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I have a dcm who keeps mentioning that she wants to get dcgs ears pierced when she turns one. I know it's common but I have always considered it cruel and selfish to put a baby through unnecessary pain. Does anyone have a policy on this or experience with this? I don't want to have to worry about them getting caught on something or her pulling on them. It just seems to me it would become a problem.
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It is not my thing either but I've had babies that have them pierced and it is no problem on my end. On a rare occasion an earring has come out but was easy to put back on.
I don't allow any jewelry or fancy barrettes because other babies take them out of the child's hair and put them in their mouth. But pierced ears have never been a problem.
Laurel -
Both my daughters were pierced when they were babies. As a child who was pierced at an older age, I remember the experience. I would’ve preferred to have gotten it done as a baby leading to no memory of it.
They were no hassle. It’s the DCPs responsibility to keep them clean with a solution morning and night. One of my DCG’s 3 has piercings and they’re no problem at all. If I were to have a policy on earrings it would be:
Earrings must be stud type and/or no longer than 1/6 of an inch.Comment
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Thank you Laurel that's good to know because I don't think I will be able to talk her out of it. Unless.....someone has had a bad experience that I can share with mom to maybe change her mind and keep my sweet little girl from suffering through this.Comment
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Some considerations...
It could be a cultural thing. In some cultures baby girls have their ears pierced right after birth.
For better or worse, it is her parent's choice. Would you try to talk a mom out of circumcising her baby boy? The same argument that it is unnecessary pain could be made.
In my own experience, I've had a few DCK's (boys and girls) who've had earrings as infants (younger than a year) and have never had a problem with them.Comment
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The only problem I have is how they pierce infants ears with the gun. This is a very interesting and informative article comparing a mall shop with a gun and a tattoo parlor.
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I had my DD's ears pierced when she was a baby. I believe she was around 7 months old.
Her pediatrician did it during a well child check.
I was always told the ear cartilage is softer in infants and the older a child gets the more nerve connections are formed in that area so there is less pain for an infant verses a 5 yr old..... whether that is true or not, I have no idea.
She didn't cry.
I used earrings with screw on backs that could not come out accidentally and pose a choking hazard for her.
I've had several babies in care who've had their ears pierced. (No boys yet...although I do know a few) One of the littlest ones was 4 days old when the parents had her ears pierced. For them it was cultural.
For me, it was just my young, inexperienced ways... I was 21 and my DD had a boys name so it just seemed right at the time.
I was 5 when I had my own ears pierced and I totally remember it. It wasn't a pleasant experience.
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I don't think you should try and talk mom out of this. That is over stepping your boundaries. The ear piercing does not affect you or your daycare so it is none of your business.
I think we providers need to be careful about boundaries. This is not your child. Ear piercing is up to the parent.Comment
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You're right not my baby or my decision and I haven't shared my opinion on this with mom for that reason. My question was if any other providers have dealt with this because it seems like it could be a potential problem. And yes I was hoping to hear negative things about it that I could share with her without it seeming like I was judging her.Comment
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The only thing I would say to mom is that you require earrings (if worn) that can NOT be removed or fall out. No dangling earrings or anything similar.
A lot of time, a newly pierced ear needs to be cleaned multiple times a day....I would let mom know you will NOT be providing any care in regards to that process.... it shouldn't be your responsibility at all.
I'd require screw on backs only as they can't just fall out...
They look like this:
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The only problem I've had is when 18 month old (who had them pierced at 3 months) started pulling them out at nap time, but they were small loops and she could stick her finger in there and pull on them. After 3 times of that I told mom she needed studs. Also said I wasn't responsible for lost earrings or damage to ears caused by pulling on them. She has worn studs ever since (last 4 months) and there has been no other issueComment
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I was worried when one of my dcbaby got pierced for her first birthday. I thought either she or other babies would mess with them but no problems so far shes had them for 6 months now. I really am surprised because they cannot leave hair bows or even bands in their hair or each others so I thought everyone would be after the stud earrings but nobody even noticed.Comment
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I have certain rules when it comes to ear piercing.
I will not be responsible for any cleaning/care.
The earrings must be the kind that cannot be pulled out.
If they become infected (it happened once), the child must stay home until they are taken care of. I don't want a crabby child with sore ears all day and lying on my floor with weeping, infected ears ....I know.......TMI!!!!!
I was 19 when I had mine done. My daughters were about 14. I wanted them to chose whether they wanted it done and they were responsible for the care while healing.Comment
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I got my first ear piercing when I was 3 months old. When I was little I just assumed girl ears came like that, until I found out one of my friend didn't have pierced ears (sometimes she wore magnets and clips-ons, which are more of a safety hazard in a child care setting IMO). There isn't cartilage in the lobe where standard piercings are, it's just skin and soft connective tissue. The actual cartilage is on the top part of the ear (most places will not pierce there on a young child because it is more painful and has a higher risk of infection). Some people believe that the acupuncture points in the part of the ears that are usually pierced can supposedly increases spiritual energy http://www.spiritualresearchfoundati...-body-piercing. On another note, some believe that naval piercings can affect fertility (though I do know someone with a naval piercing who was told she would have issues having children and is now expecting her 3rd child, maybe it can reverse it if you already have issues?).
I have a high tolerance for pain when it comes to piercings and tattoos (I had no pain issues with my cartilage/nose/lip piercings in my teens, my tattoo tickled). At the daycare I used to work at there was a 9 year old that had her cartilage pierced. And most of the time with new ear piercings use starter studs which are sharper (to penetrate the lobe) and have a special closed backing so it can't easily come lose and so the sharp backing can't hurt the back of their ear. These type of studs are very common in "baby earrings".
I would just have a rule about it being done professionally at a pediatricians office (maybe a respectable piercing parlor that has a good reputation, if you have one in your town, and doesn't use piercing guns), note required! If they do it at home, I would tell them to wait at least 24 hours before she will be allowed back in the daycare (in case of infection/fever), definitely would NOT allow them back for at least 2 days if they get it done at a mall/Wal-Mart (they almost always use "reusable" piercing guns which are hard to sanitize and increase infection and transfer of blood born illnesses). And definitely no dangling earrings or hoops.Comment
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My dd ears are pierced and we went to the mall. Maybe it depends where youre located, but here they use a sterilized sealed piercing gun that goes into the medical waste lock container when done.
I would just recommend to the mom what the other pp have said (you won't clean them, no hoops, if infected cannot be at daycare, not responsible if lost, etc).
We pierced dd at 9 months. She didn't even cry. But she started playing with them and knew how to remove them around 15 months. We tried everything to keep them on (putting them backwards, child safety twist & lock ones, etc) with no luck and just removed them. She's 4 now and we just repierced them. She didn't cry, but she definitely knew what was going on and pretty sure she will remember it. I wish she had kept them on as a baby, it was so much easier to clean!Comment
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