Mother slammed for wanting to pierce 11-month-old daughter's ears

A mother planning to pierce her infant daughter’s ears was called “abusive” by other parents when she sought out advice from users of an online parenting forum.

Posting to the U.K. site Netmums, user Leyla A. sparked hot debate after mentioning that her little girl is still young enough to breastfeed. Her post quickly filled with comments and concerns for the baby, raising the question: How young is too young to pierce a child’s ears?

Leyla had hoped to gain insight on aftercare and learn how the piercing might affect her child’s feeding regime, but instead she was swarmed with judgment and contempt.

“You’re planning [on] inflicting pain on your child, why?” one mom wrote.

“It’s selfish in my opinion, they are little people, not a fashion accessory,” wrote another.

But not everyone had harsh opinions to share. Some who were personally against piercing baby’s ears pointed out that the mom was being needlessly bullied.

“I know plenty of people who got their baby’s ears pierced at a very young age, never once have I thought it made them a bad parent or that it’s cruel,” said an onlooker. It should be noted than in many cultures, it is customary to pierce a baby girl’s ears.

Another wrote: “Definitely not child abuse or dressing your child up like a doll for your own satisfaction. Some people are so dramatic.”

But in the end, the mother conceded to her critics.

After thinking long and hard about the pain that would be inflicted on her daughter, Leyla says she probably wouldn’t have gone through with it in the first place. “I’ve come to the conclusion that I will not get it done,” she wrote. “I will wait until she’s old enough to ask for herself.”

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