Thirty-year-old Vanity Wonder – mother of two – has spent $15 000 on black market plastic surgery. For her bottom.
That’s right. Along with bigger boobs, smaller noses and plumper lips – the latest trend in plastic surgery is apparently boosting the size of your booty.
These photos made us wonder if the the world has gone completely mad.
The photos are shocking but at the same time, you can’t help looking. How is it possible to take the quest for a ‘perfect body’ so far and not realise when you’ve crossed the line from attractive to just plain weird?
Not only has this procedure severely distorted Vanity’s body but it has also put her life at risk. Black market plastic surgery is a growing industry in the United States, where the price of accessing a qualified doctor is out of reach for many women who are desperate to look a certain way.
Vanity Wonder after the injections.Vanity Wonder beforeVanity Wonder afetr the injectionsVanity Wonder beforeVanity Wonder after the injectionsVanity Wonder before
In her new book ‘Shot Girls’, Vanity reveals how she became addicted to injection procedures that have substantially increased the size of her bottom and hips:
Even though I had kicked the drugs, that didn’t mean I was going to kick my appointment to get pumped. It’s not like I was high when I decided that I wanted them, and I saw no harm in getting them. I had always wanted a better body and on top of that, I liked the compliments that I’d got when I was a little thicker.
Vanity Wonder
…I immediately wished it was someone else who was going to get shot with these needles. I mean, I freakin’ HATE needles. I have a hard time getting my blood drawn or getting vaccinated. I wished that someone else could take the pain but I would get the bigger butt. I gave [them] my $500 and took off my pants…
The poke hurt a little but it was nothing compared to the feeling of the liquid flooding into my butt…
… I was allowed to stand up and bend my knees because they were aching from the pain. I looked at my butt in the long mirror that was on the outside of the bathroom. It wasn’t a major improvement but I was happy with the results so far.
Vanity was pleased with the result, but soon decided that it wasn’t enough:
The next morning, I woke up and was more than ready to get the cotton and superglue off of my butt.
I followed the instructions and the cotton came off without incident. I was happy with the results and couldn’t wait to go to work so all the girls could see how good it turned out. When I got there they gave me good compliments and I was happy about the little attention I received. It felt good to get compliments that I never thought I would. Coming from what I had, I was just happy to be there. But yeah, I decided to get more…
Vanity finally stopped getting the butt injections once she began to fear that she would not be around to see her two children grow up. Her story makes you wonder what sort of influences are at play that have made Vanity feel like she needs to increase the size of her behind well beyond natural human proportions. And why didn’t she stop earlier?
Are plastic surgery options becoming too extreme? Can plastic surgery be addictive? What does it say about society, when women feel such pressure to look a certain way that they will resort to life threatening medical procedures?
Top Comments
Buttock augmentation is becoming increasingly popular, especially amongst certain ethnic groups, which see a rounder, fuller and prominent bottom as a sign of beauty. Behinds like those of J-Lo are desirable for many men and sought after by many women too. We should not judge others ideals of beauty, because what is beautiful to one person may not be to another - cliched but true.
Having said that, I personally would not have filled Vanity's bottom to that extreme, and if she had come to me requesting that, I would have tried to counsel her against it and referred her to other colleagues for second and third opinions.
Indeed there are many options available in plastic surgery but it does not mean that we offer the "extreme" to everyone or to anyone for that matter. Good plastic cosmetic surgery is about safely achieving aesthetically pleasing and natural looking results where factors such as balance, proportion, subtle (or not overly dramatic) changes (less is more) are key.
There is immense pressure in society to look younger than we are, be more beautiful, have the amazing body that celebrities have etc etc etc.
For some people, they become fixated on this pursuit to be any or all of the above that they go to extremes and become addicted to plastic surgery. I think it is even more concerning that some people dislike how they look so much or desire a change so much that they would risk their own health and life by seeking budget cosmetic surgery in non-accredited sites by non-accredited surgeons.
It is also dangerous when patients seek plastic surgery for the wrong reasons - to please others, thinking it will solve their problems, hoping it will attract a partner and having unrealistic expectations.
However, I do understand that many people who seek plastic surgery, do so because they may feel self-conscious about how they look or lack confidence and seek an improvement in how they look. And plastic surgery can transform some people's lives, giving them more confidence, boost their self-esteem and improve their quality of life too.
Not everyone who has plastic surgery or contemplates cosmetic surgery is like Vanity, seeking an extreme result - and by that, I mean an outcome that others would judge as excessive, unnatural and "stupid". As a plastic surgeon, it is my responsibility to assess patients for their suitability for surgery (healthy, have realistic expectations, understand what they are having done, the risks, implications and alternatives) and to advise on what is safe and physically achievable, taking into consideration what a patient wants.
Vanity's case highlights the concerns that we have as plastic surgeons, patients
- wanting plastic surgery for the wrong reasons
- desiring a result that "pushes the envelope" in terms of what the tissues and body can handle
- not being well informed
- having an invasive procedure performed on "the black market"
It is encouraging that stories like Vanity's are told to better inform the public of the dangers of extreme cosmetic surgery and to provide a forum to discuss these issues.
How much would custom made clothes be costing her after that?!