Cosmetic Surgery’s False Promises

Women have done painful and extreme things in the name of beauty and cultural expectations for centuries—foot binding in China, neck rings in Myanmar, lip plates in Ethiopia. In the West, some women laced corsets so tight they passed out for lack of oxygen. Now, in the Botox and blepharoplasty era, cosmetic enhancements offer women more than the promise of beauty. The surgeon’s knife can deliver self-actualization. A little filler may be all you need to achieve a confident, more authentic you.