What happened to Selena Gomez’s face?

There is nothing the denizens of the internet love more than completely and thoroughly analyzing celebrities’ appearances. Have they gained weight? Have they lost weight? What happened to their face? Is a new eyebrow trend taking over TikTok?

In truth, most of the time, we don’t have answers unless the celebrity in question addresses the topic. This time, after years of public scrutiny, Selena Gomez has finally spoken on a subject that has long been speculated on by fans and others: her face. Because surprise surprise, Gomez does not look the same as she did when she was 15 years old and on The Wizards of Waverly Place.

However, criticism doesn’t solely stem from the passage of time, but also because, as many netizens have noted, her face does seem to have changed a lot. Now, we’re not here to speculate on what might have caused this, because Selena has recently addressed the subject, and her response might surprise you.

Why did Selena Gomez’s face change so much?

The star of Only Murders in the Building has confirmed that the change in her face is due to Botox. This confirmation came in response to a TikTok video by Marissa, a physician assistant known for discussing celebrities’ cosmetic procedures. When asked to analyze Selena Gomez’s appearance, Marissa refused out of respect for the singer’s health concerns.

“I literally have no idea what she has had done. I think she’s been through so much in her life, especially medically, so I don’t think it’s fair to speculate whether or not she’s had cosmetic procedures,” Marissa explained in the TikTok video. “I don’t know what to attribute any of these changes to. At the end of the day, let’s just leave her be. I feel like she’s been through enough in her life, and she’s beautiful regardless.”

Gomez, however, seemed frustrated by the ongoing speculation and directly commented, “Honestly, I hate this. I was on stripes because of a flare-up. I have Botox. That’s it. Leave me alone.” Although her response was blunt and defensive, it’s understandable given that Gomez has faced years of public scrutiny and criticism over her appearance.

For a long time, fans defended Selena Gomez, attributing her change in appearance to medications for lupus and bipolar disorder. For those unaware, Gomez was diagnosed with lupus in 2013, an autoimmune disease that attacks healthy tissue in the body. Since then, she has undergone a kidney transplant, and received multiple treatments to manage her chronic pain. The type of medication used to treat lupus, according to GoodRx Health, often causes weight gain and bloating.

In 2019, she was also diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and during a 2020 Instagram livestream with Miley Cyrus, Gomez revealed that she was taking two different medications for her symptoms. “I had to detox, essentially, from the medications I was on,” she shared. “It took a lot of hard work for me to (a) accept that I was bipolar, but (b) learn how to deal with it because it wasn’t going to go away.”

While we agree that no one should comment on someone else’s body, we also recognize that celebrities, unfortunately, are often prime targets for criticism — especially regarding their appearance. It seems to come with the territory. Sadly, Gomez felt the need to clear things up once and for all, and hopefully, this will put an end to the relentless speculation.