LAist: Caught between a rock and a breast implant

moonkeeps

Tue, 22 Jan 2008 15:37:44 -0800

The stereotype of the natural sagging breast makes me tired! Who writes this and who are they looking at? Sorry, but you can't look at a woman's birth certificate and figure this out. Whether or not we naturally sag depends on our genes, how fit we are, and whether or not we wore a bra when we were supposed to. I'm well past 40, breast fed two kids, haven't had them "done" and my 'headlights' are still pointing forward like they always have. So many people have this weird idea if you undress a women of "uncertain age" (even if we're a size 2) suddenly flab, wrinkles, cellulite, vericose veins and stretch marks will fill the space we occupy. It's absurd! Sun exposure does the most damage - and unless we really have a lot of gravitational pull going on, our natural boobs look very well, thank you!

cmgrowl

Tue, 15 May 2007 12:50:22 -0800

in case you haven't noticed, there's a war going on, people are dying of AIDS and mass genocide I'm always amazed at comments like that. Why bother reading and responding to this article if there is mass genocide to stop? I don't think anyone here is complaining about women who get implants as part of reconstructive surgery. From what I am reading, that isn't a simple procedure and they wouldn't necessarily put those breasts on display afterwards. There is typically a lot of damage to the area. As for sagging breasts, that is a part of life. Some people come to grips with their mortality, others fight it. But it can be fixed cosmetically using breast lift surgery, which doesn't require implants.

Lizzie F.

Tue, 15 May 2007 08:30:28 -0800

I'm with you - I don't get why someone would want to do this to themself. Sure, there are men who only like the big ones, but there are equal numbers of men who like small ones. Actually I'd say the majority of men like whatever size they have access to. And so, I enjoy mocking. I've gained weight and now have large ones, and I'm trying to lose weight and save my money so I can have them reduced to the B cups I had in my 30s. (But I think the woman in the black bustier could easily be natural.)

Bill S.

Mon, 14 May 2007 06:44:09 -0800

heather said: ...they come in at age 40 with size 32AA breasts and might, for once in their adult female lives, want to look like an adult female. is that really so wrong?... Excuse me, but are you suggesting that any woman who doesn't have breasts larger than 32AA doesn't look like an "adult female"? So what exactly is the optimum breast size for an adult female? You people crack me up big time. Like none of you has ever had an amusing thought about another person's appearance. Wow. So what pills must I take in order to find your version of reality?

Joi

Sun, 13 May 2007 15:34:45 -0800

Well the person that wrote this article obviously has issues. A large number of women that get implants may have had children and breasts drop down to their stomachs. Many have had breast cancer. So instead of blindly judging every woman you see with breast implants maybe you should pause and deal with your own imperfections. If you're paying their bills thats cool. But your feelings shouldn't be hurt so easily by another person's physical appearance. A close friend of mine has natural 40DD breasts on her small frame and she would always have to convince people (especially envy filled women) that they are real. Uh oh! Looks like someone is jealous...

Aaron

Sun, 13 May 2007 09:52:10 -0800

You know, there's so much noise about how image-conscious LA is, but I haven't really worried about it. This is such a diverse city that I feel perfectly comfortable with my idea of "image-conscious" being carefully picking out which t-shirt to wear, while some of the people I'm with are all over it. That isn't to say that there aren't societal pressures regarding appearance - they're abundant, and I certainly think that any surgical procedure to improve your appearance is asinine; I'll stick with witty t-shirts, thank you. But as a former Zoni, people in Phoenix really looked to LA as little more than a massive plastic surgeon's waiting room, and this certainly isn't that. Are there nuts here, are there people whose self-esteem is based off of this? Of course, just the same as there are in New York, San Francisco, or Cleveland. There's probably more, because of the Industry. But people here, above all, should know that LA isn't the shallow coast of the pool like so many people think. So I agree with the rant about people who've made themselves ugly (and damn, did they ever) but am a little hesitant to blame it all on LA's "culture."

