Porcelain cheeks? Perfect nose, plumpy lips, and a chiseled jaw? It sounds like the recipe to make the perfect Ken or Barbie doll, doesn’t it? Well, it turns out that Jessica Alves is both, or at least she was in the beginning of her transformation. After years of being known as “the Human Ken doll” Jessica, formerly known as Rodrigo Alves, has confessed that it’s not Ken she identifies with, but Barbie.
In the quest of finding her true self, Jessica has undergone pretty much every cosmetic procedure you can think of. In 2019, Insider reported that Jessica, who identified as Rodrigo “the human Ken doll” at the time, had spent a whopping $750,000 on 72 cosmetic surgeries. And now, that number has reportedly grown to 100, according to The Mirror UK.
But right after getting a couple of procedures that put her life at risk, “the Human Ken doll” took her transformation into a completely new direction and left everyone speechless.
Meet the Living Ken Doll
Brazilian-British television personality Jessica Alves, formerly known as Rodrigo Alves, is only 5’7, but the massive amount of worldwide attention she’s received is larger than life. Her claim to fame came after people thought she looked like the living version of Barbie’s boyfriend, Ken. Up until 2019, Jessica, who went by Rodrigo at the time, underwent 72 plastic surgeries and spent a reported $750,000 according to Insider, and it worked out just like she envisioned it. But behind her shocking transformation is a story full of drama, blood, hair transplants, rib removals, and a lot of pain.
Rodrigo’s Transformation Was Met With Mixed Reactions
Alves, who’s originally from São Paulo, Brazil, was surprised to get such negative reactions in social media. Instead of being admired for pursuing her dreams, she was gawked at and ridiculed. Eventually, Alves decided to make yet another life-altering decision.
When this happened, “the Human Ken doll” took the world on a journey through her life and her traumatic childhood in Brazil, which played a major role in not one but two shocking transformations. Apparently, the very open and fashionable Rodrigo had been keeping a secret all along.
Rodrigo Was Targeted by Bullies
During an interview with The Sunday People, Alves discussed her turbulent childhood. “I was bullied at school because I was very feminine. I was physically abused — I had my face pushed into the urinal and was thrown down the stairs.” Sadly, kids didn’t understand her at all.
Alves was made to feel like an outcast because she was very vocal about her crushes on Disney princes, her love for feminine clothing, as well as Barbie dolls.
In a candid interview with MailOnline, Alves candidly spoke about other reasons why she felt like an outcast, “I used to be very much bullied when growing up in Brazil because I was fat, ugly and misshapen and I never fit in into the Brazilian beauty stereotype.” So at 19, Alves decided to get a nose job. But there were many, many more to come.
And Just Like That, The Journey Began
Throughout the years, the pain she carried inside prompted her to surgically enhance her body to have the “perfect” male physique, as she identified as a male at the time. But it didn’t stop after the first procedures. Eagle-eyed Alves was very good at spotting asymmetries and “flaws” she felt she needed to correct in order to obtain a more harmonious and masculine look.
Trauma Forced Her to Be Something Different
Sadly, Alves’ childhood was riddled with bullying and ridiculing. Being bullied is bad enough, but her classmates did something that was simply unforgivable. “At the age of 13 two boys at school abused me.
I was very feminine and weak. I couldn’t defend myself. It was very traumatic,” she told The Mirror. After that, Alves came to the conclusion that acting like a man would be safer. But Alves didn’t just want to play the part. She wanted to look it, too. So, she came up with a brilliant idea.
She Wanted to Become the Perfect Man
Alves had her first plastic surgery when she was 17. She claimed she has more estrogen than most guys, which gave her a bigger chest. So, she had a breast reduction first.
Then, at 19, she got her first nose job. But she needed a new venue to “forget his feelings” and continue her transformation into manhood. So, she moved to London to focus on her career. But no matter how many times she surgically altered herself, it just didn’t seem like enough. Then one day, she started grabbing people’s attention, but not in the way she wanted.
She Had Her Own Idea of What Beauty Looked Like
“Male perfection is to me having symmetry. So a chiseled face, broad shoulders, a lean figure, a prominent jawline, defined abs and a chest in proportion,” explained Alves. Eventually, she would add a long list of procedures on her quest of perfecting her body.
After spending $40,000 on several nose jobs, she added a hair transplant, got her jawline reshaped, and her ears pinned back. And in 2017, she got a procedure she called the “worst one in his life” and it even made her regret ever going under the knife.
The Facelift That Left Alves Bed-Ridden
Alves got an SMAS facelift along with a neck and eye lift all at the same time. Post recovery was grueling, especially in the beginning because she couldn’t move or even eat solid food for a while. “It’s been really hard.
