Former Dancing With the Stars pro Lindsay Arnold has always been open about her life, and this includes her decision to undergo breast augmentation surgery, which she documented on social media in January. The mother of two — Sage (4) and June (20 months), whom she shares with husband Sam Cusick — revealed why she made the choice to be transparent about the procedure, despite knowing it would invite both praise and criticism.
In an exclusive interview with E! News, Lindsay explained, “I knew full well I would get a lot of hate, and a lot of people sharing their opinions about it—mostly negative—but then a lot of positive. I wanted people to know that I don’t care if I’m going to get that because it’s my body, it’s my life, and that’s how I want everyone to feel about their own body and their own lives.”
The 31-year-old continued, expressing that the decision was a personal one. “It’s something that I really wanted to do for me, truly for just me,” she said. “I want to help other people understand that it’s OK to do that. It’s OK to do things for yourself. It’s not selfish. It’s self-love, and I hope that it kind of helped remove some of that stigma around that surgery.”
Lindsay’s openness about her surgery ties into her broader philosophy when it comes to social media. For her, authenticity is key. “My whole mentality with social media is I’m always gonna show up and be myself,” she explained. “I’m never gonna pretend. I don’t wanna hide. That’s just not who I am as a person, and so I’ve always known that I would never do that on social media.”
The mother of two also emphasized the importance of ignoring outside judgment. “But more importantly, I feel like it’s so normal on social media now to judge others and the decisions that they make for their own selves, for their own bodies, for their lives,” she said. “And I just wanted to be somebody who shows that, one, it’s gonna happen, but don’t let that change your decisions and what you feel is best for you.”
Lindsay’s message was simple but powerful: “Don’t let the outside noise get to you, and just be confident in the things that you know will make you happy.”
In addition to spreading positivity on social media, Lindsay is also focusing on celebrating those around her, especially fellow mothers. She recently partnered with Hallmark for Mother’s Day, a collaboration that reflects her thoughtful approach to gifting. “I’m very much a person that I want to make sure my gifts are meaningful and thoughtful—that they’re not just a random thing,” she explained. “I want it to be something that will help them feel really, really special and appreciated.”
Lindsay, who says Hallmark has always been her go-to for personalized gifts, added, “I’m always able to find something that is so specific and unique to each person that I’m looking to gift and I feel like that can be really hard to do.”
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