The increase in websites, TV shows and advertisements containing cosmetic surgery have changed the opinion of the public in regards to notions of ideal beauty standards that cannot be attained through the natural means. Cosmetic surgery does not focus on the correction of pathological disorders but aims at correcting some morphological characteristics that the patients do not accept or are not in tandem with the aesthetic trends of the time (Akhlaghi et al., 2015). Usually, the patients who have the surgery performed on them live a dualism their body image and inner self-image. Whereas some reports indicate that patients who have cosmetic surgery performed on their bodies report an improvement in their self-esteem, some point out that some of the patients develop psychological problems after the surgery. It is because of these divergent opinions that this study seeks to establish the impact of cosmetic surgery particularly on the self-esteem of young adults.
Reportedly, there has been an increase in the number of teenagers and young people in the past decades who choose to have cosmetic surgery. From a report provided by the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS), approximately eleven million surgical and non-surgical cosmetic operations were carried out in the US in 2013 (Von Soest et al., 2013). Also, the number of cosmetic surgeries rose by 6.5 percent between 2012 and 2013. Allegedly, the rate of cosmetic surgeries is increasing rapidly in women than men.
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Perhaps it is vital to understand the meaning of self-esteem as well as the reason why young people seek cosmetic surgery services. Self-esteem typically refers to how much individual’s value or accept for what and whom they are (Maltby & Day, 2011). In other words, people have a different degree of which they are satisfied or dissatisfied with themselves. Some authors have contended that self-esteem reflects the difference between the ideal self and the real self. It is suggested that people with significant distance between the real self and the perfect self will have a negative perception of themselves, which is low esteem, whereas people with a modest gap amid the real and ideal self will have a positive impression of high self-esteem (Khazir et al., 2016). In fact, self-esteem is one of the highest components of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Fulfilling the basic needs during the early developmental stages in life promotes healthy self-esteem levels. When there is an interruption in the completion of a particular stage, individuals may decide to change their level of comfort as well as question their degree of self-esteem (Ferraro, Rossano, & D’Andrea, 2015). Individuals may also choose to attain their level of satisfaction using other methods, one of which may include cosmetic plastic surgery (Abraham & Zuckerman, 2011). People get feelings of self-confidence, strength, worth, and adequacy when they satisfy their self-esteem needs. On the contrary, when the fulfillment of these needs is thwarted, feelings of weakness, inferiority, and helplessness are realized.
Reviewing some of the studies conducted on whether cosmetic plastic surgery is bad for self-esteem is critical. One of the most popular TV shows, Botched, aims to correct any plastic surgery operations on patients that might have gone wrong (Heintz, 2017). The show itself is an indication that the patients do not get contented with the surgery. Some of the operations do not go well as planned. Although the show aims at providing corrective measures to the patients who might have undergone wrong surgery, sometimes not every surgery comes out as desired. For instance, a cosmetic surgeon known as Paul was sued in 2016 by a patient after it turned out that the rhinoplasty (nose job) operation made him unable to blink. Despite a majority of the patients who are invited to the show being victims of previous undesirable surgical outcomes, still a significant portion of them is those that do not like their new appearance. It is revealed that some of the patients initially would want to have cosmetic surgery so that they assume a certain appearance but once they acquire such an appearance, they do not get peace of mind. As a result, some of them appear on the show to have their original appearance reinstated. Such an action makes individuals doubt whether, patients, especially young adults become proud of their new image.
In her article, Telling the Truth about Reconstruction after Breast Cancer , Diane Mapes narrates her experience of going through breast surgery and reconstruction. Mapes writes that many people tell her that she looked better aesthetically; that her breasts were certainly higher than they appeared before the surgery (Mapes, 2018). Mapes argues that although patients who go through successful cosmetic surgery may appear to the public as beautiful, they go through a lot of psychological instability. When Mapes walked into the plastic surgeon’s office, she saw posters of perfect-looking successful breast surgeries. Although the posters showed images of seemingly satisfied patients, Mapes did not get the same experience after the process. She narrates that she has feelings of numbness immediately above her groin area to the region between her breasts. Mapes revelation also raises doubts whether the patients who have the surgery performed on them are ever satisfied.
Dr. Neil Sadick, a dermatologist by profession, reveals that patients often consult his services so that they have a youthful appearance. He points out that in the past, cosmetic surgery was usually carried out on the infants, but currently, the number of adolescents and young adults in need of the surgery has soared. Although Sadick has been in the cosmetic industry for a long time, cautions that skin aging especially faces aging is a combination of many factors such as anatomic, chronologic, genetic and environmental (Sadick et al., 2011). Sadick brings out these factors because he feels that skin surgery has turned out into something that was previously not intended. Seemingly, Sadick is not very comfortable attending to young adults who would want to have their facial appearance changed. His opinion is perhaps a representation of several other cosmetic surgeons who think that it is not prudent for young adults to go through facial surgery so that they assume another appearance. If some of the cosmetic surgeons are opposed to cosmetic surgery particularly to individuals who do not have any deformation, then it means that the process is not entirely okay. It is even ironical that a majority of the cosmetic surgeons have not gone through the process themselves and perhaps would never go through it. They only conduct the operation because it is the requirement of their profession. If the process would not have any self-esteem issues, then the cosmetic surgeons themselves would go through the process to demonstrate to the patients that it does not have any implications.
