Pierced Ears - What Age?

[CheshireVal]

My mom made me wait until I was 10.

My niece (well, my cousin's daughter, which makes her seem like a niece!) is 9 and got hers pierced a few months ago. She loves them and has had no problems.

I think it depends on the maturity and readiness of the girl, really. I'd say 8 or 9 would be the youngest age for pierced ears that I would allow. At that point they can fully understand what they are asking for.

(Which is why I'm also not a fan of infants or toddlers with pierced ears-- they have no choice.)

 

[freckles and boo]

(Which is why I'm also not a fan of infants or toddlers with pierced ears-- they have no choice.)

I agree. Not to start a debate because I realize it is often a cultural thing, but I kinda get weirded out by little ones having pierced ears, too. To each his/her own.

 

[1rockinmamato2]

I got DD's pierced when she was 6 months. I had it done at the peditrician's office with the EMLA cream. She's never had a problem with the cleaning and rotating. Therefore, I think a 9-year-old is ready for pierced ears.

I often wonder if those who want to wait until their daughter can decide they want their ears pierced have any sons and if they chose circumcision for them or waited until they were old enough to decide the wanted to be circumsized?

 

[UMTerp]

Thanks for all of the great info everyone!

DD is pretty responsible and should be able to do the ear care herself.

DD does swimming and dance (competition team). I guess that leads to a follow-up question...Will daily swimming (clorine) hurt the starter earrings or her ears when they are healing over? Dance competitions don't start until the spring so I guess she would be over the initial stages by then and it would be OK to have earrings out for a few hours.

Thanks for your help!

UMTerp

 

[Christine]

I often wonder if those who want to wait until their daughter can decide they want their ears pierced have any sons and if they chose circumcision for them or waited until they were old enough to decide the wanted to be circumsized?

My DD was 8 and I waited for as long as I could because I never liked seeing earrings on a baby. I don't know why, I just don't like it.

 

[Kath2003]

DD does swimming and dance (competition team). I guess that leads to a follow-up question...Will daily swimming (clorine) hurt the starter earrings or her ears when they are healing over? Dance competitions don't start until the spring so I guess she would be over the initial stages by then and it would be OK to have earrings out for a few hours.

I never thought about that - I got mine pierced when I was 11 (Mum turns queasy if she even sees us taking our earrings in or out, so she insisted that we had to be old enough to care for them ourselves and figured that age was 11), and I used to train 5-6 times a week for swimming. It never affected my ears (chlorine is sterile so really there shouldn't be a problem). I just washed them with saline solution every evening before bed (more for the first few days).

She'll need to keep the original pair in for 6-8 weeks initially, and then only take them out for short periods for the first few months (dance class would be fine, I'd just suggest having them in overnight). You could also try leaving them in and covering them with a band-aid whilst she's at dance class - if their studs, this should illuminate any problems with catching them.

Don't forget to TURN the studs a few times a day, too

I don't like seeing earrings on very young children/infants, probably because I don't like seeing jewellery on them (short of the plastic stuff all little girls wear). To me, jewellery is an adult thing. I understand why some people like it, though - it's just not for me.

 

[lillielil]

I often wonder if those who want to wait until their daughter can decide they want their ears pierced have any sons and if they chose circumcision for them or waited until they were old enough to decide the wanted to be circumsized?

My parents did. My brother decided the time was never.

This is slightly off-topic, but before you get your daughters' ears pierced, PLEASE look into getting it done at a real piercing studio with a needle rather than by some 18-year-old with a gun at the mall. The trauma caused by a needle is far less than that caused by a gun (which forces a blunt object through flesh rather than slicing it cleanly), and as a result it is a lot less painful and takes less time to heal. Additionally, a needle can be sterilized (or is single-use only), while a gun provides many lovely hiding places for icky bacteria.

It may seem scary to walk into a piercing/tattoo studio and talk to some burly tattood man, but he is practically guaranteed to have received more training and earned more certifications that any kid at the mall. I've had my ears pierced both ways and can say that the gun HURTS and takes much longer to heal.

http://tattoo.about.com/cs/psafety/a/piercing_guns.htm

 

[Christine]

This is slightly off-topic, but before you get your daughters' pierced, PLEASE look into getting it done at a real piercing studio with a needle rather than by some 18-year-old with a gun at the mall. The trauma caused by a needle is far less than that caused by a gun (which forces a blunt object through flesh rather than slicing it cleanly), and as a result it is a lot less painful and takes less time to heal. Additionally, a needle can be sterilized (or is single-use only), while a gun provides many lovely hiding places for icky bacteria.

It may seem scary to walk into a piercing/tattoo studio and talk to some burly tattood man, but he is practically guaranteed to have received more training and earned more certifications that any kid at the mall. I've had my ears pierced both ways and can say that the gun HURTS and takes much longer to heal.

http://tattoo.about.com/cs/psafety/a/piercing_guns.htm

Thanks for the advice. My DD is looking at getting a second hole in her ears and I don't really want to do it at the mall. But like you said, I'm a bit intimidated about walking into a tattoo shop and not knowing a thing about the place.

 

[1rockinmamato2]

My DD was 8 and I waited for as long as I could because I never liked seeing earrings on a baby. I don't know why, I just don't like it.

