When a family member had a breast enhancement last year, my husband and I did some research to see what the Church had to say about such things. There was a letter or directive by (I think) a Vatican official (I wish I could find it right now!) that actually praised plastic surgeons for the work they do, especially those who help people with, say, cleft palates. However, it said one needs to examine one’s motives for getting plastic surgery. In our family member’s case, she did it because she was 40 and always “felt inadequate” with the size of her breasts. There was no other problem with them. We kind of thought she was having a midlife crisis. She had a few kids and nursed them just fine—hardly seemed inadequate for me! Her husband already married her with the ones she already had. I guess I can’t fully understand unless I’m in her shoes. Personally, I would never go under the knife unnecessarily, especially having small children, as you never know what could happen. I’ve been recommended for foot surgery (bunions), but don’t really want to do it because they’re not too much of a pain (I don’t like to show my feet in public, but I can live with that). I personally think that unless something about your body that God gave you is causing you excessive pain, don’t mess with it. As far as makeup, I’d go as natural as possible and look at it as taking care of the beauty God gave you. Just my thoughts.

Is it “too much” to get your bulging varicose veins surgically taken care of, even after you’ve decided you will “offer up” for the rest of your life the discomfort they cause you, primarily because they make small children cry and flee in fear and strangers hold back their vomit? 
Is it? Is it????
Just a hypothetical…...

Another thought on the surgery front- what about people who were extremely obese and then lost weight, and are left with excessive loose skin?  Personally, I think this is a good reason for some plastic surgery.

This topic is hard, and is a great example of how we just can’t make a judgement on an individual person without knowing their motives, heart, and state of mind.  Personally, the one area I have wondered about in regards to plastic surgery for myself is if I’d ever do anything to reduce or minimize some of the stretch marks I’ve gained after 7 children.  For me, finances pretty much dictate that this remains only a thought. 

Plus, I think vanity can be a tricky thing.  For me, I don’t struggle with vanity in appearance- actually I struggle to get dressed and put on make-up each day to be appealing for my husband.  I’m a sweats and t-shirt gal who rarely wears make-up.  However, I have felt God has called me to make an effort in my appearance to please my husband.  So I kind of laugh at the thought that someone would judge me as “vain” if they disapproved of wearing make-up or jewelry or anything fashionable, because it is so contrary to who I really am.

The other thing is that God made women beautiful, and our femininity is a gift.  I think enhancing beauty is virtuous, but indulging in the sin of vanity is another thing.  Such a fine line….

Vanity can come in more forms than just appearance.  It is essentially being overly concerned with how we appear to the world, versus the state of our heart and soul before God.  Someone can still be vain and yet not be overly obsessed with beauty or glamour if they are overly concerned with saying/doing/being the “right” kind of person or appealing in the eyes of the world.

I think it’s like using NFP to avoid a pregnancy.  The answer is going to be different for everyone, and unless someone is being blatantly superficial, we really need to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume that they’re deciding prayerfully as best as they can.

I was doing a Theology of the Body radio show once and we were talking about the resurrection and how the body isn’t extraneous, it’s such an integral part of being human that we get it back for all eternity at the resurrection, though in glorified form.  The woman hosting, a delightful, cheery, beautiful, kind, wonderful person (in spite of her many crosses in life) made an only-half-joking comment about hoping her resurrected body wouldn’t have the hips/tummy of an aging mom of several but would be gorgeous.  And although it had never occurred to me before, I think the Holy Spirit prompted me to point out that while on earth we can’t judge a book by its cover, in heaven we can.  Our resurrected bodies will accurately show who we are/how we got to heaven/how we led others there.  That’s why Jesus still has his wounds: not b/c he’s still suffering, but b/c that is the sign of his whole mission on earth.  So will our bodies be, and if it’s motherhood that brought us (and many others too) to heaven, our glorified bodies will somehow *show* that we are mothers.  So it’s not bad to see our post-baby bodies in something of that light already: they’re an accurate reflection of who we really are. 
Not that you can’t fix something that is really wrong (that’s the difference between Lasik and a breast augmentation, by the way), but our culture devalues motherhood, aging people, and so on and seeks to hide any signs of those states.
I struggled with an eating disorder for a long time and, though I’ve been recovered for a number of years, I see that I still have to be on guard against getting too caught up in whether I look as flat-tummied as I did pre-babies rather than whether I’m healthy.  The fact is, I can’t gain 50 lbs (healthily!) during a pg and expect to twang right back to my original shape.  But it’s been a good trade…

I love the comment about keeping our eyes on our “own paper”...Ladies, if you would never do it- GREAT, if you have or would like to- GREAT!! I’ve had six babies back to back & trust u me my body has paid dearly and being that I look like I’m 60 when I’m only 30 I have seriously considered having cosmetic surgery done. WHY? because I WANT TO!! I am not vain- being I homeschool, eat, breathe & live all things children I rely on the Lord with all my being and the Lord knows me!! Stop worrying about what your sister in law had done or your neighbor or if she wears too much make-up- you don’t know anyone’s heart, intentions or relationship with the Lord. I consider the greater sin being judgmental!! Let’s lift each other up ladies, not tear each other down- Keep your eyes on your own paper!!

I just don’t get some of these comments….  I’ll get it because I want it??  Because I can….  You can’t share the Good News if you look bad????  Saint Rose of Lima, a Great Saint, a Great witness to Christ use to rub her face with pepper to make it all red and blistery so that people wouldn’t pay more attention to her physical beauty.  St. Thomas Aquinus was nicknamed the dumb Ox because he was said to be overweight.  Now, I’m not advocating people rubbing their faces with pepper.  Or even for people to gain a lot of weight.  Or people with terrible overbite not getting braces.  But a boob job??  Come on, unless it’s a reduction I really can’t see a boob job being anything but vanity.  And believe me, even while breastfeeding I barely fill an A cup, so I know what it feels like to want one. 
We should of course take care of our bodies, but we shouldn’t pretend that we aren’t being vain when we are.

It was worth reading this entire post for the ugly album covers alone—those were fabulous!

For me personally, plastic surgery is tempting for all of the reasons listed in the earlier posts.  However, I remember once hearing the following:

“True beauty shines the spotlight on the other.”

Nice thought.  And, for what it’s worth, Bobbi Brown said not to ever mess with your lips or get a face lift—it rarely looks like natural beauty. 

One thing no one has mentioned is the competition women often feel to “keep up” with the beauty standard of their peers: “Hey!  No fair!  Can’t you just get old and saggy along with me?  You’re making me look ugly by comparison!”  Compare and despair.

So for now I’m just trying to get in some regular exercise, eat well, and look like I made an effort to edify the people around me.  The hardest part for me is working on inner beauty, praying that it will shine the spotlight on the other…from behind my sagging eyelids. 

I dont know, i think the lines are pretty clear to me…
You can call it judging or what-not.  But I dare not judge ones soul.
make-up, hair dye, tweezing, shaving, clothing all just fine as long as you’re not breaking the family bank
braces, lasik, of course!

botox, breast surgery, tummy tuck, facelift, lipo, NO!NO!NO!

isn’t there a HUGE difference here???  I have 3 daughters and I am trying very hard to be proud of my stretchmarks, droopy breasts, weird looking nipples etc b/c I am a mother and hopefully someday they will be too and will be PROUD b/c this is what God intended.  I think I might suffer from being overly vain if it weren’t for these battlescars!