The model revealed online that she is having her breast implants removed. Photo / Instagram
COMMENT:
"I'm getting my boobs out! They've been great to me for many years but I'm just over it ... I'll still have boobs, they'll just be pure fat."
This was Chrissy Teigen's response to "nosy" fans who inquired about why she'd hinted at an upcoming hospital visit recently. Yes, the model has breast implants but is having them removed because she'd like to "be able to zip [up] a dress in my size" and "lay on my belly with pure comfort".
Fair enough. Great. Cool. Nothing further to see here. But that's the thing, there is more to unpack here, and the nonchalance of the post makes Teigen's statement all the more remarkable.
Here's a woman in the public eye who is not only openly sharing that she's had plastic surgery but is doing so without one iota of shame or contrition.
This week, when she assured followers the "surgery went perfectly", she did so with the same apathetic demeanour, as though she were speaking of a scratch on her knee healing.
Teigen's stance is a welcome sign a new era has dawned. We've arrived at a place where women are no longer accepting the side of stigma that accompanies the decision to undergo plastic surgery or use injectables.
Women are over pretending their plump, wrinkle-free faces are simply the result of drinking eight glasses of water a day. Women are finished with society's ridiculous double standard that demands they look young and beautiful, but only approves if they remain this way without any intervention, lest they be so shallow.
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For years, having plastic surgery or using injectables and fillers has been seen as a taboo, an embarrassing weakness and a major character flaw. Last year, when UK plastic surgeon Dr Munir Somji posted "before and after" pictures of Kate Middleton on social media, claiming she'd employed "baby Botox", the usually impartial royals responded in full force with a rare statement, saying Somji's claims were "categorically not true".
Despite the countless derogatory and inflammatory stories published about the royal family, the suggestion Kate may have harmlessly dabbled in a bit of Botox was deemed so awful, Buckingham Palace had to publicly denounce it.
Similarly, model Hailey Bieber threatened Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr Daniel Barrett with legal action for (among other things) "slander", because he claimed she'd probably had some plastic surgery and injectables.
When women are coming out to deny having had "work done" in the same fashion one might defend themself over an accusation of triple homicide, it's clear something desperately has to give.
Thankfully, the tide is turning and many women – Teigen included – are sticking a middle finger up to society's expectations, owning any procedures they've undergone.
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Kim Kardashian West told Paper magazine she's become renowned among A-listers for her plastic surgery knowledge: "People call me all the time, like really famous people, out of the blue and are like, 'I know we don't know each other, but I've heard you're the expert and I'm looking to do x, y, and z. Who would you recommend?'"
Then there's Cindy Crawford, who told InStyle magazine her healthy lifestyle can't take the credit for her youthful appearance, saying: "I have a very simple, healthy life, which works miracles. I drink a lot of water, watch what I eat, and exercise ... but I owe the quality of my skin to my cosmetic surgeon."
Last year, Adore Beauty's founder Kate Morris made strides in this area by pledging to give an honest representation of how she keeps her skin youthful and glowing – with skincare, Botox, filler and treatments.
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"Any suggestion that a woman over 40 can naturally avoid frown lines through drinking lots of water and getting eight hours sleep is absolute rubbish," she wrote on Instagram. "It just makes everyone feel bad about themselves and keeps us all down."
By unapologetically sharing what they've had done, these women are communicating to others, who might feel they don't live up to society's stringent beauty standards, that they're not less than, they're not failures – they just haven't booked a date with several millilitres of filler.
Yes, it's certainly problematic that a woman's worth is intrinsically connected to her appearance. Yes, it makes me feel a bit uncomfortable that we feel the need to change our looks at all, fuelling a $1 billion industry (in Australia alone) in the process. But it's equally disturbing that women with agency, who choose of their own volition to inject, fill or have breast implants put in or removed, should be met with scorn, condemnation and judgment for doing so.
While Teigen's boob job announcement is a definite step forward, it's still a Pyrrhic victory – the real cause for celebration will be the day women aren't viewed primarily as objects, ripe for constant critique.
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