Warning: this article contains discussion of body image and beauty standards that some readers may find distressing
A mom-of-two has been left unable to close her eyes after flying overseas to undergo cosmetic surgery on the cheap.
Joanne Law forked out around $6,500 to fund a face, neck and eyelid lift, as well a fat graft, and while it may be still be an expensive venture, it would have cost her at least double that figure if she had opted for the same operation in her own country, England.
In June, 2023, the 56-year-old took a four-hour flight across Europe to go under the knife, having visited the same hospital four months earlier, in February, where she underwent gastric sleeve surgery.
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Following the success of the first procedure led to Law shedding seven stone, and while she was excited about the weight-loss, it brought about its own problem.
"When I lost seven stone I just felt wrinkly, so I thought this is my next step, I'll get my face done," Law, of Manchester, shared.
"I was chuffed the whole time, and that was my downfall. I didn't research enough because I trusted them.
"The procedure was around the back of the hospital in a basement. It frightened the hell out of me, it was awful, like a horror movie."
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She continued: "There was an old-fashioned bed screen separator, someone was being operated on the other side in the same theatre.
"Immediately after I got blepharitis, which is a bacterial infection, and had blisters under my eyes for three months.
"I still can't fully close my eyes now. I'm struggling to drive at night now because the car lights hurt my eyes and I just can't close them."
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Law went on to explain how she struggles to get around during windy conditions, and how she even has to pull over at service stations often while driving because she described how her eyes 'droop', and being unable to shut them it feels 'as if I've had no sleep for a week'.
The ordeal has knocked her confidence, with Law confessing that she no longer likes leaving the house as people comment on how 'tired' she looks.
Now, the Mancunian hopes to raise awareness to prevent others from taking the trip to Turkey, be that from the UK, the US or Canada.
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"What made me suspicious was before I went in, is that I couldn't find any before and after photographs of the surgeon's work," Law explained.
"I remember he fobbed me off to the point that I believed him. I was excited about what I was going to have done and ignored my gut feeling.
"I've been so frustrated, I want to scream to other girls and say don't do it."
Before adding: "The recovery was horrendous, there was no aftercare. That hospital is a butcher's shop."
Topics: Health, Mental Health, UK News
Joe Yates