In a study dubbed Adolescent girls’ views on cosmetic surgery , Ashikali, Dittmar, and Ayers set to investigate the opinions of young people on cosmetic surgery. The participants in the study were twenty-seven girls attending a higher education college in the UK (Ashikali, Dittmar & Ayers, 2016). The survey was conducted after being approved by the University Research Ethics Board as well as the college students. None of the students was compelled to participate in the study; instead, the students signed up voluntarily. During the investigation of the girls, four themes were established which included, the dissatisfaction with their appearance, the acceptability of cosmetic surgery, individual feelings about the surgery and cosmetic surgery in the media.
On the first theme about the dissatisfaction of appearance, it was realized that many girls do not appreciate their natural appearance. The dissatisfaction was contributed mainly by pressure from media, peers, and the society to have an appealing image. However, the most prominent source of pressure was the media. Although most of the girls were aware of misrepresentation in the media, they found it difficult to resist the negative influences. On the acceptance of cosmetic surgery, the responses of the participants varied with many saying that they would accept the surgery depending on what type it was. However, many girls said that at their age, they would not consider going through the process as they were relatively not developed. On feelings of undergoing through the process, a majority of the girls said that they would consider the risks associated with the process before giving their consent. Lastly, a majority of the respondents said they were aware of cosmetic surgery presentation in various media outlets. The girls said that they came across adverts in newspapers, magazines, the internet, as well as several TV stations. From this study, it is evident that despite young adults being exposed to cosmetic surgery adverts, they still have reservations about the process.
In conclusion, it would be accurate to point out that a majority of people still do not view cosmetic surgery as the solution to the attainment of self-esteem. From the professionals who conduct the procedure to some people who have gone through the process, cosmetic surgery sometimes creates psychological issues. Although there are genuine cases of individuals who have deformations that require corrective action, normal people whose main aspiration to go through the process is to assume a different appearance most of the time do not achieve the high self-esteem they seek. Many young adults especially girls do not like their appearance but are aware that self-esteem cannot be sought through cosmetic surgery.
References
Abraham, A., & Zuckerman, D. (2011). Adolescents, celebrity worship, and cosmetic surgery. Journal of Adolescent Health , 49 (5), 453-454.
Akhlaghi, F., Zadehmohammad, A., Ahmadabadi, Z., Mohammad, G. M., & Motamedi, H. K. (2015). Effect of Cosmetic Surgery on Self-Concept and Self-Esteem. International Journal of Emergency Mental Health and Human Resilience , 17 (3), 647-651.
Ashikali, E. M., Dittmar, H., & Ayers, S. (2016). Adolescent girls’ views on cosmetic surgery: a focus group study. Journal of health psychology , 21 (1), 112-121.
Ferraro, G. A., Rossano, F., & D’Andrea, F. (2015). Self-perception and self-esteem of patients seeking cosmetic surgery. Aesthetic plastic surgery , 29 (3), 184-189.
Heintz, M. (2017). Do the Patients on 'Botched' Have to Pay for Surgery? Find Out! In Touch Weekly . Retrieved 11 March 2018, from http://www.intouchweekly.com/posts/do-the-patients-on-botched-have-to-pay-for-surgery-136946
Khazir, Z., Dehdari, T., Majdabad, M. M., & Tehrani, S. P. (2016). Psychological Aspects of Cosmetic Surgery among Females: A Media Literacy Training Intervention. Global journal of health science , 8 (2), 35.
Maltby, J., & Day, L. (2011). Celebrity worship and incidence of elective cosmetic surgery: Evidence of a link among young adults. Journal of Adolescent Health , 49 (5), 483-489.
Mapes, D. (2018). Wherewegonow.com . Retrieved 11 March 2018, from http://www.wherewegonow.com/category/tags/diane-mapes
Sadick, N. S., Carniol, P. J., Roy, D., & Wiest, L. (Eds.). (2011). Illustrated Manual of Injectable Fillers: A Technical Guide to the Volumetric Approach to Whole Body Rejuvenation . CRC Press.
Von Soest, T., Kvalem, I. L., Roald, H. E., & Skolleborg, K. C. (2013). The effects of cosmetic surgery on body image, self-esteem, and psychological problems. Journal of plastic, reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgery , 62 (10), 1238-1244.
