Did you know that over 50% of surveyed people admit that they stare at their own image on video calls more often than they like?
Keep in mind that those are only the people who admit to doing it. The actual number could be much higher. So, if you find your eyes drifting to your own image on Zoom calls, you’re not alone. Far from it.
This is actually causing a phenomenon called The Zoom Effect, as a record number of people are now obsessing over how they look on video calls.
A Wake-up Call for Many
If you don’t spend a lot of time on video calls or social media, it can be easy to lose track of how you look. You see yourself in the same mirror getting ready every morning, so it can be a bit jarring to see yourself from different angles—particularly from the traditionally low angle of a webcam.
Couple these new struggles with possible weight gain during the COVID lockdown (AKA The Quarantine 15), and now millions of people find themselves asking, “Is this how I really look?” And this is sending a new wave of people to plastic surgery clinics.
“Most of the patients that I see are women that have tried everything. Diet, exercise, healthy living,” said noted Toronto breast augmentation surgery expert and plastic surgeon, Dr. Stephen Mulholland.
“But they look in the mirror and they say, This is just not me. What’s happened?”
This has created a mini-boom for the plastic surgery industry, and some surgeons are reporting a 60% increase in patients during the COVID-19 crisis.
An Interesting Opportunity
A lot of people are also getting plastic surgery because they now have the unprecedented ability to recover discreetly from surgery while working from home.
It’s estimated that over 40% of the entire US workforce is now working from home. This means that you no longer have to use a week of vacation days to recover from something like a facelift or a liposuction procedure. You could realistically have the surgery done on a Friday, take the weekend to recover, and then dial into work on Monday morning. Nobody needs to know that you had surgery, and you get to save your vacation days for a real vacation.
A Different Type of Cancel Culture
Another frustrating reality we’re all facing is that we’ve had to cancel nearly all of our fun plans for 2020. We had to cancel vacations, summer camps, ski trips, and even weddings because of travel restrictions and social distancing.
This is leaving thousands of people with a little bit of extra cash and a strong desire to treat themselves. In some cases, this treat is a new pool or hot tub. But a lot of people are also putting the money towards getting the plastic surgery that they have always wanted.
You can easily turn off your webcam. But it’s a lot harder to turn off the feelings that may have been sparked in you.
If you’re thinking about getting plastic surgery right now, know that you’re not alone! And know that you are worth it.
