Piercing Ears

[moosmom]

First off, I cannot believe that Quinn has gotten so big!!

I had Amy's ears pierced done when she was three and do NOT recommend it. I had it done at one of those ear piercing places. She's now 32 and has 2 holes in each ear AND a tattoo that she got about 6 months ago.

If I had to do it over, I would've had it done when she was an infant. But you know hindsight.

[jackie]

It is common in S. America and here to pierce the ears when the baby is 3 days old. I don't see anything wrong with it.

[Uabassoon]

Mine were pierced at the hospital before I even came home! It's common practice in many hispanic cultures. I personally see nothing wrong with it. It hurts only for a moment, no more than a shot.

[Sirrahsim]

I personally don't agree with it. In my opinion, getting a baby's ears pierced is pointless. It doesn't help their growth and development in any way and they won't even be old enough to enjoy having earrings for years. Why not wait until your child is old enough to ask for them The whole practice seems silly to me and it makes me sad to see a little bitty baby with holes in her ears.
I guess it is the parent's decision but it is her little body and I don't agree with poking unnecessary holes in it.

[sirrahved]

I think it's something that changes your body forever. IMHO, a person should be able to decide whether they have holes added to their body or not. I don't see it as any huge abuse to pierce a baby's ears, but I'd never do it.

btw, some of us LIKE the pain of piercing

[sparks19]

I am not having Hannahs ears pierced until she is older and asks for it and is willing and able to learn how to take care of them. But I dont' see anything wrong with it.

I got mine done when I was about 11 and I was terrified lol but I wanted them. I had them done and really got over my fear lol. it wasn't as bad as i thought it would have been. Now I have 4 in one ear and 3 in the other.

[Karen]

I worked at an Earring Tree, and did a few babies even younger. The youngest was 1 week old, her mom held her facing forward, she was sound asleep, I did one ear, she made a little squeak noise and flopped her head to the side so I could do the other.

As long as you will be careful about keeping them clean and rotating them, etc., I see no harm in it. As Laura said, it's quite common in some cultures.

Usually, the youngest we would do a child old enough to squirm was 4 years old if there was only one employee in the shop. For a two-year-old, it was best to have two people, one for each ear, to get it done all in one shot. The funniest incident regarding people being afraid was one evening, I was working by myself, and a little girl approached the counter, Mom following. "My name is Rachel, and I am 4 now," she proudly stated, "and ready to get my ears pierced." Mom consented, they picked the studs, and Miss Confidence hopped up on the stool. I marked her ears with the marker, showed her in the mirror, "Yup!" she said. So I did one ear, then the other, she barely even moved. She was so excited to see her earrings in that she practically was skipping when she left.

Well, unnoticed by Rachel, lurking outside the corner of the booth were three guys, all over 6 feet tall, and one turned to other - the one most obviously 'drunk for courage' and said "Man, now you GOTTA do it! That little girl just shamed you into it!" He had apparently been wanting to get an earring for so long that his friends said they were sick of him talking about it, and it was time to do it!

[carole]

I personally would never pierce my babies ear, i will tell you why, one they have no choice in the matter,and yes they will forget the pain, but still she will feel it just the same, i never had mine done until i was 18 and my daughter when she was about ten, either way you feel the pain and forget it, so i don't really see the reasoning in what you are saying, however i do know that certain cultures do it at a young age, but to me that is slightly different, have you asked why you wish to really do it, because it looks pretty you think.

I just think everyone should have the right to make a choice when they are old enough to,as to whether they want piercings in their ears, of course she can always let them grow over the holes if she does not like them when she is older,but i just think you would be better waiting, also i can only imagine what a hassle it would be to take care of at such a young age, however it is of course your'e personal choice, she is your child, and you make the decisions for her.

[kuhio98]

I don't really see anything wrong with it. But, it's not very painful. So, I wouldn't do it now for that reason (sparing her pain). Instead, I'd wait until she asked for it when she's older.

Instead of making all the decisions for kids, it's great for them to learn decision making skills. When she asks about it, you can tell her the decision is up to her. And that all you insist upon is that it be done by a qualified person and that you be there when it's done. Then, it could be a lovely memory of the 2 of you going together, getting it done and picking out earings.

[carole]

with all due respect Lisa, i found it extremely painful, i guess i must have sensitive ears or something, they throbbed for hour's afterwards, i think my tolerance of pain is pretty ok too, after all i have had two children, so i think it just depends on how sensitive your ear's are maybe.

[Kfamr]

I would personally wait until the child is old enough to decide of she wants them done or not. Then it would be a "gift" or "prize" when she's gotten good grades, behaved well, turned 13, 14, 15 etc.

I'm 20 and have never gotten my ears pierced and don't plan on it. I'm glad my parents never got it done when I was a baby.

[Logan]

You asked for our opinion and mine is "No". Let her decide to do it when she wants to. Obviously you aren't going to have a problem if she is 4 or 14, since you're willing to do it now.

I think I had mine pierced at 13. I don't remember asking to have them done before that. I sort of held 13 as the age that I would allow Helen to have hers pierced, but ended up caving in when she was 6. But, it came in handy as a trade off with her. She continually got up during the night and got in the bed with me and did the same thing when she was visiting her dad and stepmother. He and I agreed that she could do it, but she had to go one whole month without leaving her own bed at night. And she did it! So she got her ears pierced. I have held firmly on no more piercings in the ears until she is over 18 and can decide for herself, then. I did allow her to have her belly button pierced this past November, though. I required her to pay for it herself.

[Pam]

Instead of making all the decisions for kids, it's great for them to learn decision making skills. When she asks about it, you can tell her the decision is up to her. And that all you insist upon is that it be done by a qualified person and that you be there when it's done. Then, it could be a lovely memory of the 2 of you going together, getting it done and picking out earings.

Totally agree with that!

[binka_nugget]

Contrary to what most people think, you're actually better off going to a real piercing shop instead of getting someone to use a piercing "gun". If you can't autoclave it, it's not truly sterile. Piercing guns can't be put into the autoclave because they would melt. The earrings used in piercing guns are fairly blunt and cause more trama than a clean slice with a sterile needle. Also, the standard for good piercing shops is surgical stainless steel 316LVM. There's a less likely chance that your body will react to it like some people react to gold plated earrings. There's also the option of using Titanium, which is lighter and more readily accepted by the body.

I say this as someone who has had experiences with both piercing guns and needles, and was serious about becoming a professional piercer. I didn't mean to bash anyone.