Implant syndrome: “I was killing myself slowly”

About four years ago, little by little, the quality of life of Valentina Guida, now 35, began to decline.

He suffered from chronic fatigue, anxiety, tiredness, memory loss, difficulty concentrating, was extremely sensitive to light, hair loss, irritated skin, ringing in his ears, acne and a loss of libido. Not only that, Valentina says she was also going through major mood swings, she felt swollen glands, night sweats, irritable bowel syndrome, her vision was increasingly blurry and her joints started to swell. He also suffered from osteoarthritis in the jaw. “It felt like it was on the decline,” he says. The worst part is that I didn’t know why.

Valentina is a health coach, so she knows her body and has good habits. “It didn’t suit me,” he said. “I went through an unimaginable number of doctors. First, a psychiatrist to see memory loss and attention deficit, also by psychologists, alternative therapists, even by more shamanic medicines. Nothing he did was enough for him, he didn’t know what to do,” he says.

It was then she was last year when a friend told her about Asian Syndrome. He looked for symptoms and several seizures. “I didn’t know this disease existed,” he says.

Asia Syndrome is called by its name in English: Autoimmune syndrome induced by adjuvants. In other words, it is an anti-inflammatory or autoimmune response of the body to a substance foreign to the body, such as silicone implants.

It made sense to Valentina: four years ago she had buttock implants, and during that time she started out with all of the symptoms described above. Fifteen years ago, she had also been operated on her breasts, but that had brought her no consequences.

Last month, the Asian syndrome resounded in the media because of the case of the Argentinian model Silvina Luna, who since June 13 – a few days before Valentina’s operation – has been admitted to intensive care in her country. The reason would be precisely this syndrome, which was allegedly caused after receiving a large amount of methacrylate during buttock augmentation surgery.

Vicente Sánchez, surgeon and medical director of Clínica Essenza, and who operated on Valentina, points out that since its appearance as a pathological entity, more than 4,000 documented cases of this syndrome have been reported, with variable clinical severity and various history of adjuvant exposure. . “You have to consider that for a patient to present with what is called Asia syndrome, two key elements must come together: the genetics of the patient to manifest one of these diseases, and the implant, considering it as a foreign body, which the human body rejects. . » points out.

Among the related diseases, he cites myalgia or muscle weakness, arthralgia and/or arthritis, chronic fatigue and sleep disorders, neurological manifestations and cognitive disorders, such as memory loss.

“I was killing myself slowly. It was killing me while I was alive,” says Valentina. On recommendation, he went to Dr. Sánchez, who assured him that he suffered from this syndrome, he says. The lab tests were all within normal levels, and for this reason, it is difficult to conclude that one is a victim of Asian Syndrome. “Symptoms are already ruled out, because there’s no test that measures that for you,” he says.

Valentina says since she got a butt, she felt uncomfortable, but she ignored it. In February she started with pains which at first seemed to be long lasting, but gradually they got stronger. “I couldn’t sleep at night,” he says. He would wake up at night after jumping because of the pain he felt. “It was like flat tires,” he says.

Explantation is more expensive than implantation , and for this reason, since she began to investigate, the cost has prevented her from continuing to move forward on this path. On June 17, just last year, he underwent surgery. The operation lasted four hours and took place under general anesthesia. “The change is felt immediately, especially on the skin. Your body is fighting 24/7 against these foreign bodies , then clearly your whole system is unregulated,” he says. Recovery consists of reduced mobility and painkillers.

“After these surgeries that are so invasive for the body, a significant imbalance is generated on a physical and emotional level. You have to take the time. I closed the schedule of my consultations because I take care of recovering my health. There is also a whole question of acceptance of your new body. Looking in the mirror and having no boobs is an issue that needs to be followed up,” she suggests.

“The first time I looked in the mirror without implants, I laughed. My boobs were the same as my grandma’s, but I was so happy to have it all out, that I love them, I don’t need more than that. I’m in a very good mood, I’m recovering my sight and the pain is going away, I have enormous energy,” he admits.

“When I received the implants, I filled an emotional void due to my insecurity since I was a child. These implants gave me this security that I did not have, but it happened that over time , and also because of my work of health coach, I did so much internal work to empower myself that on this journey I began to realize that I am neither my boobs nor my poto. I am much more than that,” he says. “It’s a container, a packaging, but what lasts over time is how you are inside, how you show yourself in life,” he adds.

Therefore, explantation for Valentina was quite an experience. As he says, his implants were something that no longer belonged to his body. “It gives you a lot more security to say that I end up with no boobs and no poto, but I’m getting my health back. I’m getting back what I lost in life because of this suicide.

“Now that I look back on my last four years, I was on the decline. I noticed it in my health, in my body. I’m super connected to my body, and since I understand how it works, I I was aware of what was happening to me. Chronic fatigue does not allow me to live well, suddenly I entered into depressive states and in my work I made all the effort, not the joy, that’s how I always did,” he says.

“I’m a different person, I’ve become me again,” says Valentina Guida, who points out that doctors in general never talk about the Asian syndrome, not because they’re hiding something, but because it’s a subject that matters. they generally ignore. not treat. She shared her process on her Instagram (@valentinavida_holistica), and so many people came to ask her and share experiences, that she created the account @explantadaschile, where she provided information about it.