The only difference about these magazines are the names and the person on the cover. Many people don’t know magazine companies spend hours making their cover person look “perfect.” Every magazine cover is Photoshopped, making the celebrity look “prefect.” Many people will go into different doctor’s offices to a consultant about plastic surgery. Some will bring a cover of a magazine or pictures of their favorite celebrity to show the doctor what kind of work they want done.
I remember when I was in high school, MTV had a show called, “I Want a Famous Face.” This show would follow regular people who wanted to look like celebrities. Everyone on the show would get some type of plastic surgery done. At the end of the show, MTV would show a picture of the celebrity the person wanted to look like, then the picture after the surgery. None of the people in any of the episodes ever looked like the celebrity they wanted to be.
According to American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, nearly 10 million Americans had gotten plastic surgery in 2009. Many people look at plastic surgery as a quick fix, a way to change their body in a month, but they fail to realize that getting plastic surgery is putting their lives at risk. Many things can go wrong during surgery: blood clots, nerve damage, brain damage, abnormal heart rhythm—even death.
With every cable network pitching out new shows, talking about what outside appearances should look like, this can cause people to have low self-esteem. One example of plastic surgery gone wrong was Heidi Montag from the popular MTV reality show “The Hills.” Looking at “The Hills” DVD cover from a couple years ago, you can hardly recognize her now. She once was the girl next door; now she looks like a blow-up doll. During her last surgery, she had 10 procedures done from breast augmentation and brow lifts to having her ears pinned. She was happy to talk about her 10-hour surgery to every popular magazine and news station. Yet every time I see a photo of Heidi, I can’t help but feel sorry for her. She let the media and Hollywood get to her mind. She thought she needed to change everything about herself to be accepted.
I remember joking with some of my friends about getting plastic surgery. I would always say, “My insurance will pay for it.” But I would never get any work done on myself for a couple reasons: One I don’t like to be in any type of pain. I have heard many stories from people who have had some work done. Second—the price. According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, most procedures will cost between $5,550 and $16,000. I am a recent college graduate; I will not be spending that type of money. Also, it may take a couple months to heal from surgery. My final reason: I may come out looking bad. Have you ever seen bad plastic surgery photos? No thanks.
Some people are in such a rush to get work done that they forget to do research about the plastic surgery they want and research their doctor. Also, you need to make sure your doctor is board certified. Board certifications mean your doctor has taken extra steps in their field to make sure they are an expert in their fields of medicine.
We all have our own flaws that we love and hate. We need to appreciate how we look. We can’t let the media or any TV show telling us how we should look.
Photo by GMO Photo Editor Billy Montgomery