Randy

Sun, 13 May 2007 08:53:10 -0800

I'm with Heather on this one: Whyever would you care what someone else does with their own body? I also concur with her that breast augmentation surgery, when done right, can look and feel just as natural as 'organic' breasts! The trouble is, the only ones you get to notice are the bad boob jobs, and I feel this is unjustly prejudicing your view of the procedure and the women who opt for it. Case in point; my wife had wanted bigger breasts for most of her adult life. When she became pregnant at age 23, her wish was granted and she ballooned up to an E-cup, thoroughly enjoying her new-found assets and the attention they attracted. After breast feeding, she deflated back down to a humble B, but with all of the excess skin from her growth spurt still surrounding the reduced breast tissue. In 2002, she finally 'opted for the op' and had 320cc implants inserted into each of her breasts, thus regaining the shape that she enjoyed during pregnancy. The excess flesh still present made for a result that looked, felt and moved in a manner indistinguishable from the natural breasts that I've had the pleasure to experience. Not only that, but she's also since made use her 'enhanced endowments' to promote a good cause: Early in 2004, she started a website called VixPix - Tits Out for Multiple Sclerosis in order to help raise money for an MS charity with whom she was involved. Her efforts garnered international media attention and raised over $10,000US for her charity. So how's that for the value of 'fake tits'?!

Jill

Sat, 12 May 2007 23:52:36 -0800

*Sorry--that first sentence should have read "As someone with..." It's 3AM on the East Coast.

Jill

Sat, 12 May 2007 23:51:43 -0800

As naturally way-too-large-for-my-frame breasts, I just want to say that I cannot understand why anyone would voluntarily suffer through the back pain that genetics have saddled me with. While I understand wanting to do this for one's personal self-esteem (if that's really the reason, as opposed to "if I do this, maybe men will love me"), I just really can't see how the years of sitting in specially-padded, lumbar-supporting, chairs is really worth it.

Gonzo

Sat, 12 May 2007 20:47:37 -0800

Because you know, Mal, you should be finding a cure for AIDS and earning that Nobel Peace Prize, rather than writing HUMOROUS PIECES OF COMMENTARY (that unfortunately some people don't understand). Ah, I love ya anyway!

heather

Sat, 12 May 2007 20:03:14 -0800

i'm with Big Tex. wtf do you care what someone does with their body? did that one woman borrow $4000 from you to get her tits done? no? then so fucking what? i used to be a surgical assistant to a plastic surgeon. i assisted on at least 600 breast implant surgeries. i know why women get them done. it's so they can look normal. they come in at age 40 with size 32AA breasts and might, for once in their adult female lives, want to look like an adult female. is that really so wrong? no, it's not. and for the record, GOOD plastic surgery is not noticeable. come on, be honest -- you really aren't personally affected by what someone does with their body and if you are, you do have issues. so get to the heart of the matter and find out what is really important... your repulsion of breast implants is not it. in case you haven't noticed, there's a war going on, people are dying of AIDS and mass genocide. but all you can think of to write about is FAKE TITS. i guess that is all that is important in Los Angeles. what does that say about you? a shit-ton a lot worse than anything you said about the women in the pictures you posted. grow up.

Jayfader

Sat, 12 May 2007 15:01:36 -0800

Mal Fan number one here.

BigTex

Sat, 12 May 2007 14:36:18 -0800

The region containing CA contains a total of 13 states compared to the 9 states including NY in the other region. CA also ranks as number 1 in population so stands to reason that there would be more in this region doesn't it? CA also has has the most millionaires and pollution...so what. I wonder how many woman in New York have come out here for their implants? LA is a town you can make yours. So if you're into live music you can see it with other people that enjoy it, if you're into surfing you can be a part of that, healthy living- no easier place for that, people involved with their looks- yep, there's something for everyone including haters like you who can concentrate on other people's lives, or chests. As for your "if I don't like what I see in the mirror I'll go pay someone $10,000 to fix it..." comment, well, I guess they're saying F-off to people like you. Maybe you should try to expand your reach in LA and discover some of the truly wonderful things and people here and try to be more accepting of ideals out of your comfort zone, you don't have to agree but accept and move on. It's been 7 years, time to find a new vice. I love when people rage against social trends after all I'm sure you never buy any clothing that's trendy and makes you feel good and maybe just maybe gives you a hint of cleavage.

malingering

Sat, 12 May 2007 12:03:45 -0800

LA has a fantastic "don't like what you see then go f-yourself" attitude and I love it! I don't know what part of LA you live in, but where I live, LA has a fantastic "if I don't like what I see in the mirror I'll go pay someone $10,000 to fix it to make it so I can fit into society's magical ideal of perfection which is what will make me feel good about myself - looking like someone else" attitude. And yes, this is rather concentrated in LA. Just ask Dr. Grover. Or you can go straight to the source The American Society of Plastic Surgeons shows that the region containing CA has more than double the number of breast augmentations than any other region and almost triple the number in the region containing NY. 11 million surgeries in 2006, I knew I was in the minority.

