There is nothing wrong with the motivations of those who seek out plastic/cosmetic surgery to improve their appearance and/or quality of life.
(Although, the rest of society should not use the existence of that option as an excuse to continue in active discrimination and mistreatment of those they deem unattractive or maimed…sometimes continuing on long after any surgical or cosmetic interventions have been attempted.)
The problem is not the desire to alter the physical self that we had absolutely no say or choice in.
Those who conflate detesting the face or body that belongs to your own self with "hating one's self" are mistaken, the exterior flesh can be very distant from who we are (though it does have an outstanding impact on our lives), especially when far from any ideal, as in those less fortunate cases it is almost impossible to incorporate said exterior into your identity without a massive amount of turbulence and distress.
It makes perfect sense to want to provide ourselves with the best skin to live in, for both the purpose of personal identity/expression of self and the purpose of thriving in a superficial world where your appearance is how you're primarily perceived, what your voice and thoughts are filtered through…which informs how others think of you, the responses you are met with and the opportunities you are offered.
The problem is (besides the social pressures) that the options available (which are not even available to everyone) have not progressed to the point where they are without insane amounts of risk.
Not just in the procedure itself, but in the hands of whoever is performing it, in the tireless efforts to afford it leading up to the day, and in the aftermath.
Cosmetic surgery is nowhere near the level it needs to be, don't let Instagram 'before and afters' fool you (they usually only portray attractive subjects to begin with, which favorably recasts the perception of any result, even if poor, not to mention the deception in photoshop/lighting/angles/etc).
It has a long way to go and is only currently "worth it" for a select amount of people.
*Before I continue, I would like to mention that "plastic" and "cosmetic" are often used interchangeably when this topic comes up, however some like to make the distinction between "plastic" and "cosmetic" in that "plastic" more commonly refers to surgeons who work on the frontline at hospitals, their patients being those suffering an inherent disfigurement or accident (like burns, vehicle collision, etc)…there are still issues with their training and expertise (like how they are less inclined to worry about mastering the art of aesthetics and fail to realize how that will negatively affect their patient) but the ones I mainly intend to speak about are "cosmetic" surgeons (or other staff that performs cosmetic procedures privately) who I may also refer to as plastic surgeons, since it's the more popular phrase.
..There are also other categories like oral/maxillofacial surgeons which occupy a gray area where both improved aesthetics and functionality can be objectives.
To outline some common issues (which may vary depending on location)..
First, you have the surgeons and the providers who are not held to any sort of consistent or regimented standard.
Their arbitrary certificates can be faked, and when they're not, the process of obtaining the certificates requires very little to nothing in the way of training to earn them.
There is no hierarchy of supervision for these people like what you witness in other proper fields of medicine/surgery.
The most you will see are conferences or "fellowships" where one cosmetic surgeon "teaches" the younger crowd, and even those are dicey (like some "instructor" allowing their fellows to work on their patients like guinea pigs, without established consent).
I think many would be shocked if they learned just how easy it is to label yourself as a plastic/cosmetic surgeon.
(Even the ones touted as "top surgeons" with decades of experience can market themselves in a misleading manner. They are also still more than capable of making mistakes and those sorts of mistakes are not the type that most bearing them are able to live with.
Looking unfortunate beforehand will NOT weaken the blow of a poorly done, ill-conceived procedure nor a full-blown botch.)
If you were to follow an individual from their time at college/university all the way to when they institute their own practices and call themselves a cosmetic surgeon (or similar), you would probably suffer a stroke at the realization of just how little is required of them to meet that end goal…and immediately start working on clients' faces and bodies.
It is disturbing, to say the least.
I am not just talking about the more well-known outrage about dentists performing nose jobs and randos injecting people in their basements, I'm including those who seem, for all intents and purposes, to be the real deal.
The theoretical basis of some procedures, the understanding of possible fallouts and the research as a whole is not where it needs to be, so imagine those practicing basically having a "skim sesh" of what's already lacking, and then taking that inadequate & green knowledge into the operating room..scary.
Then you have the patients, and their rights..or lack thereof.
When you embark on the journey of having an "elective" procedure you are stepping into very dangerous territory (which you may never get out of.. cycle of revisions, fixing what was ruined and what was an issue in the first place) where those in power do not give a genuine damn about your well-being or your emotional state, and there is no higher authority that will hold them responsible if they fail you, despite having funded the procedure(s) out of pocket and being presented with certain promises.
