuse problems to keep their appearance at its peak, but instead will turn toward process addictions that involve obsessively completing a certain set of actions. Professional model behavior addictions may include excessive exercising, grooming or shopping.
If a model chooses to take up exercising to deal with stress, but they do not have any other mental health coping mechanisms, they are in danger of developing an exercising addiction. This may seem counter-intuitive, but exercise addictions are legitimate, documented addictions. They occur when a person exercises so obsessively that it has a negative impact on their life. If they make no time for personal relationships or other hobbies and their body fat level is so low that they are unhealthy, they are losing themselves to an exercise addiction.
Grooming addictions occur when a person’s grooming rituals become obsessive and neurotic, for example when someone spends a ridiculous amount of time brushing their hair or hours at a time putting on make up. Grooming addictions are frequently the result of stress. If a person feels out of control in an area of their life, they may begin to groom obsessively because it is something they can control entirely. This restores their sense of power, but when it begins to get in the way of other life responsibilities, it has gone too far.
And lastly, professional models are also prone to shopping addictions. Enthusiasm for fashion shopping in professional models is to be expected, as it is tied to their careers. But when a professional model is spending beyond their means on shopping and their personal space is completely taken up by all the possessions they are buying, it is possible that they need an intervention.