Body Image Tragedy

Houston model with "world's biggest breasts" attempts suicide, falls into coma

Sheyla Hershey with her record-setting breasts.
sheylahershey.net
Sheyla Hershey

Houston's Sheyla Hershey received a certain notoriety two years ago when her KKK-size breasts were declared the largest breast implants in the world. But now according to British tabloid The Sun, Hershey has fallen into a coma after overdosing, the result of an apparent suicide attempt.

Hershey's breasts had been as big as a size MMM but the larger implants were removed first during a pregnancy and again last year after she contracted a dangerous staph infection during the augmentation procedure in Brazil (U.S. law forbids doctors from inserting implants of that size). Hershey's infection was so serious that her breast tissue was removed entirely.

But after a first suicide attempt late last year, she told The Sun, "I feel so ugly without my breasts. Without them, I don't know who I am ... once I reclaim my identity as the World's Biggest Boobs I can be a better role model for my daughter."

With over 30 cosmetic surgeries under her belt, even Hershey admitted she had an addiction to plastic surgery and was reportedly seeking counseling. Hershey has said she started the surgeries a decade ago when severely depressed. The 31-year-old was born in Brazil, but she's lived in Houston for years.

Hershey's prognosis is unclear, but regardless of the outcome it's a tragedy that a distorted body image and pursuit of "perfection" could take a young mother from her husband and two small children.

For more, read this ABC News report on Body Dysmorphic Disorder.

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Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

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Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”