Women Are Expected To Judge Ourselves By Our Reproductive Biology

Photo by Dainis Graveris on Unsplash

So, I’m going to start this by saying that I do not judge adult women who choose to get implants. I may occasionally have judged the quality of the results (Some look more natural than others, just saying) in much the way I might look askance at an unflattering hairstyle.

But a lot of cis women get breast enhancements not just because we are judged by our reproductive biology but because we are expected to judge ourselves by it.

One example of this is the treatment of breast cancer survivors who choose to “go flat.”

Breast Reconstruction

After a double mastectomy, most patients opt for breast reconstruction. Yet, the statistics might surprise you. Is it 75%? 80%? No.

It’s 56%.

Meaning 44% of women opt not to have breast reconstruction. Furthermore, many of these women don’t wear a breast form most of the time. This even includes unilateral mastectomy.

Women choose not to have reconstruction for a variety of reasons. Most often it’s because they don’t want another surgery. They might be afraid. They might have health issues that make it dangerous. They might want to ensure that they still have their muscle strength, which some forms of reconstruction can impact…