Plastic Surgery Myths

There are, of course, a large number of myths about plastic surgery and each procedure has its own myths and misconceptions. Below, I’m highlighting a few of the top misconceptions I hear from patients. This barely touches the surface, but I have to start somewhere!

1) Plastic Surgery is too expensive.

It is true that plastic surgery is not cheap, but there now are many new elements of “plastic surgery,” ranging from general skin care,  facials and Megapeels to torn earlobe repair, Botox and fillers. You can sometimes even get a Megapeels or a tattoo removal session for less than $100, if we your surgeon is running a special. What I have always found is that, in general, people find the money for what is important to them. I would also add that women will often spend large amounts of money on their hair, an expense that often recurs every 4-6 weeks, and yet, a filler can last 18 months. Something like a breast augmentation can last 10-20 years! If we factor the cost/benefit over 15 years, it is suddenly not so expensive. In addition, almost all plastic surgeon’s office will offer Care Credit financing. My office also offers Alpheon financing.|

2) The scars are terrible.

This is usually not true. We can never 100% predict scarring, but many procedures do not cause scarring at all. The Picosure laser is a great way to improve your facial skin with no downtime and no incisions. There are no scars with the Picosure and in fact, we can often improve acne scarring with the Picosure laser. The scars for a breast augmentation are usually very small and get very hard to see with time. Scars resulting from Smartlipo are only about 3 mm in size, which is very tiny. They are usually very difficult to see after they heal and some time has elapsed. Even with more invasive surgery, such as a tummy tuck, these scars are usually not readily visible and they can fade very nicely over the years (and sometimes much sooner).

3) How much weight will I lose from Smartlipo or Sculpsure?

Both of these procedures are designed to decrease fat in specific areas to make you look better. They will not significantly change your weight but they may change your dress size and how your clothes fit. Of course, there is a reduction of fat, so by definition, your weight is being reduced. However, there is no shortcut for losing weight – you need to make better food choices (see our Paleo Meal Replacement for one great example of how to lose weight) and increase your exercising.

4) I don’t need or want to look 20 years old or “perfect.”

We plastic surgeons can take years off a person. However, aging is multifactorial – meaning that as we age, lots of lots of things change in our bodies and on our faces. We tend to focus on the most glaring changes but there are really a ton of changes that are occurring. However, if you are in your 40’s or older, unless you have fantastic genetics, plastic surgeons can often make you look better or much better, but it is very unlikely you can look like a 20 year old, no matter how much money and effort you expend. The problem too, if someone tries too hard and their surgeon does not know their own limits, then the person will look unnatural and fake, which is a look that I personally do not want to create.

Also a similar line of thinking – not all problems are equally solveable. A tummy tuck can often transform a spare tire into a very nice abdomen but someone with poor skin tone and very thick thighs can probably never achieve a look of thin thighs with wonderful skin tone. A good plastic surgeon know what is achievable and what needs to be accepted.

If you have any other questions about cosmetic surgery, please do to hesitate to call my office at 703-406-2444 to schedule a Consultation with me.