Plastic Surgery

[VoxClamantis]

I was thinking about plastic surgery (what woman doesn't at least think about it?) and wondered how many women out there reading this would go for it if money were no object -- and what procedures, if any, would they have done? Do you think getting plastic surgery for non-corrective reasons (e.g., not because one has been in a fire and is badly disfigured, not because one has a cleft palate, etc.) is immoral? If not, is there a point at which it does become immoral?

Anyone remember that TV show "The Swan"? It was quite fascinating -- and horrific. I am glad it is off the air since I believe it damages women -- but had to watch when it was on. If you don't know the premise of the show, women were chosen to undergo EXTREME makeovers -- not just diet, exercise, make-up jobs, and getting their hair did, but radical surgeries on numerous parts of their bodies, and serious dental work. One woman might have a face lift, liposuction on the belly and thighs, breast enlargement and lift, teeth re-positioning and whitening, chin implants, dermabrasion, laser eye surgery -- whatever. And -- what made the show so compelling -- the women were not allowed to look in a mirror for the entire time it took to go through the procedures. At the end of all the surgeries and work-outs, they were dressed up and brought before a covered mirror, in front of cameras through which millions would see. And then the mirror was uncovered. Serious drama.
 
Below are before and after pictures from the show (going from left to right -- that is, the pic on the left is a before pic of one woman, and the picture to its right is the after pic of the same woman)... Some of the after pix are of that moment when the women see themselves for the first time after all the "work" they had done. Scary and freaky and fascinating, non?

[Spooky7272]

Yeah, I'd probably go for a little nip and tuck when I got older. What procedures I'd get would depend on a lot of things such as pain (!), complications, recovery, et cetera. I don't see it as sinful anymore than make-up is sinful...but then there are women like this:

[siobhan]

 I, too, was sucked into watching "The Swan" and was shocked at the length, pain, and extreme the contestants went to to make them look 'pretty'. To be completly honest after looking at the before pictures I think the women were beautiful and simple women that you see in every day life. Sure many had been teased about their looks, while others even had severe depression and serious self-esteem issues, but I thought why did they have to go to the extreme? Why not just a new haricut and some make-up? In comparing the pictures, many of the women are not even recongnizable as themselves, they look like somebody else. And that was scary. They all looked the same to me with the huge boobs, the bleach blond hair and the pound-and-a-half of make-up, not to mention all the 'less noticeable' changes. Is this what people really find attractive? The media has drastically changed the view as 'beauty as we all know, and the new standard is simply not realistic. Spending time, energy, and of course money to go to the gym twice a day, getting your nails done every week, a day at the spa, getting that 'Jennifer Anniston' haircut and don't forget the $70 highlights to go along. And where are the children? Oh, that's right they are at daycare and have been for the last 17 hours. And when the contestants return to reality after there stay at the mansion, are they expected to keep this up every day? I am sure many are sucked back into the plastic surgery world due to their boob leaking silicone, or a droopy thigh. Don't get me wrong,I don't think there is anything wrong with 'keeping up and having a neat and attractive appearance, but society is getting out of hand.  To answer Vox's question, I do not think plastic surgery is immoral in itself but can lead to an obsessive view, I am sure there are women who have been mercilessly teased or tortured growing up because of there huge nose or their ears that stuck out, and I wouldn't call it a sin that they had it 'fixed'. The problem is that this leads to a dangerous mentality. "Well, if it was that easy to get this fixed, maybe I could lift this and enlarge these." I think we should be happy and humble about what God gave us. We women  can be overly critical and harsh on ourselves especially when it comes to our appearance. Everyone can say I have a big nose or my eyes are too big, etc., but God made us this way, is there something wrong with it? Did he make a mistake? No, he made me 'me'. And if I walk down the street I am not going to look like every model out of "Cosmo" or I won't be mistaken for Anna Nicole Smith, God rest her soul. Anyway, just my thoughts and am looking forward to everyone else's.

[siobhan]

 I thought I would share this wonderful music video  of India Arie- She summed up my thoughts. I love the part with the four women all done up walking down the street lol  Enjoy!

[PanisAngelicus]

they look beautiful, stunning, but they all fit a mold.  Maybe it's just me, but I'm anti mold.  Having a bent nose, scar, big ears, or what have you is part of what makes your looks seperate, what makes them unique. 
I mean, don't get me wrong, a lot of people that do it have major issues that do need to be addressed.  but for someone who already is attractive, I dunno.
I'm being annoyingly particular, I'm sorry :-P, I just *hate* the stigma that everyone should look the same and that the same equals out to perfection.  --Had to vent that.

The shows are pretty addicting and it's cool to see how their lives change when they had it pretty rough up to the show, like the lady who got kicked in the face by a donkey and she could hardly stand herself and hadn't dated a guy since that happened.  That kinda stuff is just relaly cool that they can do something about it for them

[DominusTecum]

This is disgusting. Most of them looked pretty good prior to their little "makeovers," or if they didn't, they'd be vastly improved with a little judicious makeup, a new outfit, and different hairstyle. On the other hand, after their treatment, they all look extremely identical, and very fake and shallow. Very sad. I feel sorry for these poor ladies.

[aquinas138]

The main problem I see with plastic surgery (of the purely cosmetic variety) is that it very easily inflates vanity.  There is a line between proper self-esteem and vanity, and I think you must be honest about the reasons you would pursue plastic surgery to determine whether it is a problem or not.  In my opinion, if it is not to correct surgical scars, a genuine defect or the like, then it is probably a vain thing to do.

[Tinuviel]

I'm with DominusTecum on this one... Most of them looked allright before. They could have changed their hair, clothes etc. That wouldn't have been a big deal. But I think most of them had beautiful faces anyway.

After, they're all orange. I see this with girls at school all the time. Everything is 'perfect'-- the hair, the nails, the makeup, the tan... The generally tendency is a very dark tanning-bed tan, bleached hair, lip gloss, and LOTS of black eyeliner and mascara. Which I guess is okay, it's just that I think a lot of girls would look a million times better and more accessible if they let themselves look a little more natural. At least ditch the intense fake tanning. We're in the northern latitudes after all.....

[Deidre]

Most of them looked allright before.

Ditto. They looked so much more natural before, not to mention unique.

[Marty]

Cleavage works wonders....