A plastic surgery addict spent over $46,300 on cosmetic procedures abroad chasing the “Instagram filter” look.
Dale-Saint Cullen, 31, from Chester-Le-Street, County Durham in England first went under the knife in November 2019 to get a nose job — and six years on he’s “addicted to chasing a certain look”.
The admin worker admitted he had “major insecurities” — namely his 315-pound figure and receding hairline — but that they “weren’t a serious problem until the rise of social media”.
Sucked into a world of online perfection, Dale has forked out for procedures in Poland and Turkey — including a chin implant, liposuction, jaw reconstruction, a full hair transplant, teeth crowning and full body contouring.
He’s traveled 24,000 miles during 10 separate trips abroad and has spent $3,900 on flights alone.
Dale absolutely “loves and obsesses” over his new look and has “no regrets” about any of the surgeries.
But says he wants to “warn others” about the dangers of social media — particularly amongst youngsters — after his body dysphoria diagnosis, in May 2022, made him realize that it could leave others feeling “worse off” and that the look he was chasing was “fake”.
He has vowed not to undergo any other work but says, “there will always be that itch,” and fears that he will “never stop.”
Dale said: “Every time I was on that flight abroad, I would show doctors and surgeons filtered pictures on Instagram.
“That’s how I wanted to look.
“I was sucked into this vicious cycle of perfection.
“Social media made me want fuller lips, fuller hair, and perfect teeth, and it wasn’t until I had it all done that I realized it wasn’t how they looked in real life.
“I don’t regret any of the surgeries I’ve had done — just the reasons behind it.
“And I want to warn others about the reality of going under the knife.”
Although Dale was never bullied at school, he did suffer from “low self-esteem” and was “unhappy” with the way he looked.
“I wanted to change my nose, so I was going to get my nose job and that was it,” he said.
And in November 2019, Dale booked a $14 flight to Warsaw, Poland, for a $5,500 rhinoplasty.
“I barely did any research beforehand, other than a quick Google, and it was my first time having surgery or being under any general anaesthetic,” he added.
“I was really nervous because I didn’t know what to expect.”
The procedure took around three hours and after Dale came around, he “loved” the results.
He then went back onto social media and “wanted more work” – including a better chin, straighter teeth, fuller lips, and a sharper jaw – and admits his “addiction” started from then.
Dale said: “I just went on a complete surgery purge.
“Every time I went under the needle, I got more and more addicted.
“It was the element of surprise and excitement.
“I knew my appearance was going to change and that I would look better.
“Social media was full of trends and I was trying to keep up.
“It was euphoric.”
The following year, after his rhinoplasty, Dale surfed the internet looking for what to get next, and in July 2020 he went to Istanbul, Turkey for teeth crowning, costing $7,800.
“Everyone was shaving down their teeth at the time,” he added.
“It was the thing to do.”
During his ‘surgery purge’ Dale flew back and forth from England to Turkey over 10 times in four years.
He’d undergone chin and jaw reconstruction, a closed rhinoplasty, forehead rejuvenation/brow lift, zygomatic remodeling, and lip augmentation, totaling $18,469.31
But his “most transformative” work included full body contouring and 360 Vaser liposuction for the “stubborn” bits of fat, costing $9,070 and a full hair transplant — which was his longest procedure lasting eight hours over two different surgeries, costing $5,573.
Dale explained how he was often left feeling “over the moon” with his results.
However, his hair transplant almost put him off surgery for life.
“I wasn’t nervous because I’ve had so many other surgeries before that I knew what to expect,” Dale said.
“But as soon as I woke up, I collapsed in the ward.
“I was dazed and confused — and a couple of hours after, I was getting wheeled to another operating room to have the second half of the transformation completed.”
Dale spent 10 nights in Turkey to recover from the procedure and described the journey back to the UK as “painful”.
Despite “loving” his new look with chiseled features and 154-pound weigh-in a body dysphoria diagnosis, in May 2022, made him realize that he will “never achieve” what he was looking for.
He now wants to warn others about the reality of going under the knife, and to prevent them from falling into the same trap.
Dale said: “I spent so much time, money, and energy on chasing that perfect look, it’s crazy.”
“I would just say to people to make sure you do your research first and make sure you’re doing it for the right reasons.
“I don’t think my mind has caught up with my appearance just yet — and I feel like I still have those insecurities.
“However, I still get that itch to book that flight to Istanbul,” he added.
“And I don’t think I’ll ever stop.”
Dale has admitted to seeing a therapist to try and make sure he works on himself.
“The work I had done in the past, it wasn’t for me, I did it under the pressures of social media,” he said.
“I’m in a much better place than I once was — and I want to make sure everything I do is for me.”
Procedures Dale has had in order –
1. Open Rhinoplasty ($54,440)
2, Closed Rhinoplasty ($2,786.60)
3. Teeth Crowning ($7,780)
4. Forehead Rejuvenation/Brow Lift ($4,150)
5. Hair Transplant ($5,600)
7. Chin Reconstruction ($6,500)
8. Zygomatic remodeling ($2,500)
9. Lip augmentation ($2,600)
9. Body Contouring & Vaser Lipo Suction ($9,070)
TOTAL – $46,335.30
