Models who show off their ultra-slim figures on the catwalks of Fashion Weeks, the war waged by cosmetics manufacturers and their miracle products, the bikini manoeuvres joyously recommenced every year by the media, and so on. In a society where looks are more important than personality, it’s clear that cosmetic surgery still has a great future, to the point where a new concept has emerged in recent years – cosmetic tourism. After all, there’s nothing really surprising about this new trend. Supply always appears when there’s a demand. So what is this demand? Who has cosmetic surgery? And why? Is it possible to get hooked on aesthetic surgery and have a perfect body? Happiness created with a scalpel? Let’s get a close-up on the thrill of metamorphosis.

Cosmetic surgery – for whom, and why?

The media exposure that celebrities receive forces them to follow the cosmetic rules imposed by society. And evidently, their fans want to imitate them and look like them, blinded by the radiance from the pedestal on which their idols recline. These days, beauty equals youth, slimness and cosmetic surgery. Some say that you may as well benefit from scientific progress, but perhaps it’s not such a compelling argument when you know the risks that a patient runs during and after the operation, as well as the social impact, the full extent of which is still not clear. Not to mention the exorbitant cost of each procedure. But what matter – you can’t put a price on beauty, and there’s an old French proverb that you have to suffer if you want to be beautiful. Guided by the dictatorship of the image, women are turning to the surgeons in great numbers for a facelift, a cheekbone augmentation, nose reshaping, breast enhancement, and the botox injections which are very popular at the moment. And when you’ve started travelling along this motorway, it’s difficult to get off again, because you think you can see perfection in the distance. In reality it’s a mirage caused by the intoxication of metamorphosis.

The dangers of cosmetic surgery and the risk of “plastic surgery addiction”

Unfortunately, patients see too late that the moon they were promised is a long way from being the one they’ve seen on the small or large screen. Aside from the accidents which happen during some operations – sometimes leading to the death of the patient – aesthetic surgery often leaves people unrecognisable. Cosmetic surgery goes wrong partly because the women want the effects of the operation to be evident at first glance. They succeed, because after a few years the cosmetic deficit is also apparent at first glance. All they have left to cry with is eyes injected with botox. Frightening images of unrecognisable women appear every day in the media, which should make us think seriously about this beauty which is easy, artificial, dangerous and costly.

The secret of well-being is in each of us

And what if beauty was somewhere else? It would certainly be naive and hypocritical to say that only inner beauty counts. However, external beauty is not synonymous with happiness. If it was, fashion models would be the happiest people in the world and they would never have plastic surgery. You don’t need a Masters degree in psychology to understand that the key to well-being is in each of us. Instead of looking elsewhere for something which essentially depends on us, we should start by listening to our intestine – our second brain. Healthy eating is fundamental for improving our well-being, and so is physical exercise. When we experience positive feelings such as empathy and compassion, this also contributes to making us happy.

If it’s true that there are several roads leading to happiness, experience showed us long ago that aesthetic surgery is neither a through-route nor a shortcut. There’s nothing inherently wrong about a little surgical operation carried out by a qualified professional, but all abuses are hazardous to the health. Make sure you keep your feet firmly on the ground, so that you don’t get hooked on changing your appearance!

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