subject: What Are The Emotional Ramifications Of Liposuction? [print this page] To many people, liposuction (also referred to as lipoplasty or suction lipectomy) sounds like a dream come true. You start out overweight, unstreamlined and pudgy, get a simple and relatively quick surgery, and suddenly become the man or woman you've always wanted to be, but without the hard work of exercise or dieting.
Unfortunately, as great as that view of the procedure sounds, it leaves out some critical truths about the procedure, truths that potential patients should understand. Although the surgery can have a wide number of positive benefits, it is a real world procedure, and things in the real world always consist of positives and negatives.
While many of the dangers and risks involved in liposuction are physical, there are also some possible emotional pitfalls as well. Some people go into a lipoplasty thinking that it will somehow "fix" them emotionally. Some of these people have struggled with their weight for a long time, and they have never quite felt comfortable with their appearance. They reason that if their appearance improved, their self-image would improve as well.
While this is true in some cases, it is also very common for people who struggle with self-image to continue to struggle even after their surgery. People who have not learned to be happy with themselves and love themselves may find that they have new things to obsess about. For some it might be that the surgery left them with some scarring that, while minor to other people, seems major to them.
Others might feel that they have some blemish or ripple in the fat which gives them a slightly unnatural appearance. For some regaining some weight after the surgery might be a crushing blow. For many it might just be that they still don't look perfect. While lipoplasty can help to improve people's appearances, it cannot typically provide perfection. Poor self-image and low self-esteem are typically bad reasons to get a lipectomy.
There are some cases in which a lipoplasty can help with some emotional issues. For example, if a person who is otherwise fairly comfortable with themself has a feature which they find socially awkward, the surgery may be able to help. For example, overly large breasts in either a man or a woman can cause awkwardness at the pool or in other social circumstances. In some cases, a lipoplasty can help to keep one's chest from being something that draws undue attention to itself. For some people, this will help them to be happier. However, in the majority of circumstances, emotional healing should come from within.
