Stretching questions & care

Re: How young is too young?

xfeedyourshamex — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 01:55:06 GMT

I didn't mean the maturity difference between ages was significant, I was just mentioning that I now understand my mistakes, and I'm ready to do everything necessary to have nice, healthy lobes

Re: How young is too young?

kittiann — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 18:31:29 GMT

My bad!

This thread may now continue on its normal course

Re: How young is too young?

wissabo — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 17:06:44 GMT

Kittiann, I think it's okay in an ongoing thread like this one...but I could be wrong. :-D

Re: How young is too young?

abeaulieu — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 10:46:03 GMT

so, i'm 19 y/o. legally i can obtain any tattoo or piercing i want but am still a teenager. I first got the desire to stretch my ears whenI was probably about 14. of course my mom said no telling me that it was permanent,which i didn't believe at the time. I'm so glad now that she said no and that i listened. I'm happy that i waited until now to completely make sure that that's what i wanted and that i put in the effort to do it safetly. i guarentee at that time i completely would have stretched incorrectly and not understood the warning signs my body was giving me.

I also agree with the last posters about the fact that having a piercing requires a lot of responsibility. if a teenager doesn't take that responsibility seriously then ultimately the consequences fall on our parents to bail us out. it's the same reason i don't think kids should ever have pets lol. unless you can completely take full financial and mental responsibility wait.

Re: How young is too young?

harold — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 10:29:30 GMT

kittiann:
Generally, bumping old posts is frowned upon around here

hahaha... anyways - i think it was intensely-interesting that the prior poster considered that the difference in age btwn 15 (when they started) and 16 (where they are now - btw belated happy bday) is significant...

also, i heartily agree with the prior gal who said that 'too young' is defined by the -parents- if the person is financially-dependent upon them (for medical care)... and in those 'my case is unique' situations like divorce or multiple households or... i believe that 'too young' is defined by not having a 'workable' answer to the question of 'what happens IF this bodymod goes wrong somehow?'... because if the person can 'plan adequately for the worst', then they are 'old enough' to do what theyd like, imo...

Re: How young is too young?

kittiann — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 04:01:05 GMT

Generally, bumping old posts is frowned upon around here

Re: How young is too young?

xfeedyourshamex — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 03:11:48 GMT

Old thread, I know, but I can honestly vouch for both parties.

1. I started stretching my lobes when I was 15. Needless to say, I screwed them up pretty bad. That's my argument for the people that say you should wait, I was stupid, and now I'm paying for it.

2. I just turned 16 (literally, birthday was yesterday. :D), and my fucked up lobes have helped me realize how much dedication and time-consuming effort stretching takes. I do plan on stretching in the future, but I also plan on taking my time and having healthly, happy lobes.

That's my input

Re: How young is too young?

Lana — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 05:33:38 GMT

amandaaa_x:

wissabo:

If you did all your research, and waited so long, why did you still go too fast???

Cause I'm disgustingly impatient, which is part of why I'm not stretching anymore.
I'm definitely not saying it was like. Pushing a taper through until it bled or anything.

I just sound like I'm making excuses, don't I? Yeah. Sorry.

I was 15 when I hit my (old now!)goal of 4g.. and I waited sufficiently between stretches. Yeah, it kills you - but just don't buy the jewellery, that way you avoid temptation.
It's not worth going fast. We have the rest of our lives for it at our age! :)

Re: How young is too young?

HippieMama — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 03:52:34 GMT

Oddly enough, I don't see many people in my area with stretched lobes. I see a ton of Scene kids with snakebites, though.

I think my biggest issue with kids and body mods is that many of them are not responsible enough to take care of them. Not saying there aren't adults who go out and make stupid, hasty choices when it comes to tattoos and piercings and then neglect them, but kids have so much going on and their minds get so easily distracted. I see it every day on Yahoo Answers. Stuff like, "dude, im lyke 12 and getting mah nabel persed 2moro! i wanted 2 get it dun cuz wer goin 2 teh beech 2moro 4 vacay n i wanted 2 look sooper sexxxy! can i swim n teh oshun if i ware a band ade on my persing?!?!" It drives me up the wall. Or the kids that get all butt hurt because they wanted that navel piercing so desperately that they just had to get it done two days before their best friend's epic pool party and they want to know why they can't go swimming. Or the kids who claim they hate the jewelry their lip was pierced with that day and want to know if they can just keep changing the jewelry (usually to something they saw at Hot Topic) so long as they "clean it with alcohol first". Piercings are about making sacrifices sometimes. I gave up smoking for over two weeks when I got my tongue pierced because I wanted to do everything correctly and have everything heal well. But I was twenty-three years old before I had that done.