If I eat solid food, the stitches could burst open and lead to infection” and added, “48 hours after surgery, my face was huge and I kept asking myself if I did the right thing. But Dr Calin Dobos, who treated me, has seen me everyday.” But when the inflammation went down, she was thrilled with the results as she felt she looked like a 19 years old guy again. But of course, this wouldn’t be the last surgery on her to do list.
Surgeries and Procedures Became Her Life
“I’ve had cheek implants twice, the sides of my lips cut out in order to give me a bigger wider smile,” said Alves. Like most celebrities, fillers and implants also came in handy when it was time to elevate her look even further. “I have had fillers injected into my shoulders, biceps, triceps, my abs – my six pack is purely plastic surgery,” Alves added.
But if you thought the transformation was over, think again! For a while, it seemed Alves was living her best life and enjoying her new beautiful six pack and chiseled new face. But people were very critical of Alves, and that affected him deeply.
He Went Viral for the Wrong Reasons
Alves never set out to become a Human Ken doll, per se, but the number of plastic surgeries had turned her into one. She was happy to gain celebrity status, too, but people weren’t feeling her newfound fame and celebrity persona. They made fun of her body and questioned why someone would spent over $750,000 on plastic surgeries to look like a plastic doll.
Regardless of what anything thought, she became “the face of plastic surgery,” but the psychological scars underneath her skin had started to surface, too.
She Was Suffering From a Mental Condition
Alves went to a psychologist and was ultimately diagnosed with body dysmorphic disorder. The condition is described as someone who sees physical flaws in themselves that no one else can. In essence, all those times Alves had been nitpicking every “flaw” in her body, she did it through a lens that clouded her judgment, and made her believe she was never good enough.
Although she was aware of this condition, she was still determined to turn herself into someone she loved. However, one procedure left everyone utterly speechless.
She Got Six Ribs Removed
Alves wanted to fit into her blazer, so she asked doctors to remove six of her ribs, but they downright refused. On the British talk show “This Morning,” Alves shared what doctors did for her instead. “I visited three different doctors, and they said, ‘Well, we can only do four.’”
But she later told MailOnline that she regretted doing the procedure in the first place. “I am in pain in the evenings. It’s not unbearable but it’s on my mind and now I wonder what I was thinking.” To add salt to the wound, medical professionals warned her that her life was in danger, and they weren’t exaggerating one bit.
Doctors Warned Her to Stop Having Surgeries
Doctors told Alves that if she didn’t stop undergoing surgeries, she would face some major physical setbacks, particularly from the various rhinoplasties she had already undergone. And they were right! Alves suffered some significant tissue damage causing her nose to start “sinking.” Doctors warned her that her nose may one day collapse, leaving a hole in its place. But did Alves listen?
Fear Didn’t Get Her to Stop
Plastic surgeon Dr. Alan Matarasso, explained: “Plastic surgery is safe. It’s effective.
It’s ubiquitous. But it’s not a haircut.” She also stated that there’s always a risk that something can go wrong. But was this enough to deter the former Human Ken Doll? “I am scared, to be honest,” Alves admitted. “Each time is riskier than the last.” But although she was aware of the risks, Alves continued to undergo surgical procedures to “perfect” her looks. But her physical appearance wasn’t the only drastic change she was about to make.
Being Manly Didn’t Feel Right
Alves had risked it all to look more masculine, but it never made her happy. And after some soul searching, she realized why. “I have tried my best to behave like a man but deep inside I was never happy,” she said.
Soon, she realized that instead of wanting to be more like a man, she was becoming more and more envious of the way women looked—and that’s when everything became clear and a huge weight lifted off her shoulders.
A Photoshoot Gave Her an Epiphany
Alves had an epiphany while doing a photoshoot in New York. Someone told her to try on a dress. Once she slipped it on “it was an awakening.
It finally all became clear to me.” Alves took women’s clothing home and tried them on. “It made me feel beautiful,” she said. But this wasn’t just some random experiment. Dressing like a woman just felt right. But she needed to make sure, so she went to see a therapist.
She Was Given a New Diagnosis
Not only did she see a psychologist, but a psychiatrist too, who helped her get a new diagnosis. “Within a month I was diagnosed with gender dysmorphic disorder, and given the option to start the appropriate medication to transition.” It suddenly dawned on her that all those years of playing with dolls and slipping into her mother’s clothes wasn’t just child’s play.
“I think like a woman, I act like a woman because I have always been one deep inside,” she explained. But Alves didn’t just want to feel like a woman. She wanted to be one, and that meant she needed to change her body again…and lose some friendships along the way.
Meet Roddy
“I’m known as Ken but inside I’ve always felt like Barbie,” she said. So, after realizing this in 2020, Alves decided to live her life as a trans woman and asked everyone to call her Roddy and address her by using the pronoun “she” and “her”. Roddy also told The Sunday People that she has a “feminine brain,” and that now she has a body to match it.