BigTex

Sat, 12 May 2007 11:18:05 -0800

Perhaps this writer has some issues of her own to deal with. Anyone who can spend years of her life with a powerful personal grudge against implants needs some help. Go take a long hard look in a mirror and figure out why you can't accept people as people in all of their bad choice/good choice glory, especially since they're not hurting you in any way, except for the mental trauma you've obviously experienced somwhere down the line by a large breasted woman. LA has a fantastic "don't like what you see then go f-yourself" attitude and I love it! By the way, if they're displaying them in a "bold and confident manner" then it sounds like their self esteem is doing ok.

Dan

Fri, 11 May 2007 18:23:37 -0800

Playboy has articles?????

Mushroom

Fri, 11 May 2007 17:09:59 -0800

NKX: That's what she's doing. She has self-esteem without fake parts. And you? See, I always thought it was a male-only thing that bigger boobs = more worthwhile woman. Apparently the female version of penis envy exists, those with little may envy those with a lot, or until they consider how much more unwanted attention they get and the extra stress on the back and a dozen other considerations. Oddly, much like the notion that blondes have more fun so brunettes bleach their hair yet this doesn't change who they are, there are plenty of unworthwhile women with surgically enhanced bosoms. One could even say "mostly", that buying huge boobs is an earmark of being unworthwhile to know and especially to touch, but somehow believe the opposite. (They're for LOOKS. They do not FUNCTION.) I'm not talking about aesthetics, your average plastic surgeon's site will show how setters were turned into pointers, mismatches were evened out, and A's were turned into convincing C's to suit one's vanity. I mean pornstar-sized hooters that require constant supervision because unlike the real deal they don't stay there. Thank you for going public with this, Mal. People need to know you can't surgically implant self-esteem.

NKK

Fri, 11 May 2007 16:22:57 -0800

This woman is sick. Why do you take such pleasure in laughing at these women with self-esteem issues; maybe you should start dealing with your own.

Sue

Fri, 11 May 2007 15:21:40 -0800

I just noticed that all of these women are so very very tanned/sun damaged - clearly external f'd up-ness is the look they are going after. Maybe Darwinism is at work here, and they are warning/attracting potential mates. Kinda like stripes on a Tiger... Anywhichway - these are gonna be some Uggly Grannies someday.

Sue

Fri, 11 May 2007 15:08:01 -0800

Orig from NY, now in LA for way too long...Sorry, but there are just as many fake boobs in NYC. The modeling industry is there - you think that those Victoria Secret/lingerie models just sprouted double DD's on those lanky boyish frames when they hit 15? They just wear more clothing most of the time as they have actual weather. Any big city has this problem really. I would never ever do it myself (ewww), but I guess it isn't going to go away anytime soon. I just wish that they would try to make the implants actually look just a teeny bit like breasts or maybe try to get something in proportion to the body frame of the victim...uh, patient. These boobies are sad. And ugly.And not very sexy at all. Can I ask you - when the jogger lady ran, did you watch the weird stiff boob motion? It's a creepy/funny yet strangly hypnotizing thing, trust me. Not to be found in nature. What really makes me mad is hearing men complain about young women with "sag" - Duh, that's what actual breasts look like if they are bigger than a B cup. It's come to this - men don't even know what a breast looks like anymore. Look at porn of the 50's -70's. Now those were boobs!

RDM

Fri, 11 May 2007 14:41:40 -0800

Part of me says, let people do whatever the hell they want with their bodies. But what a nasty society we are creating. LA revels in its own shallowness, and the rest of the country looks up to us for it. These pics make me SOOOO happy I'm gay. Sure, we do the whole unrealistic body image thing too. But the artifice hasn't quite reached the absurdity (yet) found in heterolandia. Even the most cloney WeHo clone you find still looks a bit more like a real person than some of those girls running around Bev Hills.

hollywood

Fri, 11 May 2007 14:32:32 -0800

Seems like you are preaching to the choir. So far as I can tell, it's about money and self esteem. Actresses, wannabe actresses, sex workers, strippers, et al., figured out that their "image" could improve and along with it their paychecks. Then, it became more commonplace and now every other flat chested woman who was made fun of through life is signing on for it. It used to be nose jobs, now it's boob jobs.