I realize that teenagers deserve the right to express themselves and be their own unique, individual selves; however, as a mother, I can't get behind the "it's my body and I can deal with the consequences" defense. If my son were to go and have some friend of his pierce his lip for him with a safety pin and it got infected and required medical care then the consequences are a burden I must bear as his parent. I'm legally and financially obligated to get him out of whatever bind he may get himself into as he gets older until he is a legal adult. But I think it's also important to make the distinction between thirteen and fourteen year old kids (who are still in junior high) and, say, a senior in high school. Obviously, in most cases, a seventeen year old is going to be more responsible than a thirteen year old.

I also wonder, though, if many young people don't understand the permanency behind what they're doing. I remember being a teenager. It's nearly impossible to look beyond twenty, let alone way down the road. I remember thinking thirty was as old as dirt. I certainly was not making choices in life as if I were thirty years of age and had to make an emergency career change. It's difficult to be patient, especially when you're young, and we all know lack of patience leads to bad decisions and crappy body modification experiences.

Re: How young is too young?

a782557 — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 02:47:04 GMT

I was 2 months away from age 18 when I got them pierced with a 14g. My parent's didn't mind, as I already had double navel, nostril, and monroe done thanks to apprenticing at a local shop... why freak out about lobes.

I was angry as a child, but I'm SO happy my parent's didn't tote me to the mall to get my ears gunned.

Tattoos waited until I turned 18, though. Despite having to wear long sleeve, BLACK shirts in the summer (sometimes, outside) I still love them... I shouldn't have got them in a visible area, but I had no idea how terrible the economy was going to get, and how much less available jobs are out there for people with visible tattoos. If I was rich and didn't have to worry, I'd be covered.

Re: How young is too young?

amandaaa_x — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 01:43:09 GMT

wissabo:

If you did all your research, and waited so long, why did you still go too fast???

Cause I'm disgustingly impatient, which is part of why I'm not stretching anymore.
I'm definitely not saying it was like. Pushing a taper through until it bled or anything.

I just sound like I'm making excuses, don't I? Yeah. Sorry.

Re: How young is too young?

wissabo — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 23:19:27 GMT

amandaaa_x:

I did all my research, learned the right way to stretch, and waited almost 3 years before I actually started stretching. I know I went wayyyy too fast [18 -> 10 in under 2 months], but my ears didn't seen to mind. I'm not saying it was okay, but that's just how it went with me.

If you did all your research, and waited so long, why did you still go too fast???

To modded: 5/8 to 6g in one week?? Stretchy ass ears....

Re: How young is too young?

jellybean — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 21:48:28 GMT

amandaaa_x:
I did all my research, learned the right way to stretch, and waited almost 3 years before I actually started stretching. I know I went wayyyy too fast [18 -> 10 in under 2 months]

See? Even people who find (presumably) correct information STILL won't do it the right way...

Re: How young is too young?

amandaaa_x — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 05:28:31 GMT

I don't really think there's an age limit. As long as the person's done their research and know the consequences, it's their choice.

I'm 14 with 4ga lobes. I did all my research, learned the right way to stretch, and waited almost 3 years before I actually started stretching. I know I went wayyyy too fast [18 -> 10 in under 2 months], but my ears didn't seen to mind. I'm not saying it was okay, but that's just how it went with me.
And for now, I'm staying at a small enough size that if, for some strange reason, I decide I no longer want my lobes stretched, they'll go back to a somewhat normal size.

And this concludes my minirant:]

Re: How young is too young?

Mr.GuzbeKnot — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 06:23:46 GMT

Eric:

They already went to 6g from 16mm? That's impressive elasticity, but it probably means you stretched way too fast. Not making any age related downtalking here, but if you're 13 and were at 16mm, you must have started stretching when you were like 10, or you pretty much owned your lobes. haha.

haha reading that then looking at your avatar made my day man XD