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THE desperate need to be pretty isn't pretty. It's deeper than skin-deep.
And no, we're not being blind or foolish, even though, as one tai-tai admits, she's paid more than $700,000 so far on aesthetic treatments.
| FACE |
WHAT: Skin whitening injections
WHERE: Face
WHAT: Growth hormone therapy
WHERE: Face
WHAT: Stem-cell application for skin rejuvenation
WHERE: By consumption
WHAT: Microneedling dermaroller
WHERE: Around the eyes
WHAT: Mesotherapy
WHERE: Under chin
WHAT: Carboxytherapy
WHERE: Neck |
They are the patients whose need to look good has fuelled such strong demand that it has made it lucrative for GPs to offer aesthetic treatments and the Health Ministry to frown on the practice.
A Health Ministry official had warned recently of doctors who offer unproven treatments, such as fat-busting injections and 'whitening' treatments.
But the message from the tai-tais, the personalities who rely on their looks, and the plainly insecure who spoke to The New Paper on Sunday: We know what we're doing.
The wife of a fashion label owner, for example, who wanted to be known as Ms Elsie, said it's about keeping your husband, about lifestyle, even a social competition of sorts with younger women.
The 47-year-old mother of two girls, aged 11 and 9, told The New Paper on Sunday: 'I need to look good for my husband.'
Her husband, 50, owns a boutique line that has outlets in Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong and China.
The couple will celebrate their 22nd anniversary in May.
'My husband is constantly surrounded by beautiful women - actresses, models and pretty young things.
'Me? I'm just the home manager. I only manage my home, my girls and three maids. So I don't want to end up being a 'huang lian po' (Chinese colloquialism meaning drabby housewife).'
Ms Elsie, whose wardrobe consists of mostly UK size 6 clothes, is hardlydowdy.
Dressed in a pastel blue spaghetti-strapped dress, she is attractive, unpretentious and exudes a personable warmth.
Her perfectly manicured hands removed her sungalsses to reveal big, round eyes that twinkle with exuberance.
From all angles, Ms Elsie is strikingly pretty.
But her insecurity showed when she discussed her lifestyle - both personal and social.
There was discomfort as she tried to justify why she seems bent on a relentless pursuit for aesthetic perfection.
| BODY |
WHAT: Bio-resonance
WHERE: Body
WHAT: Carboxytherapy
WHERE: Abdominal area
WHAT: Mesotherapy
WHERE: Back (bra bulge), abdomen
WHAT: Colonic cleansing
WHERE: Rectum |
'Can you imagine walking into a ballroom filled with gorgeous women?' she asked, 'knowing that some of them may be eyeing your husband?'
On such occasions, she said she would say a silent prayer of thanks to whichever doctor she had visited to prepare for the event.
'It's not about what you wear. It's about how you carry yourself, what you look like...
'It's also about how the candid shots published in the newspapers or magazines will show you up to be.'
Ms Elsie cannot imagine being caught on camera with the three bulges from 'your breasts, your tummy and the space between them'.
To prevent such a scenario, she reckoned she has spent more than $700,000 on 'all forms of beauty treatments and therapy'.
| HIPS |
WHAT: Vacustyler
WHERE: Hips
WHAT: Mesotherapy
WHERE: Hips and thighs |
To date, Ms Elsie has done all 11 treatments on the controversial list released by the ministry recently - and more.
To date, she has had regular botox, collagen and filler injections, intense pulsed light, liposuction and even the latest fat-busting treatments.
While other tai-tais jet around the world for the latest fashion accessories, Ms Elsie visits France, Japan, Hong Kong and Thailand for aesthetic retreats and to go to detox spas.
'Each time I come across some news about a new treatment or spa, I'd book myself for one,' she said.
She keeps track of all the sessions, complete with photographs and receipt details in her personal blog, accessible only with a password.
She said: 'I hope to share what I have gone through with my daughters when they are older. Perhaps then, they can better understand my innermost feelings.'
However, she admitted that the treatments 'do not mean my husband has stopped fooling around'.
| LEGS |
WHAT: Carboxytherapy
WHERE: Thighs
WHAT: Slidestyler
WHERE: Legs
WHAT: Endermologie
WHERE: Calves |
'But they do keep him coming home to me still.'
One other 'guilty pleasure' she derives from the treatments: 'I am spending his money. He is paying for me to look good, so I feel somewhat comforted.'
She dismisses concerns that there is no scientific proof to support the effectiveness of some of the treatments.
'After so many years, we're now told they have not been proven to work? But if I do see the changes, why should others tell me otherwise?'
She lifted her dress to show this reporter: 'See, do you see any marks or scars? None, right? And I can tell you, I feel confident and rejuvenated when I look at myself in the mirror.
This article was first published in The New Paper on Mar 30, 2008.
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