Sydney

Fri, 11 May 2007 13:48:57 -0800

It's not true no one is from L.A. I was born and raised there, and so were most of my friends. (We are all different shapes, sizes, and colors, and none of us has fake boobs. And yes, we are perfectly fine with what we've got.) To clarify, certain parts of L.A. seem to have an abundance of surgically-changed women (and perhaps men -- who knows?). This trend is less apparent in other parts of L.A., where normal, everyday people live. Also, of course 40-year-old women in S.F. don't wear bare midriff tops as often as they do in L.A.; it's colder in S.F.!

LD

Fri, 11 May 2007 13:38:11 -0800

Long live implants! I much prefer implants on women vs. seeing a drooping, shapeless breast from years of breastfeeding. I'm sure the jogger looked great before the implants and now she looks even better!

cmgrowl

Fri, 11 May 2007 13:22:33 -0800

I don't think the earlier comments meant to promote a perfect size and shape as much as to say that having small breasts is not a reason to get implants. Certainly if you are born bigger there is beauty in that, too. Breast reduction is typically a different story because people get that done due to back problems. Great article in any case. I'd be interested to hear from someone who has implants.

Lagirl

Fri, 11 May 2007 12:31:29 -0800

Thanks, as always, for the article. I am 26 yr old female living in Los Angeles and completely opposed to breast implants. The unfortunate thing however is that my friends are talking about getting them. We actually have one friend who just did. I share my opinions on the matter, including health risks, but to no avail. :( I forwarded your article. I don't understand what the allure of it is - whether they really do it for themselves as they say, "its for me" or if they do it to look more appealing to the opposite sex. I hope that with you sharing your opinion and research it will help to shed a different light on the subject to a lot of women out there!

36DD

Fri, 11 May 2007 12:26:36 -0800

hey, i'm very happy with my genetically engineered (thanks, mom!) titties that do not fit into an 'old-fashioned champagne glass', and i don't particularly want to go in for a breast reduction surgery any more than i want to get implants. how about, instead of promoting some sort of ideal size for breasts (be it ample or petite) and comparing women against each other and some emotionally stunted notion of female beauty, we just give equal opportunity love to all mammories out there? they naturally come in all shapes and sizes, folks.

bbd

Fri, 11 May 2007 11:57:11 -0800

dammit, I failed...I made it almost to the end and then when I saw "suicide rates..." I just skipped to the last 5-sentence paragraph after that. Too depressing. old-style champagne glass indeed--that's my idea of beauty. It escapes me why someone would choose to do this to themselves? Do the do it for themselves or for who is or might be their partner? Either way this is a sickness. Plastic surgeons are getting filthy rich though. This is in no way denigrating the need for reconstructive surgery, but the elective stuff shows an underlying cultural malignancy

Ilena_Rose

Fri, 11 May 2007 11:49:39 -0800

I have headed an international support group for women harmed by different kinds of implants. The breast implant industry doesn't want the public to know the real dangers ... please visit our website. www.BreastImplantAwareness.org/

Scott Elkin

Fri, 11 May 2007 10:56:35 -0800

I totally agree. I do not find it attractive in the least.

em

Fri, 11 May 2007 10:48:49 -0800

Speaking as a New Yorker with a 32 B-it is sort of like salt in cooking you can add but you can't take away. Once a month my mammaries swell a size and when I breast feed maybe for a few weeks I will be porn star size; I have been told by many men that no one likes a sprained thumb. No more than can fit in an old school style champagne glass.

PJ Bird

Fri, 11 May 2007 10:20:43 -0800

Especially true is the point you made about Jogger Lady. She's got a phenomenal body and chose to distract from it. I'm with Bill, surgery is scary, dangerous, invasive. You should (I would) only do it if absolutely necessary. I certainly won't put myself through potential risks (surgical complications, autoimmune stuff from having a ziplok baggie left inside) for insignificant reasons.

