Ah, the phenomenon of plastic surgery. The ability to once be poked and prodded subtly has now been used to potentially change your full appearance. The “gworls” use this not only as a status of power and luxury but to maintain their essence of youth as time continues to pass. Plastic surgery, whether big or small, continues to trickle down into young people today. But what if this trend is causing the opposite effect?
How the Discourse Started
As Twitter discourse goes, it all started from a TikTok argument at first discussing “Italian mob wife” core as a new aesthetic. As the conversation continued to unfold, The Real Housewives came up in the conversation as people discussed their appearances and the way that their aesthetics have now become mainstream in popularity. As the days moved along, the discourse came to a halt with influencer Shawna Faith who posed the question “How old does she look due to her fillers?”
As young people we are taught that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and to stay young and youthful as long as possible. From commercials using young celebrities discussing retinol and certain vitamins, to have zero wrinkles and even movies showcasing students getting bullied over their looks and not being seen as pretty enough.
The trend of fillers and actual plastic surgery enhancements, however, truly came into the limelight for young people due to Kylie Jenner. In 2014 Kylie was in her #KingKylie era, not only sometimes Blackfishing but also cosplaying as an IG Baddie with herself and friend group. The main change was her lips and her protecting herself from the general public, saying she was “overlining them.” But eventually, she revealed that she was getting fillers into them to make them larger and announced her famous “Kylie Lip Kit.”
Where the Downfall Began
This came to a halt after the general public started to emulate Kylie and her new lips with the “Kylie Jenner Lip Challenge” where young people would go to semi-extreme lengths to receive big lips. Not only did this cause controversy due to some racial elements at play but also became a major issue for teens dealing with body image issues.
According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, “Successful plastic surgery may reverse the social withdrawal that so often accompanies teens who feel different. According to ASPS statistics, “23,527 cosmetic surgery procedures were performed on people aged 19 and under in 2022, while 244,252 minimally invasive cosmetic procedures were also performed.”
These statistics are mind-blowing and showcase that the conformity people would rather have to look uniform and of the social standard compared to how they originally looked so they do not deal with social ridicule is a real thing.
This is how we lead into today with influencers like Shawna Faith and others who do and don’t have plastic surgery asking commenters on social media how old they think they look. However, nobody is getting to the real root of the problem: social conformity.
Our Bodies, Our Choices
Throughout our lifetime, especially women, we have been tasked with the aspect of always being “on.” From being forced to look the part and maintain our youthfulness in every aspect possible. Without this, at some point people refer to us as #hags saying we’re too old to be inside the spaces we’re in. When we’re constantly being fed ads stating we’re not good enough unless we have this product, surgery, or clothes, those effects start to weigh on us.
The validation we also receive through social media is a big aspect that has wrecked the meaning of what we once knew as validation. Before someone could compliment you in the street and you could feel better about yourself. Now you can have thousands of random people tell you how beautiful or ugly you are for the world to see and react.
In the case of Shawna, she does address this as some people do choose to hate on her for getting enhancements done, which is the issue to begin with. The hate comments and the way social media can manipulate and play on any aspect of your life whether it be your boyfriend or plastic surgery is a major issue.
Our validation and the way we look for support online and in the real-world matter as people on platforms like TikTok and sometimes in real life do not have your best interest at heart.
Everyone is allowed to do what they want with their bodies and the way humans judge and micro-analyze every aspect of someone’s life through a five-minute social post or passing someone down the street. Beauty and youth are a concept and the grace and way life unfolds; age will come. None of that is wrong, and if you choose to go a different route you are not wrong. The further we move from judging and mirroring people we think are better than us and continue to work on our self-improvement and support, the better we’ll be.
Tag us on Instagram @VALLEYmag, with how you’re choosing to break the standard.
