I've only been on progressive u for a couple of days and I've already read at least two blog entries on how terrible plastic surgery is. People complain that everyone comes out looking the same, that they lose their identity or that people expect their self-esteem to go up when it probably won't. I'd like to shake things up a bit and put in a good word for plastic surgery.
First of all, many people's self esteem will go up after surgery. Much in the same way that you feel great about yourself after showing off a new shirt you love, plastic surgery can help a person project an image to the outside world he or she is happy with.
People worry that those who want surgery suffer from such low self-esteem that a single change in their body wont help them. However, it's one thing to recognize that your nose is too big, or your breasts too small and to legitimately feel that a change would make you less self conscious. It's an entirely different thing to have a low self-esteem, in which case, no matter how many changes you make to your body, you'll never feel good about yourself.
Another thing to keep in mind is that plastic surgery is not all that different from losing weight through exercise and dieting. What I mean is that both cases inolve people searching for a better physical image. However, when someone loses weight, no one fears that the person may have lost part of what makes them 'them'. I think that, when it comes to surgery, people forget that, though someone's outer image has changed, they are still the same person inside.
I think, in general, it makes more sense to criticize those who jump into surgery without checking their own motivations or without properly checking out their surgeon, (and nasty surgeons who take advantage of their patients for that matter), rather than criticizing plastic surgery per-say.
So what am I saying, when done right, plastic surgery is not as horrifying as most people make it out to be.
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yes, i agree
I can give comment on this as a plastic surgery recipient. I am against parents allowing their teens even young adults having surgery (for vanity reasons instead of obvious disfigurement). I don't say that just because I had to wait till I was older. I always hated my nose, among other things. But most teens/young adults hate a lot about themselves. As they grow and mature and the people surrounding them mature they realize they really aren't that bad. But when I turned 30 I was still so self-conscience about my nose. When I pull up to a stoplight and feel the need to hide my profile from the car sitting next to me, there's a problem. And it wasn't that my nose was big, I just didn't like how it was shaped. I finally did have surgery to fix it (mixed in with 2 other procedures that had to be done on my nose due to sinuses). I admit I thought for sure my self-confidence would sky rocket. 3 years later I'll tell you, it didn't help myself confidence. However, not to have the need to hide my face at a stoplight is amazing. To pull up next to someone and feel relaxed and not feel like they are going to stare at my nose is something that liberates you in a way you cant imagine. Chances are those people would have never noticed my old nose, but as long as it was in my head that they were I was miserable. For once I am not. That is worth the surgery. And for the people who do know me in real life and feel like my nose wasn't bad before and they don't see a difference, it doesn't matter. I know its different and I know I feel better.
I'm glad you took your time and that you feel better because of it. An aunt from my mother's side had plastic surgery and her self-esteem did go up. My mom says it looked and felt as if a weight had been lifted off her.
I had a breast augmentation when I was 18. The surgery was a birthday gift from my mom. I wanted to have them done because they were so small and I wanted to look proportional, not like a playboy model. I only went up one cup size, but I feel that my body looks more even now. I am now 22 and I know that I made the right decision when I had the surgery. I've never regreted it and I'm very happy with the results. That said, I think that people should definitely wait until they are done growing and developing before having surgery. 16 year olds should not be having plastic surgery. You are right in saying that people with severely low self esteem should not have cosmetic surgery because it won't help. They need to have therapy before making a decision like that. I also think that plastic surgery can be taken way too far. But I don't see anything wrong with correcting things that you are not happy with to a point.