Heidi Montag says she 'didn't need' plastic surgery transformation: 'I was beautiful before'

Heidi Montag opened up about her extensive plastic surgeries in a recent episode of the Broad Ideas with Rachel Bilson podcast.

The Laguna Beach star admitted that her journey with cosmetic enhancements started when she was offered free services. "I was like, 'Great, $100,00 of free plastic surgery? Awesome!' But I should have stopped and thought about that. Because when [the doctor] was telling me about it, it sounded so minor," said Montag, who felt misled regarding how intense the process would be.

Unfortunately, the invasive 16-hour, multi-part surgery, totaling 10 procedures in one day, was anything but easy.

"I like almost died and they gave me too much Demerol [an opioid pain medication] and then they told Spencer I was dead and he comes down. And then they got me back and I was OK and so I think after that life or death experience ... I was so fragile and frail. And it took me so long to recover. And I was supposed to go back to work and film and, you know, my family was upset and a lot of things. So that, for me, was the hardest point of my career and my mental state because I just was really out of it," she said.

The promise of a total body makeover, free of charge, was too good to pass up for the then 23-year-old, who admitted to wanting a breast augmentation from a young age.

"I always wanted implants growing up. Because my grandma had really big breasts. So I always wanted implants," she said.

But looming insecurities and an enthusiastic surgeon opened her mind to additional procedures.

"I was always kind of made fun of for my nose. And then there was a plastic surgeon who came up to me at an event and he's like, 'Oh, I can do it for free, do you ever want a nose or boob job or anything?' Or actually, he had a representative come up to me, someone who worked at a tabloid. And I was like, 'Sure. Yeah,' I mean, especially if you're coming up to me and pitching it, great," Montag recalled.

This offer from the surgeon would soon change the reality star's life.

"If that didn't happen, I would never have gotten anything. Like I wasn't looking at offers and seeking it. And I actually was pretty confident in who I was, even though I always wanted that or just thought it was like no big deal," she said.

During an initial consultation, however, Heidi was made aware of a slew of "imperfections" that her surgeon recommended she fix. Many of which she had never even noticed.

"He was like, 'Well, let me show you what I would do.' I'm like 'Yeah, well what would you do? What other other things if we're under?' And he's like, 'This, this, this, this, this and this and this?' By the time I went away I was like, 'Oh my gosh, I didn't know that much was wrong with me,'" she said.

Montag's surgeries were the subject of many tabloid headlines due largely to the magnitude of work she had done at once.

"That's why it was so controversial that I had that many things done at once. And a lot of people wouldn't do it. Or recommend that. Like I think I was under for over 16 hours, which is I think they say not legal anymore," she said.

Despite the cosmetic alterations, Montag reflects fondly on her pre-surgery appearance noting that there was nothing wrong with the way she looked.

"I was beautiful before and it was fine. And I didn't need that," she said.

Now 13 years post-surgery, Montag has a message for young girls who may be considering going under the knife.

"Would I pay for it and go through all that again and do that? I just don't want my value to be in my looks, no matter what," she said before stressing the importance of identifying your "why" before getting any work done.

"My suggestion for anyone is just like, 'OK, well, what? Why? Why do you want to do them? And what are you thinking about? And what is that going to change in your life?'" she said.

She also advises against relying too heavily on social media when trying to develop a sense of self.

"You need to maybe stop looking at Instagram, or stop looking [and] comparing yourself to other people… It's just gonna leave you miserable. No matter what you're not supposed to be other people. You're not supposed to see how everyone's living and what they're doing and what their lives are like. You're the only one who can be you," she said.

Wellness, parenting, body image and more: Get to know the who behind the hoo with Yahoo Life's newsletter. Sign up here.