Scalpels, Injections And Porn

The rich embark on week-long surgery safaris. The not-so-rich make appointments in hotel rooms or "clinics" in someone's kitchen.

I knew I'd find a reason to tell you that I read Beauty Junkies by Alex Kuczynski last year. Unfortunately it came at the expense of Claudia Aderotimi. She felt the only way to achieve her dream of being a video vixen was to get butt implants. It's tragic all around that she lost her life trying to become a Hottentot. She's not the first and unfortunately, she probably won't be the last to risk her life for "beauty".



The accounts I read in Beauty Junkies amazed me. What women (and now increasing numbers of men) will go through for beauty is astounding. The rich and the poor alike put themselves at risk so they can stay forever young. An underlying issue is the lack of self-esteem and self-worth, however. Media portrayals of women thinner, smoother or perkier than the women watching perpetuates the cycle.

Bridalplasty is the latest reality show feeding into the notion that cosmetic surgery will make all your problems go away. (Predecessors: The Swan, Extreme Makeover) Beautiful people don't fret, they simply nip & tuck and are free to frolic.

Beauty norms have been distorted by porn and video vixens. I read an article in New York magazine addressing this issue as it grows in prominence (growing more than some men's penises in response to their partners). Men are becoming desensitized because of porn; they're "dating" porn, faking orgasms, or avoiding sex all together so they can masturbate instead. Some women who are neglected or left unsatisfied by their men feel they aren't "porn-worthy" and that men have become more critical of their bodies because of porn. Solution? Act like a porn star in bed (I can't tell you the number of dudes I could tell "learned" their skills from watching Lex Steele, Byron Long, Shane Diesel, Devlin Weed...) or look like a porn star by purchasing Bowling Balls, liposuction, tummy tucks or labiaplasty.

Aderotimi was only 20 years old. High school seniors are receiving botox or rhinoplasties as graduation presents. My Beautiful Mommy - explaining or encouraging cosmetic surgery?

I appreciate the men who are attracted to and are sexually aroused by natural women. I relate to the women who are still confident and comfortable with their bodies despite porn stars or video vixens. But how do we prevent another death by injection? Would more amateur porn make men fantasize about non-surgically-enhanced women? How do we improve the self-esteem of those who feel the only answer is cosmetic surgery?