1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites

#dropdeadgorgeous: Pushing perfection to the limit

February 27, 2015

They're young and beautiful, but for them, it's not enough. A plastic surgery fanatic, bodybuilder and recovering anorexic tell us what happens when one’s happiness rests on achieving physical perfection.

Nur für Life Links - Vorschaubild gesamte Folge
Image: DW/Robert Richter

Life Links - #dropdeadgorgeous: Pushing perfection to the limit

41:42

This browser does not support the video element.

“It was never enough...and then I realized, it was never going to be enough” - Antonia from Sweden thought being thin would make her happy, but instead she slipped into a spiral of despair and landed in hospital. That was a turning point: she did not want to die of anorexia. Now she’s through the ordeal and is a role model to thousands worldwide.

"I see stuff I want to improve. Almost everywhere." - when Thomas from Germany looks in the mirror, he does not see the muscular young man other people would see. He sees "construction sites” - parts of his body that he feels he still needs to work on. To do this he plans his whole life around working out.

"For me it was necessary to have the surgeries to make myself feel better in front of others." - Isis from Brazil feels uncomfortable with her own body. Though she goes to the gym regularly, what she can achieve through natural means is not enough for her. The pursuit of physical perfection is pushing her under the knife.

Skip next section Explore more
Skip next section DW's Top Story

DW's Top Story

Skip next section More stories from DW