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An Overview Of Plastic Surgery In Nigeria by Oluwatimilehin Folarin.

  Most lovers of Nigerian comedy do not need to think twice before agreeing that the most-watched comedies are those featuring ladies with dangling big butts, enticing boobs, and curving bodies that keep viewers stuck to the screen. You can pause for a second to ponder on it. Most likely, you smiled in agreement, right? By the way, it is not only the comedy space, even the entertainment and fashion industries follow the same trend. Unarguably, people now have easy access to feed their eyes with content that drives their desire beyond the expected. The craving to be curvaceous is now a prevalent desire eating up the minds of thousands of people.   Some months ago, a good friend of mine told me about one of his female friends who got entangled in the realm of depression because she was not happy about her body shape. A newly admitted university student for that matter! Why on earth could she be overwhelmed with such thought? At least, she has her academics and some other issues of life to ponder on. However, we cannot solely blame her; the society has presented a competition mirage amongst the young ones. Every young person out there wants to impress. Many complaints are clouding their minds. If they don’t grumble that boys are not interested in them because their boobs are not noticeable, it will be, “I am not attracted to guys owing to my flat butt.” Similarly, you will hear from the boys that “the girls are not looking in my direction because I look old.” All these are laughable right? Well, I am not here to dwell on the comic part, but rather, to give a surgical evaluation on the subject topic and proffer potential solutions.   Plastic surgery is the process of consciously altering the human body. It can be broadly divided into two: reconstructive and cosmetic surgery. While the former aims to reconstruct or improve the functionality of a part of the body, the latter aims at making better the appearance of parts of the body. Although plastic surgery itself is not a bad act, the rising intents amongst people have painted the wrong image in the sight of all. For example, a person suffering from post-nasal drip, breathing problems, or even snoring can proceed to do a Rhinoplasty (nose reshaping) to correct the structural defects like deviated septum in the nose. Likewise, you can have liposuction to be physically active or reduce the chances of having diabetes, heart pressure, or even developing increased blood pressure. It is no more a news that social media platforms have been pervaded with the professed death of a Port Harcourt Socialite, Christabel Miriam Gabriel. It was reported that she died after hip surgery at the Cynosure Aesthetic Plastic Surgery Clinics in the Mende area of Maryland, Lagos State. Even though the friends of the deceased appealed that she lost her life out of medical laxity, the hospital management rebutted the claim stating that the patient died four days after the surgery. While the police are doing their investigation regarding the cause of the death, this essay will be investigating some wrong motives of people regarding plastic surgery. The leading cause of plastic surgery nowadays is the desire to belong. Sadly, this has landed some people in grave consequences for their actions and inactions because they want to have a striking structural resemblance to actresses with sculptured hips, provocative curves, or sexy shapes. Another factor is the prevalence of social media. Dr. Dennis Schimpf, FASC, founder of “Sweetgrass Plastic Surgery,” opined that social media platforms have massively influenced the desire for plastic surgery. Many young boys and girls want to have the same curvy shape as people they see when they surf the internet. Also, low self-esteem is a driving force. When you lack confidence about your natural being, you would be prone to make decisions against your wish. The feeling of being unloved, incompetent, or inadequate finds expression when you have the mindset that you are not appreciated because of an assumed ageing look or unattractive body structure. I will be partial if I fail to account for how the society is impelling the youths to have big bodies. We are in the era where a lady with bigger breasts or conspicuous butt gets the leading role in a play, show, or thrown-up opportunity. This is because it will yield more views, likes, and even more downloads as the case may be. No matter how well we try to disprove this growing trend, the harsh reality is what is happening. I have witnessed it, and I am sure we have seen or watched it happen too. “Talent is good, but the curvy shape is more important” is the new message preached. Moving forward, it can be dangerous if there is no control over this longing to reconstruct the body shape to look like the likes of Anita Joseph, Ini Edo, Destiny Etiko, etc. One of the most pathetic effects is that the person involved can lose his/her life in the process. Aside from death, in some cases, it could lead to hematoma – a huge excruciating bruise that appears like a pocket of blood. Sympathetically, another surgery will be needed in most situations to drain out the blood. Similarly, plastic surgery can be accompanied by a tingling sensation and unresponsiveness. It has been reported that most ladies lose nipple sensation after undergoing breast augmentation. Additionally, on a few occasions, there might be a complication of cellulitis – a severe bacterial skin infection. In a society engrossed in a competitive structure and knowing fully well that plastic surgery could be beneficial or be the saving grace while faced with some problems associated with the body, what then are the ways out? First, before going for that plastic surgery, question the motive. The answer you give will present an unbiased view of whether to proceed or not. Associating with friends of like minds matters a lot

Essays, Opinion Articles, Writers

The Rising Trend Of Plastic Surgery Among Women by Precious Aliu.

