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Breast implants: An inner city dilemma

The more you have the more you get.

Why are so many men fascinated with breasts? This obsession has fueled women to spend thousands to conform their bodies to meet the expectations of men’s fantasies. I often thought that I should make a change or two, add a cup size and maybe even treat myself to a laser technique or to smooth out the hard to treat areas with exercise and diet.

But then I took an honest look in the mirror and looked at every inch of my body. I grew up and into myself. I’m ten years older than I was when I just knew I would be a small “b” forever, when I thought I would have no shape and die looking like “six o’clock”. I grew comfortable with what GOD gave me. I don’t want to have unnecessary procedures to enhance my body. Besides, will all of the causes justify the means or the pain, the risk of infections? How about the “what if” factor?

What if there are possible eruptions, ripping or scarring. And what if after that entire ordeal I am still looking unnatural?

With the amount of African American women discovering the wonders of cosmetic surgery, some questions raise some eyebrows. What is natural beauty and does it count for anything these days? The perception of man-made beauty has become the next must have accessory for the millennium. The options for cosmetic surgery are no longer exclusive to starlets.

Doctors are making the process just as easy as applying for a credit card.

They offer financing, payment plans, borrowing against 401k plans, credit cards, loans from life insurance policies, and they make suggestions for advances from your employers. Tax refunds and even asking a friend or relative for money are explored. And if any of these combinations do not secure full payment, many offer what is called a “pre-surgery installment plan”, which is simply a lay –away plan. This suggests, as always, that cash is king!

Women are returning to doctors' offices in record numbers for breast enlargements. Lured by ads and friends with curvy new bust lines, women are paying $5,000 to $7,000 for saline implants, a medical device widely perceived as safer than silicone. But l ike silicone, saline implants do not last a lifetime. They can get as hard as rocks and need to be replaced in as many as 1 in 10 women. They can make it difficult to get a mammogram picture of the entire breast, particularly when they're placed above the main chest muscle, which is done one-third of the time.

And there's a new issue: doctors fear that a thirst for implants that are too big proportionately for some women's small frames will create a generation of patients with back and shoulder aches and other problems requiring replacement surgery. Some doctors say that big breasts are a mistake and in most cases bigger will not be better in the long run.

Implants are most popular in California, Florida and Texas where the sun always shines and skin will be next to bare. But the trend is entering the fashion industry like fire. The clients are becoming younger and younger which poses a newer moral conflict for doctors: convince clients that their bodies are still growing OR get a check? With the heavy media emphasis on breast sizes the business doesn’t appear to be slowing down.Rail thin actresses in film and television have breast augmentation, which begs the question: how can a normal woman compete? Runway models that have heavily supplanted cleavage have spilled out into videos and in part are responsible for how and what the youth equate with beauty.

How can we tell?

When large, round implants are placed over the pectoral muscles, not under; the devices are more likely to create hard lines. The result: huge bubble breasts, but most women do not care, and most men don’t either, they just care that they are big!

There are exceptions to every rule.

I asked a few models that have had the procedure and some that choose to keep their real cleavage. The identities are assumed for privacy purposes. Some models were eager to answer and some I had to persuade and others just chose to ignore me all together. Read for yourself.

Q/A

Enhanced:

Paula**

What was the purpose of getting this s procedure done?
FOR MYSELF

Did they boost your career?
NO

Do you feel more objectified by men and/ or hated by women?
YES, IN SOME SENSE

How long have you had them?
7 YEARS

How long will you keep them?
FOREVER

Were there any self-esteem issues involved in your decision?
NO, JUST WANTED BIGGER BREASTS

Tell us about the recovery?
IT TOOK 5-7 WEEKS TO RECOVER. HONESTLY, IT WAS PAINFUL. I WOULD NEVER DO IT AGAIN!

What was your breast size before and what are you now?
34B

How much?
$7,000

Any regrets?
YES AND NO. I THINK SMALLER BREASTS ARE JUST AS SEXY. SOME DAYS I WISH MINE WERE SMALLER OTHER DAYS I FEEL GOOD TO HAVE BIGGER ONES. OVERALL I AM HAPPY!

