Why are Reddit moderators making it so difficult for patients to share negative experiences with plastic surgeons?
I’ve had two really frustrating experiences with Reddit moderators recently, and I’m wondering if anyone else has dealt with something similar.
I had a traumatic experience during plastic surgery earlier this year and have been trying to share what happened and get advice, including recommendations for medical malpractice attorneys.
First, I posted in r/plasticsurgery. The moderator removed my post and initially gave me different explanations for why. First, he said it was because I hadn’t provided enough evidence, and then he described my post as a “mental health rant” and told me not to discuss mental health. When I asked which rule I had actually violated, he eventually said it was because of the lack of evidence.
I explained that I had documentation supporting my experience and offered to send it to him privately, but he insisted that I had to post it publicly. So I did, because he told me it was a requirement.
Afterward, I realized that some of the screenshots contained sensitive personal and medical information about me, even though my name wasn’t included. I became concerned about having that information publicly available, especially because I’m considering legal action.
I removed the information and asked whether I could repost my experience without the documentation. Instead, he told me I’d already had my chance and that I was now banned from posting in the community.
What really bothered me was that he kept saying things like “no more exceptions will be made,” as if I was asking for some kind of special treatment. I wasn’t asking for an exception. I was asking why I had to publicly share sensitive medical records and private emails just to talk about my own experience. I only posted that information because he told me it was required, and once I realized it could affect my privacy and potential legal case, I wanted to remove it. I don’t understand why that was treated like I’d done something wrong.
The entire interaction felt really dismissive and rude. He repeatedly characterized my experience as a mental health issue rather than addressing what I was actually trying to discuss. I’ll attach screenshots of the conversation so people can see how it was handled.
Then I tried posting about my experience in another subreddit. That post was also removed. When I asked why, the moderators accused me of doxxing the surgeon because I had mentioned his name.
I was confused because I thought doxxing meant exposing someone’s private identifying information, not discussing your own medical experience with a doctor whose professional name is already publicly available. I had checked the community’s rules and hadn’t seen anything specifically prohibiting naming doctors.
Also, I don’t think the screenshots show this, but the plastic surgery moderator banned me after my last response to him. And now I’ve been muted for 28 days by the moderators of r/self just for asking why my post was removed. It’s honestly ridiculous that I can’t even ask questions about their decisions without being shut down.
For some context, I paid approximately $21,000 to go to a highly regarded plastic surgeon because I thought I could trust that I’d be in good hands. Instead, I was kept awake during surgery after repeatedly telling them I wanted to be fully asleep. The experience was extremely traumatic and has seriously affected my mental health.
The surgeon has been dismissive of my concerns from the beginning, and the way his office has handled everything afterward has made things even worse. We requested a refund, and after a lot of back and forth, the only amount they were willing to offer was $1,000. I never received that money, and we eventually told them we were no longer interested in accepting it.
Now that I’m trying to share my experience publicly, his office is pressuring me to take down my reviews and videos. They actually emailed me acknowledging that they’d seen my posts and told me I had until 4 p.m. that day to remove them or they wouldn’t continue discussing a refund. The way they’ve handled this has been disgusting.
So I know the surgeon’s office is aware of what I’m sharing, and given everything that’s happened, I can’t help wondering whether they’re also mass reporting my posts to get them removed. I’ve noticed unusual negative engagement and downvoting as well, although I don’t know who’s responsible.
People deserve to know about experiences like mine, especially when they’re choosing a surgeon and trusting that person with their body. I should be allowed to talk about what happened to me without being pressured into silence.
And what I really don’t understand is why the Reddit moderators are making this so difficult too. I’ve had nothing but problems trying to share my experience. One moderator demanded that I publicly post sensitive personal evidence and then banned me when I wanted to repost without it. The other accused me of doxxing simply for naming the surgeon.
Are these actually legitimate reasons to remove my posts under Reddit’s rules? Because from what I’ve seen, these decisions seem completely unfair. I don’t understand why it feels like the moderators are more concerned about protecting the surgeon than allowing patients to speak about their experiences.
Has anyone else experienced something similar with Reddit moderators, particularly when discussing negative experiences with doctors or surgeons?