The Journey Towards Perfection

Newsweek General Editor Claudia Kalb is the author of this week’s cover story “Our Quest to be perfect”, an interesting piece where she talks about the irrelevance of age when it comes to looking beautiful.

That is a very true sentiment in today’s times. Money and the wrinkles are not the mandatory requirements for you to go under the surgeon’s knife for beauty-related surgery today. New techniques are luring more and younger patients, and doctors are eager to help them out. And that is where you can fall if you are not careful enough.

A classical case in point is that of 25-year old, Holly Lagante from suburban Chicago. Lagante spent $2,500 for an eye lift. It was a big deal for her, as she ended up almost exhausting her credit card. However, the results made her happy and that was all there was to it.

Post-procedure, Lagante was brighter eyed, less droopy. Two years later, she went for liposuction on her thighs so she could end up with a body like Heather Locklear. Later on, she followed that up with a procedure for varicose-veindefine removal and a forehead peel.

Last year Lagante had $7,000 left to pay off in a health- food store, and filed for bankruptcy. She, however, has no regrets about it all. She is apparently happier and more self-confident and says, “Its life changing.”

There is no statute of limitations on age today when we talk of cosmetic surgery – people of all age groups and sex quest for perfection. This is what Dr. John Tebetts, a Dallas plastic surgeon, “The person we see today is your sister, your next door neighbor, the lady in the grocery store.”

The range of treatments available also has a major role to play. Another key factor is the availability of less-invasive procedures than earlier thanks to the advancements in technology. Another factor is the easy access to money to fund these procedures.

Consider the case of Erica Barrow, 24-year old Chicago waitress. Barrow took a loan from a cosmetic loan company, Unicorn Financial, to fund the down payment, and then returned it all in easy $178 a month installments.

Physicians have also resorted to advertising in order to increase their business. The number of people opting for cosmetic procedures has jumped up to a whopping one million last year. Cosmetic surgery has become routine as annual check up, doctors say.

The trend is not limited just to women; more and more men are also taking pains to look good. Last year 99,000 men signed up for liposuction, eyelid surgery, and face lifts, among other procedures.

“Nine years ago I’d see fewer than five (men) in a year. Now I see five in a month,” says Dr Christina Keusch, a plastic surgeon in Boca Raton, Florida.

However, though it all sounds exciting, painless, and fantastic, it is not like there is no downside to it. There is a downside to everything in life, and the same is true about cosmetic surgery as well.

There are many risk involved in some surgeries, including allergic reactions and, in extreme cases, some form of permanent dysfunction. Laser methods may cause oozing and crusts. Liposuction, one of the most popular procedures, may also turn out risky if patients lose too much fluid.

Another drawback in these procedures is that they are usually performed in the doctor’s chamber rather than in a hospital, something which magnifies the risk. It is highly possible that the doctor’s chamber may not have the life-saving equipment you find so commonly in hospitals, something that could be the difference between life and death, literally.