Battling depression after change in appearance
(Image source: Twitter)
Global star Priyanka Chopra is hailed by fans for her immense self confidence and success in both personal and professional life. Though the talented actor's journey may seem like a piece of cake to many, Chopra Jonas has gone through the "dark phase" of her career, that too even before it started properly.
The botched nose surgery
During a recent appearance on The Howard Stern Show, Priyanka recalled when she had to undergo a surgery to remove a polyp in her nasal cavity.
She has mentioned the same in her memoir 'Unfinished', the time when she began to develop a "lingering head cold" in the summer of 2001. "I was having trouble breathing. This is a problem someone with asthma can't ignore," the star wrote.
She ended up seeing a doctor who discovered a "polyp in my nasal cavity that would need to be surgically removed."
'I wasn't me anymore'
The polypectomy "sounded like a pretty routine procedure," but it didn't go as planned.
"While shaving off the polyp, the doctor also accidentally shaved the bridge of my nose and the bridge collapsed. When it was time to remove the bandages and the condition of my nose was revealed, Mom and I were horrified. My original nose was gone. My face looked completely different. I wasn't me anymore," she said.
‘I went into a deep, deep depression’
“This thing happens, and my face looks completely different, and I went into a deep, deep depression,” she said on the show, adding that she believed her career “was over before it started.”
She wrote in her memoir, "Every time I looked in the mirror, a stranger looked back at me, and I didn't think my sense of self or my self-esteem would ever recover from the blow." She added that she remembers the media calling her "Plastic Chopra" after the surgery.
She revealed on The Howard Stern Show that she was fired from three films after the botched nose surgery.
Regaining her lost confidence
Priyanka ultimately ended up getting multiple corrective surgeries to fix the damage that was done during the polypectomy, thanks to the support of her father who gave her the courage to get another surgery.
Why does body image matter?
According to HeretoHelp, body image and self-esteem directly influence each other. If you don’t like your body or a part of your body, it’s hard to feel good about yourself.
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Impact of body image on mental health
Having negative thoughts about your body image can lead to multiple mental health problems. These include anxiety, body dysmorphia (a mental health condition where a person spends a lot of time worrying about flaws in their appearance), depression, eating disorders, feelings of shame or guilt, negative self talk, poor self esteem and preoccupation with weight/body type.
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