Unless you have appendages fall off from necrosis or die in the OR,
the surgeons will not be held responsible in any sort of meaningful way.
If you're not one of the lucky ones who "gets in and gets out" with a stellar bang for their buck (that also looks natural) then you will have to deal with the typical dismissive nature of doctors (in general, this extends outside of PS), the incessant gaslighting and the fact that the mental health field has its hands in every pot, including the world of cosmetic surgery.
So now, on top of their shaky credentials and unwarranted protections/high ground, surgeons have a sort of extra "get out of jail free' card/safety net if you complain about an unsatisfactory or unacceptable result.
They will simply label you as mentally ill and incapable of appreciating reality.
(You WILL be dismissed and have the rug pulled out from under you. Even the office staff is complicit is these scenarios.)
The surgeons will also have the benefit of their practice being a societal taboo (so victims are terrified to speak out) and the sister irony in the fact that, despite the prevalence of certain constructs and deep-rooted human shallowness, having an appearance related issue (and giving a damn) is remarkably still not something that illicits much compassion or call to action from others who do not have to inhabit the face or body of the person suffering.
There is no support to be had, even from family or friends in most cases. Just unhelpful and dishonest platitudes.
(Even plastic surgery-centric support forums are rife with pretenders that work for the surgeons and all manner of misinformation.)
It doesn't matter if you have a legitimate concern or not, finding someone who will acknowledge that concern and do so in kind, is grossly rare.
None of it makes much sense, but it's the way things have been for awhile now, especially for those who are much lower on the scale of physical attractiveness.
In a further demonstration of the utter injustice and strangeness, it's actually the more attractive victims of poor cosmetic surgery (or complaints about looks at all) who receive any sympathy for their woes or willingness from revisionist surgeons to appropriately save their "canvas".
Really, the best case scenario is to be so blessed as to never require serious cosmetic interventions whatsoever.
To be naturally attractive enough to fare well is a privilege that some can only dream of, and which cosmetic surgery is still scrambling to mimic.
Certain alterations are easy, accessible, socially acceptable and low-risk.
Others..not so much.
I've only scratched the surface (as per usual) and there will be plenty left to say after I'm finished but some other worrying points to consider are things like:
-The consultations being too short and cold to give the prospective client/patient a good idea of what they're getting into nor the surgeon a good idea of what the patient actually wants & the fact that the consultation usually has an exorbitant cost attached to it which tends to dissuade people from going for second or third opinions (imo ALWAYS necessary).
-The omissions and euphemistic language of some surgeons which obfuscates possible trade-offs, side effects, and what their surgical techniques actually entail.
Sometimes a person can get one thing done and it ends up negatively affecting (or highlighting) another feature in close proximity, so then they go on to alter that as well..and so on and so forth, filling the pockets of PS providers handsomely for eternity while having their body hacked to death.
-Digital morphs giving a surreal or unrealistic impression of what the result will look like.
-Popular demand and poor time management leading to even more inconsistencies in quality of work.
-Because of the lack of standards and regulations in place, there are all sorts of sordid manipulations and patient abuse that would never be permitted to become as prevalent in other fields. It's basically an underworld with its own rules and perverse sense of ethics (you do not want to get stuck in it).
-Some procedures and their results just don't stand the test of time, you could be left with something that slowly (or rapidly) declines soon after the bandages are off (so to speak).
-Patient and Surgeon miscommunication, which will never end well in cosmetic cases...although this brings me to another point..the failure of the surgeons to educate their patients or to educate themselves on what would be the most objectively beneficial course of action/look for every unique individual (cookie cutter techniques will leave many looking uncanny and worse off).
I mean, it never ends.
The caveats.
I'm just too exhausted to go on.
But none of this to say I am against the pursuit of cosmetic alterations (including those for the trans community..who also have to endure many of the problems I wrote above).
Anyone who is familiar with me on this site knows that or could easily infer that I am not against it.
I don't want anyone to use these points as a way to invalidate the aforementioned pursuit.
I just wish it was truly the panacea for appearance related detriments that it too often purports itself to be, since the fact that it is not doesn't leave much room for solutions when it comes to those suffering in a bona fide prison of flesh.
