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When you're a model, height is a big asset and long, lithe limbs are something to be desired. But going under the knife is a drastic way to achieve long legs and Theresia Fischer is now regretting her agonising surgeries.
The 31-year-old model from Hamburg, Germany, who used to be 168cm tall, spent a whopping £128 000 (R2,6 million) on the two leg-lengthening procedures.
"I am ashamed because I consented to an operation that I shouldn't have had," she says.
But now there is no going back.
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The former Celebrity Big Brother contestant had her first operation at the age of 24, which extended her legs by 9cm, and her second one in March last year which made her a further 5cm taller.
And now she stands at a lofty 183cm.
Leg-lengthening is a gruelling procedure, which she describes as a "horror". "The shinbone is broken cleanly, the calf muscles are split and a telescopic rod is used in each case,” she explaines. The telescopic rod is adjusted daily until it reaches the desired length, and is then removed for the cracked bones to grow to their new height.
The procedure entails a lot of pain as muscles are stretching, bones are breaking and limbs are adjusting to the new lengths.
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It hasn't all been bad news though. Initially, when Theresia first revealed her procedure back in 2019, she was excited about the positive impact of the surgery on her life. It boosted her self-confidence because she had been bullied as a teenager and continued being bullied on the internet as well.
“With the leg-lengthening, I found myself and finally overcame my old trauma from being bullied. I now feel happy and satisfied with my legs,” she said at the time.
Secondly, it elevated her love life. "Sex is better now!”, she said. "I have become very flexible with my legs and have more room to manoeuvre in bed.”
However, recently while on MDR Jump, a German radio station, she was candid about how her ex-husband, Thomas Behrend, was the one who persuaded her to go under the knife.
The couple met in 2015 and divorced in September 2022.
She says he told her, "Theresia, you know I like big ladies. So, I would really like this. You could get up to 14cm more."
"And if you are told that 20, 30, 60, 70 times - then you believe that you are nothing without him."
Feeling pressured and wanting to please her husband she consented to the surgery. And despite the benefits she has experienced, she now believes it was all a painful mistake.
Still, regardless of her regrets the influencer continues to confidently post pictures of her long legs for her 142 000 followers on Instagram.
SOURCES:NYPOST.COM, THESUN.CO.UK, MY.CLEVELANDCLINIC.ORG, NBCNEWS.COM, DAILYMAIL.CO.UK
