People Who Regret Getting Cosmetic Work Done Are Sharing What Happened
In this day and age, the topic of cosmetic procedures has taken on bigger heights in our society than I’m sure most people ever imagined. Whether people are praising them or opening up about their regrets, removals, and reversals, the conversation clearly isn’t going anywhere.
So, I asked members of the BuzzFeed Community, “If you’ve ever had a cosmetic procedure and regretted it, what was your experience like, and how did it go wrong?” Here’s what they had to say:
Note: Not all submissions are from the BuzzFeed Community, some have come from this Reddit thread.
1.“When I was seven, I crashed my bike and broke my nose, but it wasn’t reset properly. Between that and genetics, I had a prominent nose with a bump. For all of high school, my mom would say, ‘You know, we would be happy to pay for your nose to be fixed,’ which affected me. I don’t think I would have cared otherwise. At 20, I relented and had one done.”
“At first, I was happy. I had a cute little upturned nose. But then I discovered they had narrowed my nasal passages, and I had a hole in my septum. So basically, it’s like one nostril. With allergies or when I get sick, it’s an incredible pain. Now in my late 30s, I wish I had just embraced my nose. Especially as it is my dad’s.”
—Anonymous
Jacob Wackerhausen / Getty Images
2.“I had an upper blepharoplasty. The doctor cut too much skin on my right upper eyelid, which made it very asymmetrical. I also can’t close the other eye fully. The overall end result wasn’t also up to the results that I wanted (like the shape and aesthetic). The procedure went too long, and so I ended up scarring. It has been five years since then, and it’s not normal to have noticeable scars.”
“He also removed too much fat, which made my eyes look hollower. I used to have a healthy eye-smile with just the right amount of fat, but now it makes me look older than my age. I regret getting this procedure done, and I’m scared to get a revision as I might end up with worse results. I’m also scared of not being able to close both of my eyes if I do so.”
3.“When cool sculpting was in its early stages, I signed up to be in a clinical trial to try it out. They only did it on one side of my body and did some other treatment (I want to say some kind of UV treatment) on the other side so they could compare the results and confirm if cool sculpting worked. The consent form I signed said they would do cool sculpting on the opposite side at the end of the trial if the UV treatment didn’t work, so I figured the risk was low and agreed to have my love handles treated.”
“At the end of the trial, my cool sculpting side had significantly less fat than the other side (after two or three treatments), meaning it worked! The UV side had no results. The office that did it essentially refused to treat my UV side, even though they said they would in the consent form. After tons of back and forth, they finally agreed to do one cool sculpting treatment on the UV side, but to this day, I’m still uneven since they did at least two treatments on the first side. So, I’m left with one love handle on one side of my body. I also later discovered that when you do gain more fat, it just goes elsewhere instead of where the fat cells were destroyed during cool sculpting. I now have fat in odd places I’ve never had to worry about before. At the end of the day, it wasn’t worth it, and any time my friends mentioned wanting to do cool sculpting, I provided them with my story as a cautionary tale!”
—Anonymous
Zoran Zeremski / Getty Images
4.“They give you a list of all the things that might go wrong, and after a full facelift, I had them all. One ear was stretched down and sewn onto my neck; it had to be cut loose later. My eyelids wrinkled, I had a large hematoma on my scalp, but worst of all, my smile is gone. I look awful when I try to smile. I Haven’t had a decent picture taken in a dozen years.”
—Anonymous
5.“I got Aqua Lipo which was supposed to be gentler than traditional liposuction. I had it done on my stomach, arm area, thighs, and back. This was about 10 years ago, and my arms still have permanent nerve issues. Anything touches the area that was worked on and it feels raw and tender, nearly a decade later. I was desperate for a quick fix because I was getting married, but I should have done my research.”
6.“I got top surgery because I’m female-to-male. I was on the waiting list for a good surgeon, but it was a two-year wait, and the gender dysphoria was getting worse, so I found another surgeon with a shorter wait time. That was a mistake. I was almost eligible for keyhole incisions (tiny incisions around the nipple) instead of a double-incision (large scars down the center of the chest underneath the pectoral ridge), and I really didn’t want giant scars.
