I know I don't have a lot of readers, but I'm curious about something. I want an HONEST opinion, and a discussion of your answer. Thanks.
How old is an appropriate age to get _________ pierced?
Ears -- first, second, third holes.
Nose.
Belly button.
Other.
No, my "pre-tween" is not asking for her belly button to be pierced, but this discussion came up recently on one of my networking sites and I thought it was a good topic for discussion. What do you guys & gals think?
I think it's OK to pierce a toddler's ears once. The second or third hole should wait until they are officially a "teen". Here's the thing: everyone can see your face, your hair, etc, so that's perfectly cool to accessorize within reason, as long as a person has proven themselves to be responsible enough to realize these things really can only be done while they are young. The only 40-somethings that have facial piercings are tattoo artists, piercers, circus performers, junkies, or a combination thereof, so we are talking about youth being youth responsibly. Nose, eyebrow, or other facial piercing should certainly not be until they are driving, and even then they should have awesome grades and be holding a steady job that won't mind. Anything else, including belly button, and they should be old enough not to need your permission to get it done. These other body parts (yes, even your belly) are covered by clothes and will only be seen by people you take your clothes off in front of. And if nobody else is going to see it, there is really not much point to getting it done at all.
ReplyDeletePierce when you feel they're ready and want to. Beyond the first hole that could go anytime... I'd say it's a matter of the child being "ready".
ReplyDeleteOkay so ears, the first time: I'm not a big fan on people getting their infant daughter's ears pierced. Shot day is hard enough why would you willing stab your kid so she could be more aesthetically pleasing? But she'll probably ask you about when she hits puberty, because it what grown-ups do.
ReplyDeleteThe other piercings are that "rebellious stage" thing. And I say let them do it when they're ready. Even if its just a show of rebellion. They're really just trying to stake out their own personality, to the world and to themselves.
A pierced belly button/nose/whatever doesn't say who you are, but they don't know that at the time. So you let them do it, let them explore and discover. Essentially, I say that so long as its not dangerous, you let the kid experiment how they want, even if it means making a mistake.
My example: I grew the Steaven Seagall ponytail when I was 15. It was dumb and I looked like an idiot. But my dad let me do it, cause there was no harm done and I eventually cut it.