The real reason women go too far with plastic surgery

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Post-pandemic beauty trends, like ‘Ozempic face’, fuel a rise in surgery. Photo / Getty Images
As Sharon Osbourne sparks yet more surgery rumours, we talk to an expert about facial dysmorphia – and how to avoid the trap

According to The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) there was a 102% increase in cosmetic surgery between 2021 and 2022 – the largest
boom since 2004 with face and neck lifts showing a 97% increase following the pandemic.

While that number dropped by a negligible 1% in 2023, the popularity of surgical facelifts rose in comparison to other procedures such as rhinoplasty. Blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery) increased by 70% in 2023 and continues to rise.
What’s driving the rise in facial surgery is multifactorial. On the one hand, there’s better, more advanced techniques with minimal scarring. Then there’s the rise in semaglutide (the weight loss jab) which can lead to “Ozempic face” – parlance for the sagging and hollowing associated with sudden fat and muscle loss. Surgeons in the US have reported a rise in facial tightening to deal with it.
Enter Sharon Osbourne who has valiantly admitted to both facial surgery and taking Ozempic (which is prescribed only for diabetes, but is used off-label for weight loss). However, in 2023 Osbourne told the Times that her facelift “was the worst thing that I ever did. I looked like Cyclops”, she said adding: “I had one eye here and one eye there and my mouth was all skewiff, and then I had to wait for that to heal before I could go back and have it corrected.”
The 2021 facelift Osbourne was referring to was her third: she had two before it, the first in 1987 and a second in 2002 according to her autobiography. Why the penchant for multiple tweaking? “Vanity. Ego. ‘Oh, you look good for your age,’” the host and former X-factor judge said at the time.
Despite inferring she was done with surgical intervention, recent reports allude that Osbourne may have had another nip and tuck following criticism over her gaunt appearance.
The talk show host hasn’t confirmed she’s sought solace in yet another round of surgery, but the “too far face” is not only a celebrity affliction. There is a general rise in what psychologists refer to as “perception drift”. The concept riffs on the idea that once you have one part of your anatomy surgically enhanced, you begin to focus on other areas. Over time this can lead to a loss of perspective that in extreme cases ends in facial dysmorphia.
And yet Dr Linda Papadopoulos, a psychologist, says studies show that most humans are often inaccurate when it comes to our appearance. “This idea that any of us ever see ourselves clearly is just not true. It’s very much understood that one’s body image is a subjective assessment of how we look,” she explains. Dr Papadopoulos, whose book Unfollow: Living Life on Your Own Terms, explores the societal pressures put on women to meet certain beauty expectations, says that fixating on certain aspects of our appearance and looking at it over and over again, is not helpful. “We’re seeing our body image through our insecurities, through our beliefs about how we ought to look, through what we’ve been told by others,” she adds.
What remains true is that the beauty ideal is always in flux, forever changing depending on the current trends. Beauty tropes dictated by pop culture and our social media feeds – whether we’re aware of it or not. What’s important, says Papadopoulos, is a holistic view of oneself; to place importance on a myriad of attributes that extend beyond the superficial. And yet in a world that places so much emphasis on “being the best version of yourself” that can so easily get lost.
In her work as a psychologist, Papadopoulos has developed ways of helping us reframe how we perceive ourselves in the midst of a culture obsessed with appearance.
GenX-ers who came into adulthood at a time before mobile phones may have a more realistic barometer for what’s “normal” than those who’ve grown up with technology. “We’re adjusting our own faces through the beautification filters on our devices, sometimes without us knowing,” Papadopoulos says, referring to the filters applied to social media apps and video calling. “Am I going to choose the one that’s 3% prettier than Linda or 5% prettier? Subconsciously I’m going to be like ‘Oh, this one is way better’.”
Papadopoulos, 53, argues that by monitoring our use of beautification filters, we can restore a healthy self-image. “When I was growing up I’d look at a magazine and one of the things that allowed me to feel less awful when I was confronted with all of these images was the idea that, okay, these girls have professional makeup on, it’s professional lighting. They’re models, they’ve been selected for this – now everyone appears radically symmetrical.”
