• Question: Do you think that plastic surgery improves emotional well-being?

    Asked by anon-179666 to Stephen, Maria, John, Daniel, Claire, Amy on 18 Jun 2018.
    • Photo: Amy Pearson

      Amy Pearson answered on 18 Jun 2018:


      I think it can, absolutely. When someone is very self-conscious about the way they look, plastic surgery can provide a way to deal with that. However, it isnt always the case that surgery will make those feelings go away and improve self esteem. Like anything, it depends on how much compassion you have towards yourself, and how you view yourself. If you have a generally positive view of yourself, and see surgery as changing surface things, then it can improve your wellbeing. However if you think surgery will completely change who you are as a person, it is likely that you have deeper issues that need addressing than looks. The ability to recognise positive qualities in yourself and show self compassion appears to be related strongly to emotional wellbeing.

    • Photo: Maria Montefinese

      Maria Montefinese answered on 18 Jun 2018:


      Hi! 🙂 Thank you for your question! I believe that sometimes plastic surgery can improve self-esteem. But other times I don’t think it can’t help with that because the self-esteem is enough independent from how the person’s body actually is. Indeed, many other factors could influence self-esteem and emotional wellbeing. I think that it should be a very well thought decision before to udergo a plastic surgery.
      All the best,
      Maria

    • Photo: Stephen Baillargeon

      Stephen Baillargeon answered on 18 Jun 2018:


      This is definitely one of the questions I wanted to answer with more detail from the chat, but I’d lean toward a gentle no for a few reasons. The biggest, most terrifying thing I’ve come across as I’ve studied happiness is the Hedonic Treadmill. Basically what it is is the tendency for happiness to fade away after you get something that makes you happy. Even people who win the lottery tend to return to the level of happiness they were before just a few months later. Jobs and promotions, cars, marriage, houses, nothing seems to pass the three month mark. The Hedonic Treadmill is my biggest fear. So many people I care about have been suicidal and are facing huge struggles, and just want to someday be happy. Meanwhile, in high school,I’d had one of the most fortunate lives I could imagine, and still, I just wanted to be happy someday. It can be terrifying to face the fact that making your life better and getting almost everything you want is pretty close to pointless. This has been one of my least favorite things to come to terms with.

      While there are things that correlate with happiness, it’s been pretty hard for psychologists to find them. People who have a good habit of exercise and meditation, people who practice mindfulness, self compassion, and have good coping skills, these people are the happy ones. Attractive people aren’t any happier than unattractive people, and getting most of the stuff you want won’t help you much. Based on the research I’ve read about how the Hedonic Treadmill relates to different kinds of things, I would expect that plastic surgery would improve someone’s emotional well-being for about three weeks.

      The other thing I want to talk about in regards to this is that usually the desire to get plastic surgery comes from some low self-esteem. The strongest pro plastic surgery argument I hear is that it might elevate self-esteem, and self-esteem is correlated with happiness. However, I am one of those rare psychologists who is anti self-esteem. High self-esteem is when you have a very positive opinion of yourself, and while it’s hard to deny that it has a positive correlation with great things, it also correlates with narcissistic tendencies, aggression, and is inherently unstable. Relying on self-esteem to make you happy often involves relying on flattering comparisons to others and things outside of your control. I’ve extensively studied self-compassion as an alternative. People with high self-compassion unconditionally treat themselves with kindness and understanding.

      Every time you’re faced with a situation that makes you upset, you have to make the choice between fixing the situation, or coping with it. Although many people agree on what and who is beautiful, it is subjective. If you are plagued by a dislike of your own face, that says more about you than it does your face. Disliking your face is not a physical problem; it’s an emotional one. If you are the kind of person who gets upset over a facial flaw, then you’ll probably always be able to find one. Your skin will break out, you’ll have zits, you’ll have scars, something will not express who you are, something will be asymmetrical. You’ll be able to find something wrong no matter what.

      So if you want plastic surgery, it’s a want that probably won’t lead you far. I’d work hard to practice self-compassion, which is something you have control over. People can practice it just by writing themselves letters or even talking to themselves in the mirror with a kind and understanding tone. Your worth as a human is in no way influenced by your beauty.

    • Photo: Claire Melia

      Claire Melia answered on 19 Jun 2018:


      Hi,

      This isn’t really my area, but of course I do have a personal opinion! I think that on some level plastic surgery can be helpful. Of course, there is some plastic surgery which is done for somewhat medical reasons, but I think you’re asking about cosmetic surgery here? If there is a particular aspect an individual does not like, for example their nose, then having plastic surgery on this would surely make them feel more confident and better about this aspect of their body. So on the surface, yes. However, I think that for many people this insecurity may well stem from something deeper which plastic surgery cannot simply fix.
      I don’t know what the process is, but I would hope that before going through with plastic surgery that there is a strong consultation process first where the individual has the opportunity to really explore the reasons for the surgery and ensure that it is right for them.

      🙂

Comments