To think that most women have pierced ears?

Honestly the whole Peircing as ‘mutilation’ is just weird. Hair cutting and colourings So many things could be classed as self mutilation, I mean pregnancy radically changes your body, is that self mutilation?

The only person I know who doesn't - and never has - is my 80yo mum. Much like you I think she was taught to believe it was "common" to do. She's big jewellery wearer for rings, necklaces, bangles etc so I do find it quite surprising that she has never succumbed.

My DM had hers done at 40 when I got mine done at 16, in the 80s.

DSM (70s) and MIL (80s) have never had theirs done. Neither has DS’s GF in her 20s.

I don’t. My mother doesn’t either. She also never liked it, but said I could choose myself when I was older (I think around 13 or 14,I can’t remember exactly now).

I just never saw the appeal of putting a hole in my ear by that point. So never bothered.

I’ll be telling my daughter the same

I'm 39 and never had my ears pierced, never wanted to either. My teenage daughter doesn't have hers pierced but wants facial piercings instead!

I’m 65. Got mine done in my teens as did my older sister (mid 1970s). Mum had hers done after us. We were at boarding school and pretty much everyone had them done (some with a needle and a cork!). I still wear earrings (studs) everyday and feel undressed without them.

I got mine pierced at 12. I can’t remember the last time I wore earrings though so might as well have not bothered!

I'm 55 and had to wait until I was 12 - most of my friends had theirs done earlier. I wear earrings almost every day - they're such a quick way to add a little oomph to my face area. But I couldn't tell you which of my colleagues have or haven't got them.

I don’t - wasn’t allowed and then wasn’t bothered about it.

I don't have pierced ears and have never wanted to get them pierced. It's just something that never interested me. I wear other kinds of jewellery so it's not that I generally lack interest.

It seems to have become more common for very young girls to get their ears pierced. When I was in primary school (late eighties/early nineties) two friends of mine got their ears pierced and they got quite a lot of attention!

I have mine pierced however i have a terrible allergy to earrings so I haven’t worn any for about 30 years. I love the piercings in the ear that are more unusual. (Not sure of their names) but I think they’re lovely.

I'd always been desperate to have my ears pierced. My mum made me wait until the summer between fishing primary school and starting secondary. I remember thinking she was SO mean to make me wait so long when all of my friends had them already! My sister has never wanted her ears pierced, she thinks it makes her more unusual these days to have no tattoos or piercings. My DD is 5 and hasn't yet shown any interest - I wonder if that might change with her having started school, I've noticed a few girls in her class have earrings, so I wonder if she'll notice too. I don't know what I'll say if she does ask!

I only know one person who doesn't.

Do it!

I wasn’t allowed mine done until I was 16. Now I’m in my 40s I went a bit mad and have had my nose, tragus, helix, conch done and several lobes. 😊

I know more people now with lots of piercings than none at all.

I do and I think my ears look a bit weird without earrings!

I'm 50 and I don't. Wasn't allowed when I was younger then by the time I was old enough to decide, I just wasn't that fussed - plus slightly squeamish!

I do feel unusual though, and have had the awkwardness of receiving earrings as gifts from people who don't notice I never wear them...

My oldest friend (who has just turned 60) has never had hers done. She was never a very girly girl and just wasn't interested, plus I think she dug her heels in more because her mum was always trying to persuade her to have it done from when she was about 16. Nowadays she wears a couple of rings (wedding and engagement plus one she just likes) but nothing else "decorative" and she doesn't like make-up either. It's just not her style and I admire her for standing by that choice.

I'm pretty sure I've known quite a few other unpierced women, but is not something that would really stick in my mind unless we'd had a conversation about it. I know the author Jacqueline Wilson famously hasn't. She wrote a character who was a writer and very much like her in many ways. But when asked if the character was based on her, she said something like, "well, she has elements of me but the main difference is she wears big dangling earrings, while I've never even had my ears pierced."

I'm in my 40s. Don't have pierced ears. I was needle-phobic for a long time and, although I'm not any more, the idea of willingly stabbing holes in your skin still strikes me as strange (see also, tattoos!).
Two late teenage daughters - they weren't allowed to get them done until they were old enough to do the aftercare themselves as I'm so squeamish about it. Now they're old enough one has had them done and the other hasn't, but thinks she probably will at some point.

Mine have closed up, after I lost one of the pearl earrings I wore nearly all the time, and didn’t replace it quickly enough.
I doubt I’ll bother having them done again.

My elder Gdd had her ears pierced on her 10th birthday.

I didn’t allow dds to have theirs done until they were 13.

@Agapornis

its unusual I guess, just in the sense that traditionally women have both lobes done. It wouldn’t be for me, but if you like it that’s what matters!

@weareallcats

what do you find annoying about earring out of interest? Once they’re in, I forget about them, so I’m intrigued!

I do, but don’t often wear earrings as I find them annoying (early 40’s - had them done when I was 12). My dd had hers done at 13 but her body thoroughly rejected them (despite careful piercing with a needle, gold earrings and, eventually, antibiotics), we took them out and they healed up straightaway. I hope she doesn’t attempt it again.

I don't, aged 52, for same reasons as OP. But I have big ears anyway and don't want to draw attention to them. My DD, 14, also doesn't have piered ears, she asked once when she was about 6, I said she could do it "when she was bigger" but she hasn't mentionned it since.

I do but no one else in family does. Only one friend out of half a dozen has.

Mine were done when l was about 11. Second hole done when l was 18. Nose stud done when l was in my 40s.

l never go out without my earrings but l hate to see babies and toddlers with them.