Study Uncovers Link Between Plastic Surgery and Mental Illness

To address this question, I am drawn to the psychological condition of Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). BDD "is characterized by an excessive preoccupation with a real or imagined defect in your physical appearance.

People with Body Dysmorphic Disorder have a distorted or exaggerated view of how they look and are obsessed with actual physical characteristics or perceived flaws...They often think of themselves as ugly or disfigured. People with body dysmorphic disorder often have problems controlling negative thoughts about their appearance..."  Certain physical obsessions in a person with BDD include breast size. Severe BDD can lead to suicide ideation or suicide.

The underlying cause of BDD is still unclear, however, the following issues may either lead to, or co-occur, with BDD: chemical imbalances in the brain (low serotonin), obsessive-compulsive disorder, eating disorders, generalized anxiety disorder and other psychological, behavioral or cultural factors where someone feels that she must live up to unobtainable or unrealistically high standards of personal appearance or success. 

I do believe an article on BDD could easily have been inserted next to this study in the journal to highlight direction for answers. There are tests for BDD that plastic surgeons could use: there is a questionnaire, the BDDQ, and an examination, the BDDE, both of which focus on concerns about physical appearance to evaluate the key tendencies of the disorder.  Could this be a beginning step to discover the "common denominator"?

Undergoing breast augmentation could also be linked to a type of co-dependency for those with BDD: once I can be a certain size, I will feel better and be happy. Once the moment comes, and the new breasts are in place, other issues will surface because the underlying emotional issues were never addressed. It is a chase for happiness that eludes. Once you make it to the destination you think will make you happy, another shows up down the road. And the chase begins again. The abuse of alcohol and other substances as well as suicide ideation and action do not go away.

Then again, are we the public placing our expectations too high on the plastic surgeons? This is an elective surgery. So who is accountable? Are the plastic surgeons practicing the oath "First do no harm...?" Is the work they do only putting off the inevitable? Within the mental health community, should we be taking charge of this concern and making it known that corrective surgery does not automatically remove the emotional impetus to undergo the cosmetic procedure?

In the end, perhaps a better system of checks and balances between the client, their general practitioner (or therapist) and the plastic surgeon may create yet another stopgap to uncover emotional concerns as yet undetected and save lives rather than altering bodies.

 
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