Bullying

Seven year old gets cosmetic surgery to stop bullying

April 16th, 2011 by | Permalink

Samantha Shaw, age 7, before and after ear surgery. Screen shot via Good Morning America.

Yes, you read that headline correctly. A seven year old girl whose ears stick out opted to get a fairly major surgery called a otoplasty. Her surgery lasted two and half hours and was performed in effort to silence her bullies. Samantha Shaw is only in the 1st grade but her mother said that the elective surgery was an attempt to stop the bullying because kids are so cruel.

According to GMA, Samantha was born with “cup ears”.  Her mother, Cami Roselles, told the morning news program that her daughter’s doctor said Samantha’s ear would correct itself as she got older, but they never did. Not only did her ear stick out, it also started to fold over. Samantha told GMA that she wanted to have the surgery done. Little Samantha sees it as getting her “ear fixed”.

Samantha and her mother made the long trip on a plane from South Dakota to New York to have the cosmetic surgery done through a charitable organization. Her plastic surgeon said that studies show that if prominent physical deviations that are easily correctable go uncorrected, children can suffer from self esteem issues and depression. Whether you support the decision or not, Samantha ultimately appeared on the program to be very happy over her decision.

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  • Harold

    My son had orthodonture in third grade because his teeth stuck out and he was beginning to be teased. I think it was the right decision. He was very cooperative and motivated. I don’t see anything wrong with it, unless it will affect her future appearance.

  • http://THEIMPERFECTPARENT DOUGLAS JAICHNER

    MY GRANDSON HAS THE SAME PROBLEM WITH HIS EARS, HOW CAN HIS
    PARENTS GET HELP WITH THE COST OF SURGERY?

  • Rissa

    I think it was bad idea.. ! She is only seven everybody gets teased for something.

  • Dawn

    I feel that it was the right decision. My son is 9yrs old and he is short for his age children continue to tease him and now when he meets some one new he automatically says I know I know I am short for my age I feel that it does affect there self esteem so I agree with the parents

  • http://www.esteemstudio.com.au/ rhealyn

    Ear pinning and reshaping surgery provides both physical and psychological benefits for patients. Suddenly, the staring and teasing stops, and people are finally able to notice the person rather than focus on their unusual ears.

  • Reena

    I feel so sorry for Samantha. It’s not her problem for her ears to be fixed,it’s those shallow minded people’s problem! Her ears are PERFECTLY fine. Kids will be kids, some of them are mean, they will tease n they will taunt. Parents play an important role in building up the young girl’s self-esteem. The parents shouldnt be ashamed of the cup ears instead they should be proud of it. Yes, people are calling her names but in the end she’s gonna be a stronger person. I love the way her ears are before.

  • Kevin

    All you guys saying her ears were perfectly normal and surgery was a bad idea have absolutely no idea what kids like these have to go through. You have no notion how much people look at their ears rather than at them. This ALWAYS leads to alterations in personality and low self-confidence. The sooner you get the surgery, the better. Self confidence and esteem will go up once you get the surgery, GUARANTEED unless ur surgeon f’ed up.. Coming from a person who used to have protruding ears.

  • Terri

    Kevin — couldn’t agree more!!!! The surgery was the RIGHT decision. Being a kid is hard enough without having something so obvious for other kids to pick on. As far as the “all kids get picked on…” comments go…are you SERIOUS? So that makes it okay–it’s just another childhood ‘thing’ to endure, I guess. (MORONS. Hope to God you don’t have kids).

    My son got braces on his top front teeth at age 9, because they protruded horribly and he was picked out mercilessly by a few kids who’s parents didn’t bother to teach them any empathy. Should we have waited till he was on the verge of suicide (like those two 14-year-old girls who killed themselves last weekend??)

 
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