Nobody’s perfect. Parents whose children are born with protruding ears or other ear deformities often have their ears surgically corrected if they can afford it. They realize their children will often face teasing and feel rejected for looking different than their classmates. But what about children whose families were unable to fit ear surgery – otoplasty – into their budgets? If you had the misfortune to be born with protruding or misshapen ears and you are now in your late teens or adult years, should you consider having them fixed now? Are there good reasons – psychological, social, and economic – to do it? Does ear surgery – otoplasty – in Inland Empire make sense for you?
The Psychological and Social Costs of Misshapen or Protruding Ears
People with ears that are markedly different were born with an imperfection more noticeable than the defects inherited by others. This one fact often results in name-calling and emotional bullying in school. It can cause some high-quality people to experience social isolation. This exacts a real price in self-confidence and self-esteem. This becomes clear when we consider the psychological boost that otoplasty or ear surgery can have on patients:
Standard psychological measuring tools revealed that otoplasty patients experienced a better quality of life after surgery. They reported improvement with friends, greater freedom from anxiety as well as improved self-confidence and self-esteem.
– The Journal of Craniofacial Surgery
No doubt, the negative effect that misshapen or protruding ears have on the emotional well-being of those born with them is understandable. Years of research has proven the connection between how we look, how we feel and how others treat us:
The intimate relationship between self-concept and appearance is also well documented, and the face is a major component of body image and self-worth. It affects how one is perceived and evaluated by others, guiding their impressions and behavior. Important decisions such as life partner and job selection are influenced by biases that depend partly on facial appearance. – The AMA Journal of Ethics
As this AMA publication points out, your facial appearance often influences things as important as getting the life partner and the job you want. This is one way those with misshapen or protruding ears in Inland Empire can benefit from otoplasty. Ear surgery can eliminate an important bias that affects your social life and job prospects.
Ear Surgery – Inland Empire Teens and Adults Can Gain Job Advantages
It should come as no surprise to anyone in Inland Empire or metro Los Angeles that those with misshapen or protruding ears can face substantial workplace discrimination. Some 50 years of research confirms it – and not just in the entertainment industry.
Distinguished economists Daniel Hamermesh and Jeff Biddle reviewed some of this research and determined:
- Men considered handsome earned 5% more than men considered average in looks.
- Men considered “quite plain,” or “homely” earned 9% less than average-looking men.
- Women experienced similar but lesser pay fluctuations based on their looks.
Forbes magazine added this unsettling fact:
Unsurprisingly, the beauty bias transfers into the workplace, with scientific studies showing that less attractive individuals are more likely to get fired, even though they are also less likely to be hired in the first place.
Please read my article, “The Facelift Price – Is it a Good Economic Investment?” at LookYounger.News for more details.
It’s evident that good looks can provide a real advantage at work. But being less attractive can saddle you with an even bigger disadvantage. According to Dr. Hamermesh, quoted in The New York Times, good-looking people can earn as much as $230,000 more over their lifetimes. That makes an otoplasty procedure costing $5-6,000 look like a real bargain.
How can teens and young adults afford Ear Surgery in Inland Empire?
Business publications like Forbes and Inc. magazine clearly show from expert research and surveys that attractive people, with no obvious facial anomalies like a large nose or protruding ears, are more likely to be hired, paid more, promoted, and retained. But how can young people afford to have less-attractive features surgically corrected? College costs keep going up.
Being a smart education shopper can help students have both the qualifications and the appearance they need to succeed. For example, the US Department of Education’s College Scorecard calculates each college’s Average Annual Cost of Attending. Tuition after average financial aid award and living expenses are included for private colleges. This calculation uses in-state tuition for public institutions. In addition, Payscale.com surveyed 3.5 million graduates of 4,000 colleges and universities and publishes average early and mid-career salaries for grads of those institutions.
Doing some research with these 2 sites reveals some Value Colleges that return high salaries with lower costs of attending. Here are a few examples:
College or Average Annual Cost Average Average
University Cost of Attending Early Salary Mid-Career Salary
Stanford University $12,000 $81,800 $147,100
UC San Diego $13,000 $65,000 $128,900
UCLA $14,000 $62,600 $122,400
UC Berkeley $15,000 $72,600 $138,800
Georgia Tech $15,000 $74,500 $137,300
MIT $18,000 $88,300 $158,100
Surprised to see Stanford listed as a Value School? America’s top universities like Stanford, Harvard, Princeton, and MIT award substantial financial aid packages to outstanding students based on need. Not many students can get into these institutions. But, as you can see, a number of state schools provide a strong education and high earning potential at affordable rates.
Value Schools don’t necessarily have famous names. But clearly, employers regard them well. Doing some homework and choosing a college with the right program at the right cost can free up funds students can use to improve their appearance – and their job prospects.
The Otoplasty Procedure
People born with misshapen or protruding ears are tired of hearing others comment on them. Otoplasty is designed to make your ears appear natural and less noticeable. So, determine what you’d like from a procedure. Then discuss your hopes and expectations with a board-certified facial plastic surgeon. Your surgeon will examine your ears, determine the problem, and set up a plan to accomplish your goals.
To improve protruding ears, your surgeon will make incisions inside the folds or on the back of your ears. He or she can make your ears less conspicuous by trimming excess conchal cartilage.
To remedy cup ear, your surgeon will use hidden permanent stitches, which will straighten your ear and make a normal antihelical fold.
To improve a prominent ear lobe, your surgeon can change the direction of the interior cartilage and reduce bulk. This will make your ear lobe less prominent. Not every surgeon can do this well. Highly experienced facial plastic surgeons have the needed surgical “finesse” to correct prominent ear lobes.
Experience gets the best results in ear surgery
Doctor’s website Medscape shows why experience in correcting misshapen or protruding ears makes a difference:
Essentially, all current otoplasties are effective in reducing the prominence of the ear; however, one technique may be better than another for a special problem.
A highly experienced facial plastic surgeon knows which technique will get the best results for you. Their training as board-certified Ear, Nose and Throat specialists before further specializing in facial plastic surgery makes them experts in ear anatomy.
If you’re interested in otoplasty in Inland Empire, please contact me at STC Plastic Surgery in Ontario, California. You don’t have to live with the embarrassment and discrimination that often come with misshapen or protruding ears. You can enjoy the benefits of ears that no one notices.