Facelift, rhinoplasty, tummy tuck, hair transplant, Brazilian butt lift, lip augmentation, breast reduction, Botox injection, and laser skin treatment–These are among the cosmetic plastic surgery procedures that have gained exponential popularity in the past few years. In conjunction with the fast-coming tide of procedure popularity, celebrities such as Dolly Parton, Chrissy Teigen, Simon Cowell, and, of course, the Kardashian-Jenners, have opened a chapter of newfound honesty, openly discussing their surgeries and injections with the public. 

Yet, even as 15.6 million cosmetic procedures were completed in the United States in 2020, a haze of discomfort surrounds the topic of plastic surgery. Outwardly, we may shrug our shoulders with disinterest and next-level “wokeness” upon hearing that someone had “work done,” but on the inside, many of us still cringe. We wonder, we speculate, and we judge. 

However, undergoing cosmetic surgery does not deserve its reputation.

The stigma surrounding cosmetic surgery emerges from the narrative that those who choose to go under the knife (or the needle) are pressured into doing so by outside voices, whether that be friends, family, or societal standards. However, more often than not, the strongest voice is one’s own. Most of the time, a person decides upon a procedure for their own happiness and wellbeing.

The situation is not unlike the student who invests in tutoring and SAT cram school in order to boost their academic credentials, or the adult who hires a personal trainer in their pursuit of a toned abdomen and sculpted glutes, or the beauty influencer who spends hundreds of dollars on creams, powders, and brushes.

Such scenarios begin with an individual who is unsatisfied with their current lot in life and takes action to remedy it, as is their right. So why should plastic surgery be any different?

Inevitably, a discussion of plastic surgery warrants an analysis of the value of one’s physical appearance. We commonly hear that “beauty is only skin deep”, that our worth cannot be solely defined by our appearance, and that is true. A person’s character should never be determined in a one-dimensional manner, whether the basis be looks, smarts, or achievements. 

But it’s hard to deny that how we think we look to others is a part of who we are. How we present ourselves matters, so is it terribly wrong that someone should want to develop that aspect to the best of their ability? 

Critics cry out that cosmetic surgery teaches people to fix their dissatisfactory elements rather than to love their imperfections as they are. And truly, indulging such insecurities can lead to deeply unhealthy symptoms, such as body dysmorphia and an addiction to plastic surgery. 

However, approaching anything with the dangerous and obsessive mindset that some approach plastic surgery would create negative results. Hyper-fixating on one’s appearance in the context of working out, or one’s grades in an academic context, is just as detrimental. Yet we can differentiate those who approach exercise and studying with a healthier perspective from those who obsess and spiral. Should the same not be done with plastic surgery?

As for the “love yourself as you are” mantra, it is fully possible for a person to wholly love themselves without liking every single aspect of who they are. In fact, it’s unreasonable that everyone should be satisfied with everything about themselves—each fingernail, each pore, each strand of hair.

Both on the inside and out, there are traits that each of us adores and others that we dislike but eventually learn to live with. However, if a person has the opportunity and the means to change that one thing they dislike and they do –not to please anyone else or cover up deeper insecurities that permeate their whole being but simply for their own happiness–there is no shame in that. 

We all have insecurities. If making my nose a bit smaller or my hairline more defined makes me genuinely happy, what right does anyone have to demean me?