“For me to get the keyhole incisions and pick up the extra skin, my surgeon suggested pectoral implants. Huge mistake number two. He made very different incisions than we discussed, so I still ended up with huge scars and now implants, which frequently hurt, look terrible, AND don’t even help with the loose skin. I got the worst of every option. Plus, I need to have the implants removed now by better surgeons, leading to, you guessed it, more scars. I’m pursuing legal action for medical assault, which is not what my post-op recovery needed. Get a good surgeon, especially if you’re pursuing gender-affirming care. I don’t regret getting top surgery, but I definitely regret getting it the fast way.”
—Anonymous
7.“I had lip fillers once, just a very small amount. I went to a plastic surgeon, got the injection, and that night my lip tripled in size from swelling. I rang the office first thing. They had me come in and told me that I had herpes, and that was the issue. Except…I don’t have herpes.”
“I ended up going to my GP as I developed bruising, who referred me to a dermatologist who told me that I had an occlusion, and I’m VERY lucky I didn’t end up losing my lip. I needed nine laser treatments to remove that and have a permanent scar. When I rang the office to tell them and requested my money back, they’d only do it if I signed an agreement that I wouldn’t blast the fucker on social media.”
Fenton Roman / Getty Images
8.“I had a breast augmentation in 1982, then had the implants removed in 1994. That’s when things went wrong. I lost most of the breast tissue and the nipple on my right breast. I paid £5000 for breast reconstruction and a lift in 2021, and I absolutely hate how my breasts look now. They are just two large sacs of saggy tissue on my chest that don’t even resemble breasts anymore.”
“My right breast still has no nipple, and most of the areola is now lost. I regret the day I ever tampered with my body. I have spent almost thirty years regretting my previous choices. I have spent a total of almost £20000 on my breasts, only to be left ashamed to undress in front of anyone.”
—Anonymous
9.“My double jaw surgery has both positives and negatives. It helped me with facial balance (I used to have a very short face) but it absolutely decimated my jawline. I had a really great L shape jaw before and the way they separated my bottom jaw and reattached it has made my jawline weak and zig-zaggy. I asked my jaw surgeon about it and he excitedly tried to push me into getting jawline implants, which seems unbelievable to me. I’m considering getting filler to try to get it back.”
10.“I had a fat transfer from my thighs to fill in the hollow parts under my eyes. Immediately after the procedure, there was barely a difference and after a week it looked the same as before. I even told the doctor that I don’t retain fat well, but he still recommended it. Over $4000 down the drain”
And finally, this person shared how important it is to do all of your research:
11.“After three kids and two surgeries in less than four months (gallbladder and appendix removals), I had to have another surgery to repair a massive hernia. So, I opted to also have a breast augmentation at the same time so I could come out with ‘something to make me feel better.’ I was never into boobs and was very ambivalent about mine, but I figured they could use perking up. As soon as I came out of surgery, I hated them. They felt alien, intrusive, and too big. Everyone thought they looked great, but there wasn’t a single day that went by that I didn’t loathe the feeling of them, and they were constantly on my mind in a bad way.”
“Within a year, my health continued to deteriorate, and my white blood cell count tanked. Seven years in, and I was barely functioning: extreme fatigue, major brain fog and cognitive issues, being constantly sick, rashes, gastritis, headaches, etc. Come to find out, I have SLE (lupus) and Sjögren’s syndrome (both autoimmune diseases). The implants definitely did not cause it, as bloodwork prior to the implants already indicated something was wrong and lupus runs in my family, but I am 100% positive they caused additional issues and a heightened immune response. I consulted with several doctors before opting to have the implants removed, and all seven said the same thing: ‘While research has not proven there is a correlation, it stands to reason that for some people, especially those with autoimmune conditions, foreign entities like implants may trigger an additional immunological response.’ I can’t express how significantly better I felt immediately! My quality of life was drastically better, and the death-like fatigue abated instantly. I really regret getting the implants in the first place and wish I had known more about the potential issues. It’s unfortunate there isn’t more info out there about it because, since I had them removed, I’ve heard case after case of similar issues. I wish I had been given more information to make a better decision and now have to live with the results, but I absolutely do not regret having them removed! I strongly encourage anyone getting any type of major implant to do their research prior and definitely think twice if you have a family history or any indications of an autoimmune disease, as the trauma of the surgery alone can often trigger flares or onsets.”
—Anonymous
Pridannikov / Getty Images
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
Did any of this resonate with you? If you’ve ever had cosmetic surgery and regret it, feel free to share your story in the comments.
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