Melissa**

What was the purpose of getting this s procedure done?
I GOT THEM BECAUSE I DIDN’T FEEL LIKE A WOMAN. I FELT OUT OF PLACE.

Did they boost your career?
I KNOW THEY DEFINITELY WILL

Do you feel more objectified by men and/ or hated by women?
YES, THE FIRST TIME WALKING INTO A STORE ONE DAY AFTER MY SURGERY I NOTICED THAT.

How long have you had them?
3 DAYS

How long will you keep them?
FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE, EVEN IF I HAVE TO GET A RE-DO.

Were there any self-esteem issues involved in your decision?
YES, ALL OF MY GIRLFRIENDS [ARE] AT LEAST A “C” OR “D” CUP, [EVEN AT 16 THEY WERE LIKE THAT]. I STAYED AN “A” MY WHOLE LIFE. THAT LEFT ME WITH ZERO CONFIDENCE.

Tell us about the recovery?
NOT AS BAD AS I EXPECTED! A COUPLE OF HOURS AFTER SURGERY I SAT AT THE DINNER TABLE AND ATE DINNER. SINCE I HAD THE IMPLANTS PLACED UNDER THE MUSCLES IT’S A BIT MORE PAINFUL, ESPECIALLY GETTING IN AND OUT OF BED. THE FIRST THREE DAYS ARE THE WORST AND IT GETS BETTER AFTER THAT.

Will this affect you having children/breastfeeding?
NOT AT ALL.

What was your breast size before and what are you now?
I WAS A 34/A NOW I’M A FULL C CUP/SMALL D

How much?
$6850.50

Any regrets?
NOT AT ALL, I’VE BEEN HAPPY SINCE I WOKE UP FROM THE SURGERY.

Natural:

Angelica**

As you may recall a while back, I was considering implants, but with all of the reality shows on makeovers and plastic surgery, I had a serious re-evaluation of my plans. Have you seen the kind of people who get these things? For the most part, they are losers! They have very low self-esteem. They feel inadequate as women and they feel that the breasts will make them better. They feel more desirable as a woman [with implants]. I’m sorry; I’m just not that insecure.

Have you considered getting implants?
1. Yes I have considered it in the past

How do you feel when you see another woman/model with breast implants?
I feel that [women with implants] have some self-esteem issues.

Do you feel like breast implants make the playing field uneven?

I don’t think it makes the playing field uneven because if the man you were interested in chooses a woman with implants over you, then he is not worth you making an effort for. If he would use fake tits to make a decision on whom to be with, would you really want to be with him? Wouldn’t he leave fake c-cups for fake dd-cups?

Do you believe that women with cosmetic surgery are good role models for young girls?

No, I don’t think they are good role models. [They] teach girls to obsess with physical minor imperfections that people most of the time don’t even notice. [They] teach [impressionable young girls] that money can fix any perceived problem that you might have and that God made a mistake in making them how they are.

What image do you believe cosmetically enhanced women send?

They send the wrong message to our girls and to our boys about an impossible standard of beauty.

What is your breast size?
36c thanks to a baby girl!

I have a lot to say on this subject. Mainly because of all the shows that I’ve seen with women getting plastic surgery. They really opened my eyes. I don’t want to be one of those types of women.

Mona**

Have you considered getting implants?
NO

How do you feel when you see another woman/model with breast implants?
DON’T REALLY HAVE AN OPINION. UNLESS, OF COURSE, THEY ARE 2-3 TIMES LARGER THAN WHAT SEEMS NATURAL

Do you feel like breast implants make the playing field uneven?
NO

Do you believe that women with cosmetic surgery are good role models for young girls?
ABSOUTLEY NOT! WE WILL HAVE A GENERATION OF COSMETICALLY REVAMPED PEOPLE IN THE NEAR FUTURE.

What image do you believe cosmetically enhanced women send?
POOR SELF-ESTEEM

What is your breast size?
36C NATURALLY!