“I’m sure we’re not going to have little old ladies for much longer,” says Papadopoulos who thinks it doesn’t help that actresses such as Jane Fonda, who is 86, looks 40. Fonda doesn’t hide the fact she’s had a facelift, telling Vogue in 2022: ” I had a facelift and I stopped because I don’t want to look distorted. I’m not proud of the fact that I had [one].
“Now I don’t know if I had to do [it all] over, I would do it. But I did it. I admit it, and then I just say, okay, you can get addicted. Don’t keep doing it. A lot of women, they’re addicted to it,” she added.
A facelift in and of itself isn’t something to be ashamed of, says Papadopoulos, but chasing youth at the cost of all else could affect one’s self-esteem in the long run. “Ask yourself: do I need to be the prettiest woman in the room? Or can I try to be one of the most interesting people in the room? And if it’s the latter, then it has probably a lot more to do with reading and having discussions and thinking.”
Papadopoulos suggests leaning more in that direction if you think you might be falling prey to objectifying your looks. She says, “I love my highlights, I choose to have some treatments, but I try to hold myself to account. I’m not trying to look like my 22-year-old daughter. That’s a whole other issue – we’re dressing like them or speaking like them… Is that what we want? This fantasy that every woman has to be 25 and never get old?”
“When I see people who say, ‘I want to be as pretty as I can be,’ I suggest they ask themselves: What could I not achieve with the looks that I have?” says Papadopoulos. “So, if you’re trying to be a model, then maybe that’s a thing, but in real life, would [being prettier] make me better at my job, a better parent, a better lover? If the answer is yes, then perhaps there’s an argument for having cosmetic procedures, but if the answer is no, then maybe ask, “Where is this coming from?” And it’s probably coming from this distorted idea that everyone’s doing it. Actually, not everyone is doing it. What goes on online is only a small percentage of what goes on in the real world.”
If you are never satisfied with what you look like, no matter what you do, then take stock of how you talk to yourself. “We know that negative talk about the body turns into negative talk about oneself,” says Dr Papadopoulos. “If I keep saying ‘I hate my legs’, then ‘I hate my legs’ turns into ‘I hate my body’ which turns into ‘I really don’t like who I am’. Constant rumination of not being good enough is a real problem.”
One way to counteract negative self talk is to do daily affirmations in front of a mirror, out loud. It may feel awkward at first, but studies have shown they work. Otherwise, catch yourself in negative thinking by interrupting the thought with the “catch it, check it, change it” technique, a reframing exercise recommended by the NHS for alleviating anxiety and depressive thoughts.
“By all means honour your body, feed it well, exercise, practice self care, do your hair… I’m all for that. But when it becomes an obsession, when it becomes the biggest slice of your identity pie, then who can live up to that?” Papadopoulos suggests portioning your pie by filling it with other interests that switch your fixation away from your outer appearance towards other aspects of your humanity.
This is particularly important for women who’ve grown up being praised for their attractiveness. “I’d like to look a bit younger can turn into: I need to fix everything about myself.” That way of thinking can be insidious, suggests Papadopoulos, and can turn you from “a living, breathing human into something to be consumed”. Clichéd as it sounds, helping others through charity work or within your community helps to turn your focus outwards. Or try mindfulness, yoga or meditation, which are proven ways to reground yourself.
Being aware of how you’re curating what’s in your consciousness is key, says Papadopoulos. “I guarantee you, no matter how good your self esteem is, if I get you to sit down and look at a bunch of videos of women that are 30 years younger than you, who are alerting you to problems you didn’t know you had, you’re going to have issues.” Curating a healthy self image includes editing your social media feed to exclude content that triggers comparison to steering clear of friends who are continuously critical of you – or of themselves.
“Do you remember how many products we had back in the 1980s and 1990s? It was a lip gloss and a couple of others. Now we’re told we need a primer, something for glow, something to shape this or that – different setting mists; one to hydrate, one to mattify. The industry is creating problems and then saying, “Oh, you’ve got to fix that now.” Make-up certainly isn’t bad, adds Papadopoulos, but be aware of how much emphasis you are putting into getting ready. If it’s too much then have a make-up free day every now and then.
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