A Georgia teen goes under the knife in hopes of putting an end to the bullying she says she's endured for years.
Stacey Elgin spoke with the 14-year-old who flew to New York to get $40,000 worth of plastic surgery.
What may seem trivial for most teens is a really big deal for 14-year-old Nadia Ilse.
Six weeks post-surgery, Nadia likes what she sees.
"When the comments started I just saw everything that was wrong. And nothing that was good," Nadia said.
From Dumbo to elephant ears, Nadia says the teasing was non-stop. She even skipped school because of it.
"It felt horrible it felt... it's like I'd tell them every day I wish I could get something done about it but I can't because we don't have the money for it," Nadia said.
When she was 10 years old, Nadia asked her mother if she could have the surgery to pin her ears back.
A local surgeon quoted her $8,000... which they couldn't afford. But then Lynda Ilse, Nadia's mother, found Little Baby Face Foundation.... a volunteer group of surgeons who operate on children with facial deformities.
Initially, all Nadia wanted was to get her ears pinned back but once she met with the doctor, he recommended she get the deviated septum in her nose fixed and also a chin implant.
In June, Nadia and her mother flew to New York for an all-expense paid trip where the doctor performed all three surgeries which would've cost $40,000.
Some might ask, how could a parent let their 14-year-old child do this?
Lynda is a single mother who also cares for her 9-year-old son, Joshua, who has Cerebral Palsy.
She says ultimately the decision was Nadia's.
"I thought Nadia was beautiful before the surgery and i think she's beautiful now as well... but she love's herself more after the surgery," Lynda said.
For the first time ever, Nadia is looking forward to the school year... she'll be a freshman and hopes she'll never be called Dumbo or Elephant Ears again.
Nadia says she is grateful for the surgery and that is has changed her life. In fact, she wishes she could have done it sooner.
TXT 24
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