Magenta
July 31st, 2012, 05:50 PM
Original article here. (http://www.ctvnews.ca/health/free-plastic-surgery-for-bullied-teen-stirs-controversy-1.899484)
The story of a 14-year-old girl who underwent plastic surgery to put an end to years of schoolyard taunting has sparked debate over what many believe is a drastic response to bullying.
U.S. teen Nadia Ilse got $40,000 worth of surgery for free through the Little Baby Face Foundation, which offers corrective surgery for children with facial deformities and, apparently, those who are bullied because of their appearance.
CNN recently featured Nadia’s quest for acceptance in a segment with the network’s medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
Before she went under the knife, Nadia told Gupta that kids have been calling her “Dumbo” – and worse – since a girl in Grade 1 told her: “You have the biggest ears I’ve ever seen.”
By age 10, Nadia was begging her mom to allow her to get otoplasty, a surgical procedure to pin her ears back.
Her mom did some research and came across the non-profit Little Baby Face Foundation, which flew the Georgia pair to New York City to meet with its president, Dr. Thomas Romo.
Although Nadia had only asked for an otoplasty, Romo told her she should also get her nose and chin fixed. He told the teen that once her ears are pinned back, her asymmetrical nose and “pointy” chin would stand out.
“I love thin chins, but I don’t want them as pointy as that chin,” Romo tells Nadia in front of CNN cameras while marking incision points on her face in preparation for the surgery.
Nadia came out of the operating room with a new nose, chin and the ears she had wanted.
Looking at herself in the mirror for the first time after the bandages were taken off, she says: “I look beautiful. This is exactly what I wanted. I love it.”
She now plans to attend counselling in hopes of putting thememories of classroom tormenting behind her.
The story quickly made the rounds online, with numerous parenting blogs and websites aimed at teen girls denouncing plastic surgery as a solution to bullying and low self-esteem in kids.
This is, to me, absolutely disgusting. Bullying is a problem that often is pushed aside because people think that "kids are being kids" or some of the comments are harmless and that the kids receiving them should just grow a thicker skin.
She's lucky that the surgery went well and didn't just cause complications. She was a very pretty young girl before the surgery! Everyone has their flaws but to be offered plastic surgery as a solution? I wouldn't be surprised if she returned to school and was targeted again for how she looks again, now because she got cosmetic surgery and "gave in" to the taunts. Thing is, regardless of how she looked/looks, bullies will find a reason to bully others. They should be dealt with rather than let it get this far.
I really hope she thinks she is beautiful now but it's sad to see she "had" to change herself in such a way to feel better about herself. I won't even get started on what that "doctor" said to her...
The story of a 14-year-old girl who underwent plastic surgery to put an end to years of schoolyard taunting has sparked debate over what many believe is a drastic response to bullying.
U.S. teen Nadia Ilse got $40,000 worth of surgery for free through the Little Baby Face Foundation, which offers corrective surgery for children with facial deformities and, apparently, those who are bullied because of their appearance.
CNN recently featured Nadia’s quest for acceptance in a segment with the network’s medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
Before she went under the knife, Nadia told Gupta that kids have been calling her “Dumbo” – and worse – since a girl in Grade 1 told her: “You have the biggest ears I’ve ever seen.”
By age 10, Nadia was begging her mom to allow her to get otoplasty, a surgical procedure to pin her ears back.
Her mom did some research and came across the non-profit Little Baby Face Foundation, which flew the Georgia pair to New York City to meet with its president, Dr. Thomas Romo.
Although Nadia had only asked for an otoplasty, Romo told her she should also get her nose and chin fixed. He told the teen that once her ears are pinned back, her asymmetrical nose and “pointy” chin would stand out.
“I love thin chins, but I don’t want them as pointy as that chin,” Romo tells Nadia in front of CNN cameras while marking incision points on her face in preparation for the surgery.
Nadia came out of the operating room with a new nose, chin and the ears she had wanted.
Looking at herself in the mirror for the first time after the bandages were taken off, she says: “I look beautiful. This is exactly what I wanted. I love it.”
She now plans to attend counselling in hopes of putting thememories of classroom tormenting behind her.
The story quickly made the rounds online, with numerous parenting blogs and websites aimed at teen girls denouncing plastic surgery as a solution to bullying and low self-esteem in kids.
This is, to me, absolutely disgusting. Bullying is a problem that often is pushed aside because people think that "kids are being kids" or some of the comments are harmless and that the kids receiving them should just grow a thicker skin.
She's lucky that the surgery went well and didn't just cause complications. She was a very pretty young girl before the surgery! Everyone has their flaws but to be offered plastic surgery as a solution? I wouldn't be surprised if she returned to school and was targeted again for how she looks again, now because she got cosmetic surgery and "gave in" to the taunts. Thing is, regardless of how she looked/looks, bullies will find a reason to bully others. They should be dealt with rather than let it get this far.
I really hope she thinks she is beautiful now but it's sad to see she "had" to change herself in such a way to feel better about herself. I won't even get started on what that "doctor" said to her...