Local woman warns of breast implant illness dangers

She says she's suffered chronic fatigue, migraines, swelling

BLACKSBURG, Va. – Not unlike many women, Elizabeth Profit battled body image issues growing up and again after giving birth to her two daughters.

"Just noticed changes in my body I wasn't really happy with, so I naturally gravitated towards plastic surgery to fix those areas. I was also going through a divorce at the time," Profit said.

Profit decided to get breast implants in 2010.

"I was thinking it would help my self-esteem. It did for a bit," Profit said. "But I noticed my health go downhill a good three years after the implantation."

Profit says she has suffered from chronic migraines, fatigue, weight gain, swelling and rheumatoid arthritis, among other conditions. Years went by, and countless doctors and tests could not definitively diagnose her health problems. Then Profit came across a Facebook group dedicated to women suffering from breast implant illness.

"I found camaraderie with thousands of other women going through the same things I was experiencing," Profit said.

She added that doctors did not believe her implants could be causing her symptoms and her mental health took a hit.

"I was afraid I was going to have to live with this the rest of my life," she said.

After spending months convincing her plastic surgeon and fighting the insurance company, Profit is having her implants extracted on April 11. She says the healing process will be both physical and mental. She'll have to learn to love herself again -- but more importantly -- Profit wants to teach her 11- and 13-year-old daughters a lesson: to love themselves.

"Going from a B cup to a D cup, it might make you more attractive -- you think -- to men," Profit said. "But in the long run it's not worth it. It's not worth your health."


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You can watch Lindsey during Virginia Today every weekend or as a reporter during the week!