(PM-18) When the body suffers, does desire fall silent? Sexual health, self-image, and the Re-signification of the explanted breast

Abstract This study investigates the intersections between breast implant removal (explant surgery) and women’s sexual health, based on public Instagram posts analyzed through a cartographic approach. The narratives of these women reveal experiences of chronic physical pain, fatigue, inflammation, changes in libido, and body shame associated both with the period of having implants and with the body after explantation. Returning to a “silicone-free” body involves not only reconfigurations of self-image but also of eroticism, self-esteem, and desire itself. By making these voices visible, the study highlights medical and social neglect regarding the effects of silicone on female sexuality and proposes to understand explantation as a gesture of care for both the body and pleasure. The article draws on contributions from critical sexology, gender studies, and psychology to rethink sexual health beyond aesthetic and functional normativity. Financing Bolsa Capes PDSE.