Kylie Jenner, Khloe Kardashian, Angelina Jolie, Megan Fox - those are just some names of top celebrities that people admire and “wish” they could look like everyday. Whether it be their nose, ears, cheeks, chin or smile, more people across the world are finding things in/on others that they hope to one day change on themselves, whether it be for self-confidence purposes or just for a fun change. 

Dr. Daria Hamrah, based just outside of the Washington, DC region, is one of the top Double Board Certified Oral and Maxillofacial / Facial Cosmetic Surgeons in America who has garnered a massive following on social media for his fun, yet professional attitude towards helping people feel better about themselves whether with procedures through his offices or just accepting who they already are on the outside.

As a surgeon who has been on the forefront of performing Rhinoplasty, Face and Neck Lifts, and FaceTite / NeckTites, he has seen it all, and when it comes to people wanting to look like their favorite celebrities, he has heard it all too.

 

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We spoke to Dr. Hamrah in an exclusive one-on-one to learn more about what people are wanting these days as we come out of the pandemic.

Let’s start off and just ask you: What celebrities are people asking to look like these days?

Currently the top celebrities my patients are looking at are Bella Hadid, Megan Fox, Megan Markle, Angelina Jolie, Kylie Jenner, Khloe Kardashian. Of course they are all beautiful and accomplished women and many women look up to them and wish they had their eyes, brows, noses, jawline, cheekbones etc. Sometimes it’s helpful because I have an idea what they are looking for and other times not so much because they expect their features to look just like them, which of course is not possible. I always try to explain to my patients that the changes are always relative and not absolute. For example, if you have a nose with specific anatomical features, I can morph it and reshape it, but I cannot transform it into someone else’s nose. More importantly, it might not even fit their general facial features. The beauty of one’s face consists of the harmonious combination of all the facial features, the shape of your face, shape of your eyes and eyebrows, cheekbones, lips, chin and so on.

So, that’s what others see, but which celebrity in your opinion has the "best face"?

If you asking strictly based on perfect proportions, symmetry and combination of perfect individual features like the eyes, nose, lips, cheek bones, jaw line and aesthetic facial proportions, there are two that come to my mind. Natalie Portman and Charlize Theron. Not only they have perfectly balanced facial proportions, but also their individual facial attributes as above follow current aesthetic norms and trends. However, it is important to note that none of these can replaced what we call the “charm” that makes someone look beatiful. If you look at Gisele Bündchen for example, who has been the highest paid model in the world, her facial proportions are not ideal and if you were to compare her with the ideal face, she has a big nose, short upper lip and a small chin, which throws her facial proportions off. But  we have actually done a study and proved that this is not as important as the specific “charm” that your face exposes, which gives people a true sense of someone's “beauty”. So to me, she is in my top three!

Why do you feel people want to look more like someone famous instead of keeping their natural features?

It’s not a secret that we tend to look like people we idolize. We like to dress like them, walk like them, talk like them and even look like them. That is especially true, when we obsess about a specific attribute that they might have. Like a cute “button” nose or “fox” eyes. I have a lot of patients come to me and ask me for “fox” eyes, because Bella Hadid’s eyebrow shape. Or like a cute nose like Natalie Portman or Meghan Markle. But the main psychological reason behind your question is that many are simply not too happy in their lives and hence not content with what they have. They try to fill that void by either buying stuff they don’t need or changing their look, thinking it would make them a happier person. This might have a temporary and short term positive effect, but will not last long term, which often makes them come back for more changes that ultimately lead to completely distorted looks. To me, it is our responsibility as physicians to recognize that and have a candid discussion with our patients. Unfortunately, this is not done enough which has put a bad name to what we do as cosmetic surgeons. 

At what point do you turn away a patient?

Like I touched on above, it is important to recognize the patient’s true motivation. To try to look like someone else or to obsess about a little problem that no one can see, is a problem sign. Another problem sign is when my patients ask for a procedure or a change to make their husband or girlfriend happy. If you’re not doing it for yourself, I am not doing your surgery, period. I also use the 80/20 rule. This means that if you cannot accept a result that is 80% perfect and instead expect it to be a 100%, then you are not a good candidate for cosmetic surgery. The reason is because 20% of the results are typically based on the healing process and biology which is out of my hands. If someone obsesses or nitpicks about minor imperfections, especially ones that no one can see, I already know that I cannot make that person happy. 

What is your advice to those wanting to go under the knife and change their appearance? 

Two things first: (1) Make sure you are doing it for the right reasons as stated above.

(2) Understand, that surgery is permanent and that it is always easier to get a good result the first time! So do your research and make your choice based on who is closest to you or gives you a better “deal”! Cosmetic surgery is 50% science and 50% art. You don’t get the same result everywhere you go. Each surgeon has their own expertise and skill set which will predict your results. 

With that, It is important for the patient to do their due diligence and educate themselves about the experience and training of the doctor they choose specifically pertaining to the procedure they need. Today, thanks to the internet and social media where doctors can easily post and showcase before and after results, patients can be their own judge. Personally I use all available platforms to also educate patients about various aspects of treatments with their specific indications and I respond daily to questions from patients form all over the globe. This gives the patients an excellent chance to get educated. So the information is out there. People have to simply learn how to find it. Of course, one of the most important things to consider is, after you find someone that you like based on your research, to make sure that they are board certified and in good standing with their specific board and local health department. Another important factor as mentioned above is the surgeon’s experience in the specific procedure that you are seeking. For example, just because you are a plastic surgeon or cosmetic surgeon, which is a very generic training including the entire body, does not mean you are great at rhinoplasties or facelifts. A surgeon may be an excellent breast surgeon or reconstructive surgeon, but not perform many rhinoplasties. Not every plastic surgeon is trained in aesthetic or cosmetic surgery, which they simply wouldn’t know. That’s the due diligence part most of the patients with poor results that come to my office had been missing. They assume that every plastic surgeon is an expert in aesthetic or cosmetic surgery of the entire body. This is simply not possible. The good news is, as I stated above, the internet and social media have made it easier to find the “true experts” in each respective procedure.