I came across a viral video on Facebook from Harper’s Bazaar that featured young girls from ages 16-18 being interviewed on the details and reasons behind their plastic surgeries. My initial shock was caused by the fact that they were so young and had already made such a drastic change in their lives. The further into the video I got, the more questions sprouted in my head.

How did their parents allow them to get so far into a hole of low self-esteem that they were convinced to pay thousands of dollars to change their daughter’s physical appearance? How can these girls sit there, convinced that they did it “for themselves,” and then go on to say that they were scared of what people would say about them?

These girls felt better about getting their plastic surgeries because “a lot of celebrities have had plastic surgery.” Because these people they look up to have made this change, why can’t they? Why is it wrong for them to “fix” something about themselves?

The amount of body positivity in the millennial generation is generally much higher than it has been in past generations. Millennials tend to be more accepting and open-minded. We are sometimes so accepting that we unintentionally encourage harmful behaviors. More than one of the girls mentioned that plastic surgery can be a “feminist act” because it’s “all about your body and making yourself feel better.” I think this is simply a false statement. Going so far as to spend thousands of dollars to make the tip of your nose smaller or your breasts rounder is a direct plea to society to make them love you.

These girls say they’re doing it for themselves, but they go on to talk about how often they were bullied as kids because of the size of their nose, or how worried they are about what people might assume or say about their stretch marks. Saying they are doing it for themselves is clearly a transparent excuse. No amount of body positivity can cover up what they did because they hated something about themselves.

One of the girls posed the question: “When you have something about yourself that you don’t like… why not fix it?”

Because there’s nothing to fix. Your stretch marks and your nose are not flawed. They are apart of your ethnicity, your story, your sense of self. Trying to mold your body into your idea of perfect does not mean you are “doing it for yourself.” You are doing something to yourself in order to feel more accepted. That mindset is toxic. Their opinions have become so warped that one of them even compared plastic surgery to exercise. She asked why bettering yourself through exercise is not seen as a negative thing but plastic surgery is. She must’ve forgotten that the main purpose of exercise is to take care of your health, not to look a certain way.

The concept of body positivity, in my mind, does not include plastic surgery. It does not include taking drastic measures to “fix” yourself.

I can understand where these girls are coming from. They’ve grown up in a more accepting society, and they really do believe that their decisions to alter themselves were good ones. I understand the pressure and I understand the temptation.

But there’s a glaring flaw in their thinking. One girl even pointed it out without realizing it. At the end of the video, she stated that she was “perfectly fine” with how her face looked, but she still did not like her body.

Even if you get your nose done, people will find another detail to pick on about you. They’ll make you want another surgery somehow. It’s a downward spiral.

I'm not condemning people who have had or want to get plastic surgery because it is a personal decision that really doesn't hurt anyone else unless it becomes the norm. Young girls shouldn't be taught that they need to "fix" parts of their body, and parents definitely shouldn't be offering to pay for it. For adults, it really is a personal choice.

However, celebrities are the ones that young girls and boys look up to, and when they get plastic surgery, it can often leave an impression on the young generation.

The bottom line is that the ones who love and accept you because you’re imperfect are the ones worth keeping in your life. Anyone who really cares about you will not encourage you to change anything about yourself that doesn't need changing.

Our bodies are just vessels for our fragile souls, which are what we should be fixing and nurturing. They are what lasts. They are what causes people to love you.

You are God’s perfect masterpiece, created in His image, and I can promise you that He did not intend for his work to be altered. You are made how He wanted you to be made. You have a much greater purpose than to fit into the perfect little box that society has forced you into.