Plastic Surgery Question

Dear David,

I have a very good-looking female friend who is always impeccable about her appearance. She wouldn’t even take out the garbage with being well-dressed and made up. Like many women these days she has an occasional visit to the plastic surgeon to have fuller lips and a tighter skin here and there. But strangely, after she has had a bit of surgical intervention she will want to go out to dinner and goes out with her face all puffed up and “duck lips” flapping. It’s kind of scary. I find it hard to understand why she is so careful of her appearance and yet has no problem going out in public looking like something out of a horror movie. What do you think?

~Mr. Perplexed

Dear Mr. Perplexed,

Yours is a very unusual question. Being so careful of her appearance surely has to do with some lack of self-confidence. And then flaunting the fact that she has just had plastic surgery?  My guess it’s what I call “stepping in your own knickers.” In principle she’s heading towards marriage, family, etc. She may have a great fear of this for some reason, perhaps sexual. So parading herself around looking ugly may be her way of making sure that what she is supposedly pursuing will not happen. Many people fear failure so they keep themselves from finishing projects and relationships. If you never accomplish it you cannot be said to have failed. That’s my guess. 

(photo via englishrussia.com)