TOO ASTOUNDING TO IGNORE
I have a guilty pleasure. I love celebrity gossip sites, even though I know I shouldn’t. Why do I find candid photos of him, her and that guy interesting? I can’t explain, but that’s besides the point. Upon perusal of one of my regular haunts, The Superficial (enough said), I came across an article leading me to Newsweek.
Miami, Florida-based plastic surgeon, Dr. Michael Salzhauer, undertook the task of informing children about the plastic surgeries their moms and dads may be undergoing.
“Salzhauer got the idea for a book after noticing that women were coming into his office with their kids in tow. He says that mysterious doctor’s visits can be frightening for children. “Parents generally tend to go into this denial thing. They just try to ignore the kids’ questions completely.” But, he adds, children “fill in the blanks in their imagination” and then feel worse when they see “mommy with bandages,” he says. “With the tummy tucks, [the mothers] can’t lift anything. They’re in bed. The kids have questions.”
You have to see the excerpts from “My Beautiful Mommy” to believe them…
All photos courtesy of Big Tent Books on Newsweek
It’s an interesting endeavour, I must admit. Being one who spent years teaching pre-school, I see the validity in educating children. Adults have an incredible responsibility with regard to being open and honest with children, answering questions they may have and enlighten their malleable minds.
So where are the boundaries drawn? 2008 is an age of plastic surgery and appearance enhancement. And quite often, it goes way over the line. At what point do books like this stop teaching children about the reality of a situation and start teaching them what the world thinks to be “pretty” or “beautiful?”
What are your thoughts?
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4 Comments
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to do this to your daughter as a woman, to give her this take on looks and beauty is to do her the ultimate diservice in life, teaching her to educate and love herself is your job the rest will come
looks fade no matter what the surgery and age creeps in to all women, knife or not
it isn’t easy seeing it happen, but when you are 40 it doesn’t matter how much surgery you have, you are STILL 40 and everyone knows it
as a woman, being around women today is becoming more and more painful, the focus on looks is everywhere and it every conversation, looks, clothes, etc.
why can’t women talk about politics, philosophy, books instead of the size of their ass?
these conversations are painful enough as a teen; but as a women with some life experience they border on mind-achingly dull
thank god for my friends
I saw this on the superficial as well.
I think there are really only two reasons one would purchase this. 1. As a gag gift for a friend. 2. Because a mother frequents a plastic surgeon enough to think that this might be helpful.
I’d like to believe that most mothers (aka those who can’t afford cosmetic surgery) would see how unnecessary this book is.
I saw this the other day as well. Educating children is a must, but there are limits. The education provided in this book would only have harmful results. Little girls shouldn’t grow up thinking that they have to get surgery to fit the mainstream idea of what beautiful is, and little boys shouldn’t grow up thinking that women should change themselves. Since it was written by a plastic surgeon, I can’t help but wonder if he’s just trying to drum up more business by telling kids that it’s okay to have plastic surgery, and that you should get if you don’t live up the expectations. I sincerely hope women don’t actually by this book for their kids, but just as a joke, as suggested by Austin.
Maybe I’m just lethargic these days but I don’t really see a difference if this book was published or not. I seriously doubt any kids are going to buy it on their own, and if it was a “present” from there parents, they would probably be getting the same “education” without it.