Real Housewives of Cheshire star Lauren Simon has spoken out about a terrifying brush with death following complimentary cosmetic procedures abroad.
The 54-year-old television personality travelled to Turkey alongside a friend for rhinoplasty and breast reduction surgery, which was offered without charge through a social media partnership.
Speaking on Good Morning Britain to presenters Susanna Reid and Ed Balls, Ms Simon explained the arrangement stemmed from her friend’s existing relationship with the facility.
“This clinic is a massive clinic, it’s worldwide, it’s got thousands of followers on social media, on Instagram,” she said. “Because it was my friend’s collaboration and she was part of this clinic, she gets people from the UK and takes them over. I trusted her.”
Ms Simon opened up about the traumatic surgery with Ed Balls and Susanna Reid
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Ms Simon confirmed she had only encountered her surgeons on the morning of the operation, despite having viewed their work online.
The situation deteriorated rapidly in the days following her operation when Ms Simon noticed her left breast had begun turning black.
Despite her concerns, clinic staff reassured her that nothing was amiss. The reality worsened dramatically as medical teams spent an entire day puncturing her breast tissue in an attempt to preserve it.
“They wanted to send you home with a black nipple. You had two holes under your breast, pressing green liquid out. You were tired all the time, and you were very poorly,” Reid recounted during the interview.
When returning home the corrective doctor admitted she was lucky to be alive
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Upon consulting a Manchester physician after her return, Ms Simon learned her left breast was filled with blood and her body had been battling the surgical aftermath as though fighting a malignancy. The British doctor who subsequently operated expressed astonishment that she had survived.
Ms Simon described spending a month at the Turkish facility in a state of profound distress, unable to rest properly and relying on sleeping tablets administered by staff.
“I was so poorly. I was there a month, I couldn’t sleep. I was on my own. I was emotionally hysterical, and they were giving me sleeping tablets to make me sleep,” she recalled.
The physical toll proved equally devastating, with Ms Simon revealing she was immobilised by severe pain throughout her stay.
“I couldn’t move. I was in agony,” she said.
Her suffering continued long after returning to Britain, with the damaged breast requiring 12 months to heal. Even then, the wounds remained severe.
“It took a year for this left breast to heal. It still had two big holes in it, gaping,” Ms Simon explained.
Ms Simon sought assistance from Pall Mall Medical last June, where she credits the team with rescuing her from her ordeal.
She admitted the English doctor had ‘saved her life’
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“Dr Hassan saved my life. He literally took everything out, put it back in, and he said that it was like having a cancer inside me that my body was fighting all the time,” she stated.
The medical intervention involved removing all of her implants and thoroughly cleaning the affected tissue.
“I’m very lucky and I’m on the other side,” Ms Simon reflected, having finally emerged from what proved to be a harrowing 18-month journey from botched surgery to full recovery.
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