But the process of transitioning involved undergoing more plastic surgeries. Could her body take it?
She’s Responded Well to the Transition
Transitioning to womanhood required hormone injections, multiple plastic surgeries, as well as fake lashes and hair extensions. But Roddy claims her body responded well to all the new changes thanks to the excess estrogen her body already produced. “The differences are already very noticeable,” she claimed.
“My skin is softer, my breasts and hips are more feminine. The fat distribution in my body is very different now, so my face is becoming rounder.” But her physical appearance isn’t the only thing that’s undergone a major transformation.
She Embraced Her Feminine Lifestyle
It took Roddy a couple of months to let the world in on her major secret. “Behind closed doors, I’ve been living as a woman for the last three months. I love it and everything that comes with it,” she explained in an interview with The Sunday People.
Roddy happily added that she enjoyed pampering herself and loved, “Going to nice hair salons and getting my nails, eyebrows, and eyelashes done. Buying dresses and high heels and wearing sexy lingerie.” But why didn’t she tell people right away?
She Was Afraid of How the World Would React
Roddy had been called many awful names her entire life, so she didn’t think that things would be different when she told the world that she had always felt like a woman. She had been bullied repeatedly as a child, and although times have changed and people are more accepting today, the scars from long ago were still fresh. After three months, she realized it was time to introduce the world to Roddy, but the future held a couple of surprises for her.
Men and Women Are Noticing Her
The news of Roddy’s remarkable transformation into womanhood was met with mixed reviews. Trolls left a few mean comments on her social platforms. But overall, the positive feedback overpowered all the negativity.
In fact, she’s getting a “a totally different type of attention” these days. “Men look at me because they desire me. And women look at me because they want to copy what I’m wearing.” But there are still some inaccurate perceptions about whether she’s gay or straight that she wants to clear up.
She Never Considered Herself Gay
“People always thought I was gay and initially I did too. But I was never gay. I have always been attracted to straight men because I am a straight woman,” she explained.
When Roddy was younger, she never identified as gay and still doesn’t. From her perspective, she’s a straight woman who’s attracted to men. But she’s not looking to date anytime soon. And she’s only just begun sharing her story of acceptance with the world.
She Finally Feels Like Her True Self
“I finally feel like the real me,” explained Roddy. “For years I tried to live my life as a man. I had a fake six-pack put in, I had fake muscles in my arms, but I was lying to myself.” But she realizes this wouldn’t have been possible a few years back.
“People are more aware of what being transgender means,” Roddy elaborated. “A few years ago I could never have done this but it feels easier now.” And she’s not done with plastic surgery just yet, or planning a future where kids may be involved.
She’s Not Done Having Surgery
“I’m having face feminization surgery. It will be an incision at the top of my scalp, and through that the doctor will reshape my forehead, give me an eye lift, lip lift, and middle face lift,” said Roddy. But that’s not the end of it.
She also wanted to remove her Adam’s apple removed, get breast implants, and get full gender reassignment surgery. But how does Roddy’s mother feel about her new daughter’s transformation?
Roddy’s Mother Was Worried About Her
Roddy’s mother has no issues with her transition. But there is one thing that does concern her. “My mom was more worried that I will need to have more surgery than that I was transitioning,” Roddy explained.
Her mother agrees with doctors that some serious health risks may arise if her daughter continues to undergo more surgeries. But there’s more to these issues than the physical repercussions.
Self-Acceptance Was an Issue
Some doctors believe that plastic surgery can become addictive when patients convince themselves that one more surgery will fix them, but it never does. Psychologist Charlotte Markey explained: “Self-acceptance is not just about how we look. Data suggests that cosmetic procedures don’t have a lasting effect on people’s positive body images nor their general well-being.” Then Roddy said something that supported Markey’s claims.
“It used to be a want, now it is a need.” But that wasn’t the only reason she was making headlines.
She Had a Setback on Reality TV
In 2018, when Roddy still identified as male, she was a contestant on “Celebrity Big Brother.” During her time there, she was asked what kind of partner she was looking for. Her response included a racial slur that described African-Americans. This led to over 1,000 complaints from viewers, which led to her getting kicked off the show.
But despite this unfortunate mishap, she remains very popular and her fans leave a constant outpour of love and support on Instagram. But does she ever plan on settling down?
Jessica Wants To Adopt A Child
In July, 2020, the 36-year old TV star appeared on This Morning to talk about how she’s been taking some time to work on herself and develop as a person. Oh, and she now prefers to be called Jessica, but that’s not the most exciting tidbit she shared. Jessica dreams of becoming a mother one day.
As for finding true love, Jessica is not in any rush. But she did tell the show’s hosts, “I visualize myself taking care of my baby and being with someone who loves me and accepts for me for who I am.”