Menopause Makeovers: The Popular Trend Empowering Women

Menopause is a topic that’s not discussed as much as it probably should be, but more than it used to be. Maneuvering through perimenopause, the time leading up to menopause that causes a variety of symptoms to enter a woman’s life, and then hitting menopause, can be frustrating due to all the changes associated with it. 

While Mommy Makeovers have been openly talked about and sought after for a while, there’s now a new makeover in town - the Menopause Makeover. And while it’s not exactly new, it’s now being discussed more with the new wave of conversations surrounding menopause. 

Menopause Makeovers were named the biggest beauty trend of 2024 by a variety of publications. Dr. Christopher Costa, renowned board-certified plastic surgeon and founder of Platinum Plastic Surgery in Las Vegas recently shared some exclusive insight into the popular trend with The Blast. 

With more than 2 million women in the United States reaching menopause every year, National Menopause Awareness Month in September and World Menopause Month in October bring a timely opportunity to open up more conversations about the trying times that change women’s lives. 

Menopause Makeovers, a tailored cosmetic approach that addresses some common issues such as hormonal fat redistribution, loss of facial volume, and sagging skin, is gaining in popularity and can help women regain confidence and tackle some of the many menopausal changes.

“So you’re looking at women in their early to late 50s potentially, with hormonal changes,” Costa said. “They just can’t lose weight as much as they used to, and it’s harder for them to maintain their physique. Which definitely has a hormonal component to it. And then the other side of it is your body changes as you just get older.” 

A Menopause Makeover isn't a specific set of procedures, it's more a la carte, giving the patient a totally customizable and personal experience.

"It's not a specific set of procedures or anything like that. I would say the most common thing by far is going to be liposuction. There definitely is some anecdotal and legitimate literature that supports just losing weight, but after menopause, it's very difficult," Costa told The Blast. "I can't even tell you how many patients that have come in and said after menopause they can't lose the weight."

Costa also sees a lot of patients who have utilized weight loss medications and now need skin excision procedures.

There are many different misconceptions swirling around about plastic surgery. One of the biggest misconceptions Costa said is extreme cases and not being educated on the topic.

"Our patients are just regular people. And I think that's the biggest stigma. People assume that the people who get cosmetic surgery are just these super, super vain Hollywood stars who look really weird. They don't look like normal people who just have so many Botox and fillers and procedures and stuff," he said. "And the reality is that people like that don't usually get surgery in my office."

Costa reiterated that the majority of his patients are "just regular, normal people."

"They just want some enhancement or just look and feel better," he said.

With the advances of technology over the years come safer procedures, which oftentimes means the older generation who didn't think they could have procedures done can now.

"As our technology and procedures have advanced, like, we're able to do these procedures a lot more safely than maybe we used to. Our field has gotten better, that's why we go to medical meetings and stuff, to try and figure out how to make these procedures safer for people which means people who are older can get them done safely and the risks are very low," Costa explained.

"I think one barrier for patients potentially getting surgery is just that you know they felt like they were too old to get surgery, but it could not be further from the truth because, obviously, every surgery has risks but we are able to do really dramatic transformations on patients who maybe previously thought they wouldn't be a good candidate for procedures or thought they could only get a small thing done."

Costa also explained that the mindset of the average, everyday 50-year-old has changed.

"As a society, 50-year-olds are doing stuff, they're very active, they're working, they're running corporations, they're doing a lot of different things," he said. "And so it's become, I think, even more trendy to do procedures."

It's not only women who seek cosmetic procedures. The trend of "Dad Bod" makeovers is rising with many men seeking out specific procedures.

"Although cosmetic enhancement for men isn’t typically talked about in public social settings, statistics show that the number seeking out cosmetic procedures has skyrocketed and as a plastic surgeon, I’ve seen it first-hand. In just 2022 alone, 1.5 million men underwent cosmetic procedures–a number that continues to rise, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS)," Costa told The Blast exclusively.

"As far as medical spa services go, practitioners have seen an astounding 253% increase in male patients from 2019 to 2022!"

The two most popular minimally invasive procedures according to Costa have been "Bro-tox" and jawline filler.

For more information about Platinum Plastic Surgery, visit their website.