INTRODUCTION With the costly intense procedure of plastic surgery, it is a wonder why there is a raising craze for the surgery. But to be sincere, if people were asked to choose between a woman with an oval wrinkle free face, well-defined nose and lips, an hourglass body with a thin waist, flat tummy and big boobs and a woman with a chubby wrinkled face, bonny nose, fat, overweight shapeless body, most would chose the hourglass woman as the best stature. Why?  Because she looks perfect. WHAT IS PLASTIC SURGERY Plastic surgery, often referred to as “one of the world oldest healing arts” has nothing to do with plastic. The word originated from a Greek word “plastikos” which means to mold or shape. It is therefore a surgery dedicated to reconstruct facial and body defects due to birth disorders, trauma, burns and diseases. This is why it is also referred to as reconstructive surgery. The practice of altering body tissue to improve and restore the human body has been since ancient times, but this practice came into the lime light in the 20th century when the casualties of the war made reconstructive surgery a necessity for many soldiers. During World War I, military physicians were required to treat many facial and head injuries caused by modern weapons. The main aim of plastic surgery is to restore the functions and appearance of tissue and skin to be close to normal as possible, such as, repairing abnormalities that have existed since birth e.g. cleft lips, webbed fingers. Repairing areas damaged by the removal of cancerous tissue, repairing extensive burns and other serious injuries. Over time, plastic surgery has been used mainly to enhance parts of the body regardless of them not being damaged or defective. This area of plastic surgery has being termed as cosmetic surgery which is the surgery performed by many to enhance their physical appearance such as bust enhancement, liposuction and facial contouring etc. The intent of cosmetic surgery is to improve a patient’s aesthetic appeal, symmetry and proportion. It has less to do with repairing abnormal or defective tissues. While cosmetic surgery is done mostly by women, there is also a high percentage of men who undergo the surgery. According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 1.3 million males and 14.5 million females performed plastic surgery in the United Sates in 2017. According to the same report $16.7 billion was spent on cosmetic plastic surgery in 2018. Although the risk of plastic surgery is now claimed to be rare, there are still risks involved in it such as bleeding, infection, nerve damage, organ damage, scarring, death etc. There is the possibility of a failed surgery leaving the patient looking worse than before, the risk of employing the services of a quack and the obsession with cosmetic surgery which pushes a person to find imperfection in their body till they look the perfect image of a child doll. The complete recovery time is mostly up to a year, this is not a short period. Interestingly, the effects of plastic surgery can still wear off, nothing last forever and plastic surgery is no different. Plastic surgery does not stop aging and does not mean that a person cannot end up becoming as shapeless as they were before the surgery. Undergoing plastic surgery does not mean a woman would look beautiful or most necessarily feel better about herself. Despite all these, the question still remains why do women undergo the surgery? WHY WOMEN UNDERGO PLASTIC SURGERY According to a 2019 survey by RealSelf/Harris Poll, the top cited motivations among those who have had or are thinking about cosmetic surgery is “to improve self-esteem/confidence” and “to look as good as I feel”. The likelihood of women committing plastic surgery is linked to the body image they want to portray in public and the desire to love their body, they lack self-confidence and perceive they would live life better when they are satisfied with their appearance. There is an increasing focus on the body as a vehicle for identity and social worth. Daily, society defines what a perfect figure should be and stereotypes women who do not fit into this category. These women are body-shamed and rather than aging being seen as a completely natural and predictable part of life, aging is now being represented as a pathological disease that modern science must cure. Reports show that cosmetic surgery became more popular during the pandemic, the reason is not far-fetched as people had more time to make use of video technology, interact better on social media and watch television shows where they see television personalities, models with body shape and face termed as perfect. More screen time, cameras, selfies has further contributed to how women perceive themselves, these technologies come with filters that proportions the face and body to any desired particular look. Women therefore want a reality of what they see in posters and filtered selfies. In the not-so-distant past cosmetic surgery was only performed by the uber-wealthy, but nowadays a not-so-rich working-class woman, preferably with a double income can undergo the surgery. The surgery is therefore more affordable. It is also safer because of technological advances, as such women are rest assured that the risk involved is not as hideous as it used to be and because people are talking more about the surgery, there is increased acceptance, portraying the topic less of a taboo and more of a fashion statement. PANACEAS Modern technology has evolved to the extent that there are less invasive treatments women can use to have their desired body. These include, laser treatment where lasers are used to treat skin diseases, wrinkles, scars etc. coolsculpting, a fat freezing method that aims to get rid of stubborn fat in certain parts of the body, botox injections that relaxes facial muscles. Although these treatment are less invasive, they still alter the body. For instance, botox temporarily paralyzes muscles, and lasers damage skin cells to stimulate the growth

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