Hi all,
My first grader wants to get her ears pierced. I am ok with it and she knows it will probably hurt but she wants to do it anyway.

Anyone have any words of wisdom? Are places at the mall ok? Would you go to a piercing parlor? I wonder if my pediatrician does it (it seems if they circ kids, they should be willing to do a piercing!).

Suggestions and helpful hints greatly appreciated!!!

I recommend going to actual piercing shop that pierces with needles.
It is much safer as well as MUCH LESS PAINFUL! It will cost more money, but it is worth it in the long run.

Piercing guns can be very very danergous. (ie. places in the mall)

I think the needles would be more frightening to a little kid too.

I know needles are better for most areas of the body, but with the ears...I think the gun is just fine

My daughter is 5, in kindergarten..and she's starting to ask too.


Linda

Umm.. I pierce ears, been doing it since I was 16, some 25 plus years. I pierced all 3 of my daughters ears and they got it when they started first grade. IT's the perfect age. The gun is the best way to do it, least painful, most healthful and sanitary. Pediatricians for the most part don't know what they're doing or where to place it. Sorry, but needles are barbaric (in my opinion, of course). I've seen people who have gotten their ears pierced in malls and they're not always very even. I do think a small privately owned jewelry shop is the best. Do you have any friends who have had their daughters ears pierced that you can ask? Someone that they were happy with? I always find that to be the best bet. Good luck.

I got my older girls done at 5& 6 my baby done at 10 months. The best way is both ears at the same time so they do not get 1 done and no the other. So I would say any trained to do piercings but both at the same time which means finding a place that has 2 people who do it on the same shift could take ssome time but well worth it. I waited 4 months to get the babies done for this reason.

I'm sorry, but I beg to differ. I've tried to do it several times with 2 people, the problem is that you can not do it at the same exact time and even if it's off by just a second she's going to jump when she gets that first ear pierced and that second ear hole probably won't be in the right spot. We had tried everything to get it synchronized to be at the same time, count of three, on three it just is impossible to do. I pierce little girls all the time and in the past 25 years, maybe 3 girls didn't want to do their second ear. It very rarely happens.

I am sorry, but that is a LOAD OF CRAP!

The gun is WAY LESS SCAREY but 10 times more painful. It is also VERY un healthy and not sanitary.

A gun can not be sterlize, so if the person behind you was bleeding, there can be blood in the gun that can not be cleaned. The guns are made of plastic and can not be run thru an autoclave and cleaned properly. USUALLY (not saying you) the person behind that gun has no training. They are trained to pierce on teddy bears.

In no way am I trying to force you to use a piercing needle, but I want you to know the risks involed with piercing guns. I know FIRST hand that they hurt more - I have MANY MANY piercings, done with guns and needles, and the ones with needled I bearly felt (include my clit and extra thick cartilidge - my ear lobes (just flesh) pieced with a gun hurt 10 times more) - the ones with guns hurt like a ***** and I would never do it again.

Also, getting pierced with a gun is bascially forcing an object thru your body - the earing itself is not very sharp and basically RIPS A HOLE into your ear. Also, the actual piercing stud is not long enough to allow for swelling, so the ear can not swell, if it does it can actually SWOLLOW the earing (this happening to my sister, we had to DIG the whole earing out of her eat with tweezers). Also, a piercing stud can not be properly cleaned - meaning higher chance for infection.

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

From the link above...
Why the Needle is So Much Better
In comparison to the two-week training of the mall piercer, a professional body piercer goes through extensive training that can last as long as two or three years. They learn about the human body and how piercings affect the circulatory system. They learn how to avoid hitting nerves that can cause severe pain to the customer. Most importantly, they learn about cross-contamanation prevention and how to properly sterilize their instruments. Anything that touches the customer that cannot be autoclaved is thrown away immediately. Work stations are fully disinfected before and after every piercing procedure.

The piercing process itself is also much safer and less painful than having a blunt stud forced through your skin. A piercing needle is actually hollow and extremely sharp. It slices through the skin, safely pushing the tissue aside to make room for the jewelry to be inserted. That may not sound too appealing, but it is actually a very quick process and the method is virtually painless for most body parts.

The jewelry that is used in professional piercing shops is also much better for you. Barbells and Captive Beads Rings are specially designed to allow removal of dirt and bacteria effectively during the healing process. Allowing for full movement of the jewelry makes it much easier for you to clean it without counter-productively pushing more bacteria into the pierce. The metals that are used in this jewelry are also better for your skin and less likely to cause a reaction. High-grade Surgical Stainless Steel and even Titanium (which is virtually nickel-free) give you the best chances of an infection and reaction-free piercing.

again a piercing gun isnt a huge deal on a ear lobe, but I would still never allowed anyone I love to get piecered by a piercing gun again - even if that means I have to pay for the piercing myself.

I could go on forever about this issue but I wont. If you want to know more, PM me. Also, google piercing guns and you can see how bad they really are.

Just want to add - EVERYTHING used during a piercing by a professional piercer is thrown away when they are done or throw in a bin to be autoclaved. Everytime they touch you or something else they change their gloves and wash their hands. When you get pieced in the mall, you are EXTREMTLY lucky if they wash their hands before and/or wear gloves. And again, dont forget - the piercing gun can never be cleaned.

Where i m am from their experience is different they recommend you get boh done at the same time. I HAD to have 2 people or they would not pierce their ears.

sotypical-- does that mean piercing parlors do ears too. i know that sounds stupid I just never thought of that. It probably would be the more sanitary way and they would be better trained. I wish I would of thought of that for my kids.

canadian mom - they will pierce anything you want as long as they feel it is safe. It is more expenisve, usually double the cost or more - but saving 20-30$ (could be more depending on where you live) and risking your health.... I dunno, I know that I would rather spend more money (and really, 30$ isnt a lot!) and know I am not risking damaging my ear for the rest of my life - or worse - getting some sort of disease.

Well thanks for the info> If my girls get their pierced again I will make sure I look into the shops here (my oldest wants her 3rd ear piecing).

I would definatly looking into getting it done by a professional in that case. The higher you go in the ear the more cartilidge there is. And that is where the REAL problem starts with piercing guns. They are only designed to piece your lobe (one, MAYBE two holes in your lobe) - they were never made for cartilidge. Getting pieced by a gun thru cartilidige is a HUGE risk and can cause huge huge problems. I know if I wanted to get a third hole, it would be runnng into soft cartilidge.

My daughter had hers pierced at Wal-mart at the age of four and a second hole done at the same store at the age of 8 or 9. Both experiences went great and she had no problems. She had both sides done at the same time by two people at the same time and they're fine. Just my experience.