Raven-Symoné Says Weight-Shaming Pushed Her to Have Cosmetic Procedures Before Turning 18
Raven-Symoné first appeared on "The Cosby Show" at only 3. She went on to star in signature projects on The Disney Channel, including "The Cheetah Girls" and "That's So Raven."
Now 37, the former child star is opening up about what it was like growing up on television.
"I had two breast reductions and lipo before I turned 18," Symoné said on the fifth episode of The Best Podcast Ever with Raven and Miranda, according to PEOPLE. She co-hosts the show with her wife, Miranda Pearman-Maday.
She shared that body shaming partially motivated her decision, as well as her desire to sustain her career. Additionally, she noted that her father, Christopher Pearman, supported the decision. "There was paperwork involved. My dad suggested strongly that I should get my breasts reduced. He was like, 'So you don’t feel bad, is there anything that you want?' I was like, 'Yeah, if I get lipo, will people stop calling me fat?' So I got a two-fer."
The actress said the situation "was just a mess, just being that young and the pain of it all."
Raven said that after her first procedure, she experienced medical complications. “And I remember waking up and seeing everything . . . I started having this dry mouth and couldn’t breathe and went back under and they were like ‘You have a seizure,' "
When her wife asked what it was like recovering from the surgeries, she said she disassociated from most of the pain. "The recovery was a little painful," she recalled. "I still have scar tissue to this day. I gained weight after and had to go back for a little bit more out because they were still too big . . ."
She also added that after the surgeries, she still didn't get the results as expected. Saying that she was then criticized for being too skinny, she added, "I wasn't skinny as everybody else, and they still called me fat. You get that done, and it's still not what everybody wanted to see."
According to PEOPLE, Raven lost 30 pounds in 2021 with the support of her wife. "This was because we want to have a life together," the actress told E! News in 2021 about her motivation--that she is pre-diabetic and that diabetes runs in her family.. "She doesn't want to take me to an early grave, and I want to make sure I am there for her in the best health possible."
