Is Cosmetic Surgery Ever Appropriate for a Child?
My three-year-old daughter fell and busted her upper lip the other night and ended up with six stitches. She has an appointment to have them checked and possibly removed tomorrow, and we'll have a better look at what kind of scar we might be dealing with-if any.
I admit that after initially making sure she was okay and that all that blood was just from her lip, one of my first reactions at the sight of her wound was oh my gawd that is going to be a nasty scar. Now, I am not the type of mom that is normally concerned about appearances or superficial things like this at all. But, it was a huge gaping wound right there on her beautiful face!
In hindsight, I wished I would have thought to ask for a plastic surgeon to sew her up instead of the on call ER doctor. But, what's done is done. We've been told we should wait six months until assessing possible cosmetic surgery as the scar can heal and fade during that time.
Related: The 7 absolute WORST things you can say to your child
When I was a child I got in the middle of a cat and dog fight and have sported a scar on my left eyebrow ever since. I can't recall ever being bothered by it-and maybe even felt that it made me a little unique.
I have very conflicting emotions about my daughter's lip. Honestly, I probably wouldn't even worry about the scar if it were one of my sons. (And I'm not proud to admit that.) But-what if it does leave a scar that makes her feel self conscious as she gets older? Or-what if she thinks it adds character? Do I have the right to correct it when she has no say in the matter? There's also the very real dangers that come with any type of surgery-do I want to subject my daughter to going under anesthesia because of a scar above her lip?
Would you consider cosmetic surgery to correct a scar on your child? Do you have a scar you wish your parents would have done something about when you were younger? Let us know in the comments.
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Stephanie Precourtis a freelance writer and the director/producer of the Listen To Your Mother Show in Northwest Indiana, but her biggest successes so far are her four children ranging in ages 10 down to 2. She is passionate about attachment parenting and homebirth but has honestly tried every method of how to raise and birth her kids and is basically just doing the best she can, okay? She shares a commentary about her daily life at her blog, Adventures In Babywearing even though she is all done wearing her babies. Now they just wear her out.