Ear piercing is a very personal choice. But, I do love seeing my daughter in her earrings. They are just the gold studs. It will be a long time before we go from the studs to hoops or a chain from her earring to her tongue ring (I'm totally joking!!!).

I was very young when I got mine pierced which probably has a lot to do with the decision to pierce my daughters.

 

[Todd&Copper]

My parents had mine peirced when I was three or so at a department store (it was the late 1970's). I cired so hard after the first one was done, they had to buy me a doll to persuade me to get the second one done. Apparently, I adored my earrings by the next day, though.

 

[KirstenB]

Our dd was 8 when she started asking. I told her whenever she wanted. She was a little nervous, but decided to have it done for her 9th birthday. We had it done by our ped in his office. She was very cute about it. She got scared after he did the first ear, so she said, "mommy, I'm sitting on my heels so they can't run away, because I really want to run right now!"

I'm sure this doctor has seen it all, so he took her face in his hands and told her she was almost there. She did great, and was so proud of herself. The only downside has been she wanted to change out her earrings after 4 weeks, and she was supposed to wait 6 weeks. She wound up with a minor infection that caused swelling which made it hard to get her earrings back in. We coated the earring with Neosporin, and it helped ease it back in.

 

[1rockinmamato2]

My parents did. My brother decided the time was never.

This is slightly off-topic, but before you get your daughters' pierced, PLEASE look into getting it done at a real piercing studio with a needle rather than by some 18-year-old with a gun at the mall. The trauma caused by a needle is far less than that caused by a gun (which forces a blunt object through flesh rather than slicing it cleanly), and as a result it is a lot less painful and takes less time to heal. Additionally, a needle can be sterilized (or is single-use only), while a gun provides many lovely hiding places for icky bacteria.

I was very worried about the ear piercing guns when I decided to get DD's piercied. That's why my pediatrician does it in his office and the "guns" are single use. There was no way I was going to Claire's and having my baby's ears pierced with a plastic gun used on someone else.

 

[freckles and boo]

I often wonder if those who want to wait until their daughter can decide they want their ears pierced have any sons and if they chose circumcision for them or waited until they were old enough to decide the wanted to be circumsized?

Oh my goodness, I cannot tell you anti-circumcision my husband is!!! We don't have a boy so it hasn't been a practical issue, but I would respect his feelings on this matter if we ever did. He feels strongly that people should have control over their own bodies. Of course, if either of our daughters were in a medical crisis we would not allow them to make uninformed decisions as children. That is why we are their parents. Cosmetic decisions are another matter and they can have as much control as is reasonable about things like hair, clothes, piercings, etc. Permanent things like tattoos have to wait until they are out of the house.

 

[UMTerp]

Thanks for all of the great info!

I think I will check with her pediatrician.

UMTerp

 

[CheshireVal]

I often wonder if those who want to wait until their daughter can decide they want their ears pierced have any sons and if they chose circumcision for them or waited until they were old enough to decide the wanted to be circumsized?

I don't have a son-- if I have one in the future I probably wouldn't get him circumsized. I dunno-- it's not really something that my family has placed much emphasis on so I don't see much need for it, but I guess I'd need to do some research on it if the time ever came.

I don't like seeing earrings on babies-- it's the equivalent of putting makeup on them to me. I wouldn't want to put my baby through unnecessary pain (which she doesn't understand) for something so superficial and cosmetic. Again, just my personal preference. To each his/her own.

 

[SavvyMom]

I was 12 when I got mine done. That was my dad's rule . I got my 2nd holes when I was 15 behind my parents' back. They forgave me though. I got both of my daughters' ears pierced after their tetnus shots (2 mos?). They never had any problems with them. DD14 loves to wear earrings, but DD10 doesn't. Oh well.

 

[dreamcometrue]

DD had them pierced at 5. She'd been asking me for a year prior to that and I finally gave in. She is 7 now and we never had any problems!

 

[poptoone]

We weren't having out DD ears pierced until she asked to get them done. She asked out of the blue new years day this year and went and had it done and now thinks she is the stuff. She is 4 by the way.

 

[SeeDisney]

My DD was 7 when she had hers done. Be sure to get it numbed with some kind of gel or solution.

I say 9 is not too young at all. Let her have it.

 

[PatsGirl]

Ear piercing and circumcision -- are they even remotely connected?

Anyways, I never really cared for pierced ears on a baby but after being constantly reassured that I had the most handsome baby boy by every stranger in the stores, I finally had my baby daughter's ears pierced at about 3 months old. She stopped wearing earrings probably around age 4 and although she has tried several times to reintroduce earrings we always seem to have a problem -- I guess we're not taking good enough care of them or the earrings she chooses are not quality enough. Probably just as well because all her friends are starting to wear hoops and dangles and I would never allow this at her age (10).

My DS17 begged to have his ear pierced before kindergarten and I obliged. He still wears an earring today. Sometime last winter he (or his girlfriend) splurged and he nows wears a 1/2 carat diamond. At the same time he wanted to have a bear claw shaved into the side of his head and I said okay to that too. We let that grow out on its own and within 2 months or so it was gone. Boy, his kindergarten teacher must've thought "WOW, who's this kid's mother?" on his first day of school, lol. He has run the gamut but for the most part dresses/plays the role of a "jock", only wearing his earring on the weekends during football and baseball season.

As for circumcision, because you asked no, he isn't but if he finds out I told the whole DISworld I may lose something myself