Are Selfies The New Norm For Plastic Surgery?

On almost any day of the week, people will take a selfie at some point. The selfie has become a popular way for people to show others where they are and how they look at any given time during the day. The selfie has become so popular that it is beginning to cross over to the medical world as well. In fact, many plastic surgeons say that the selfie has become business as usual for patients.

Instead of professional photos of models or celebrities they want to look like, a growing number of patients are now showing doctors photos on their phones during scheduled consultation appointments. They are showing the surgeons selfies they took at some point to highlight the areas they want to improve on their bodies. They are also starting to show selfies that models or celebrities take as examples of people they want to look like, as well as how they want to appear, to others in the future.

Why is there an increase in the use of selfies as examples of desired cosmetic surgery results? Many patients schedule a consultation appointment and tell their doctor they hate the way they look in social media photos and want to improve their appearance. It’s not just their facial appearance they want to improve with cosmetic surgery. Patients also tend to dislike the way their whole body appears in photos on social media. In order to improve their appearance, they seek out breast augmentation, butt lifts, liposuction and other cosmetic surgery procedures as a way to become happier with their look in real life as well as their appearance on social media.

In recent years, some doctors have reported that looking good in pictures on social media helps to improve the self-esteem of many patients, However, doctors say that caution needs to be used before moving forward with any procedures because some patients can become addicted to plastic surgery as a way to improve their online appearance. Any patients suffering from issues such as body dysmorphic disorder need to be diagnosed and treated for body image issues before having any kind of cosmetic surgery. While it’s important for patients to feel good about their appearance as they go about their daily lives, it’s not worth making a change at the expense of their health or their wallet. People who become addicted to plastic surgery not only make big changes in their appearance but they also make a big change in their bank account trying to pay for all of their procedures.

- MA