49Giants

Fri, 11 May 2007 10:19:44 -0800

Malingering, you are not alone. I would actually like to know how many of these women are actually Angelenos, as in born and raised, and how many are transplants. One thing about California, amplified in la is that no one from la is actually from la. This is significant, I think, when it comes to fake boobage. If you transplant into SF, you're probably coming for a job in finance or law or biotech, or tech in general. But if you're going to la, you're going for one thing: the entertainment industry. Think about who these people are. A very few may have actual talent and training. Most everyone else is an insecure dolt with an unrealistic dream, unrealistic expectations, and a whole lot of delusion. Then they get to la and get bitch slapped by reality. All of a sudden, they're not as pretty as the folks back home in Michigan said she was. But then again, if you're a local, I suppose you'd be raised with celebrity culture and the skin deep values that attach, so maybe the locals are more likely to go under the knife? I only visit la as a visitor, but I go enough to know that there is a clear and obvious difference, in terms of image, between SF and la. You don't see 40 year old women in SF wearing mid-drifts. Thank God. But, unfortunately, you do see it in la. And she has a bellybutton ring. And a tattoo on her lower back. Oh, and her thong is peeking out from her low-rise jeans. In many ways, la's obsession with image makes la fun, but it is also oppressive, and is so omnipresent that it seeps into the daily lives of regular people, even if they don't know it. Some people make it out to la to try to make it, and when they realize they can't, they take the midnight train back to Georgia. But, all too often, they pass on the train ticket and decide, instead, to pay a visit to Dr. 90210. I don't know if I should hate these plastic women or if I should feel sad for them. I guess, I feel both. But more than them, I can not believe how mainstream society celebrates this type of activity. Cosmetic surgery used to be something to be made fun of because it was obviously a sign of stupidity and wealth. But today, it is truly mainstream. Now, it's not stupid; it's the smart move. It's not about wealth; any sucker who saves thier lunch money can get 34D's by the end of the month. And then they'll show off the results on Good Morning America. And then I see my female friends--intelligent, beautiful, educated, talented, ambitious women--who might catch a makeover show here and there, who might skim an article, who might observe their male friends gawking at the plastic babe--I see them, my female friends, slowly go from "I would NEVER" to "yah, maybe" to "I have an appointment next week." And don't even get me started on the "doctors" who use the skills of medicine to perform these procedures. In some countries, cutting into female genitalia is called mutilation; in this country, it's the newest fashion statement. Fixing a deformed face is one thing, but feeding off the fears of the insecure is compeltely different. These "doctors" are among the worst of the scum of our society.

KinkyPuddin'

Fri, 11 May 2007 10:11:26 -0800

What confuses me are men who say they like implants. If that's the case, why not have the operation yourself -- then take you out on Saturday nights and parade your tits around. I like the idea of chest-hair'ed D cups, kickin' it with his half-ass pants peeps, offering them a feel-up in exchange for beer.

William

Fri, 11 May 2007 10:04:41 -0800

I seriously just think these people are funny. I don't even get upset because there is so much humor to be had at their expense...and those who stare at them. The obsession is indeed ridiculous but we can go into the multitude of other things people everywhere do to qualify their existence and self-worth. One thing I don't like is when people suggest that this type of behavior is somehow more prominent in L.A. Or that people from L.A. are like that. I would aver that the reason it's so much more obvious here is that there are lots of people with money AND they can show it off because a lot of clothing is rare almost year-round. I think what most people find annoying is that the implantees usually receive more attention. So, it's not necessarily them we should be worried about but the idiots who are looking at them as if they've just seen a goddess.

Bill S.

Fri, 11 May 2007 09:59:38 -0800

Well, of COURSE I read it all the way to the end, and STOP PEEKING OVER MY SHOULDER WHILE I READ PLAYBOY. Seriously, I would be most interested in finding out why this is such a popular thing, given all the bad press it has gotten over the years. I can understand people who need joint replacement surgery, but why on earth would anyone stick something artificial into their body FOR NO REASON OTHER THAN TO BE BIGGER. Boggles the mind.

wskrz

Fri, 11 May 2007 09:43:59 -0800

Excellent article, Mal. And as you said above: Why not be proud of what you've got? Indeed.