AIBU to have taken DD (11) to get her legs waxed?

[toobusytothink]

They were very hairy and she has been begging me to let her shave for ages

How often does it need to be done?

I probably wouldn't want to at 11 personally but kids are sure growing up fast these days! It's not a massive deal and if she was desperate and happier now then what the heck. It's just leg hair.

rogueone, can i ask if she had issues with her back also? my dd did and i had no idea what to do about this.

I find an epilator unbeatable but waxing much less painful.

As long as you weren’t contributing to her feeling uncomfortable about hairy legs then yanbu.

I use an epilator myself but she tried that and it was way too painful but might try to encourage it in the long run

I liked having my legs waxed but, unlike my eyebrows, they have taken the hint and I don't have enough hair to do it these days.

I think waxing is definitely the best way to go, my two best friends at school started waxing around that age and by 15 or 16 they hardly seemed to have any hair at all on their legs, whereas I shaved and still have to every other day.

littlebookofcalm she didn’t have any on her back. But if she did I would have used the hair removal creams to start with and then discuss options with the beautician as I would want to try and do something that would reduce the hair growing back the same. Have you taken your DD to the GP just to check for any hormonal issues?

thanks @rogueone

i think she has asked at the pretty useless GP

if she mentions it again i might mention back to the GP for hormone check, but she hasnt mentioned it so i wont bring it up thanks @rogueone,
sorry for interrupting the thread op.

Waxing was absolutely the best option, its not so painful if you've never shaved and gets even less so over time. I think you made a great call!!

My dd has shaved sporadically in the past but it's now sporting some quite hairy legs/pits. She is nearly 15 and doesn't seem bothered about it. I worry she will get teased for it but for now she seems ok

I probably wouldn't want to at 11 personally but kids are sure growing up fast these days! It's not a massive deal and if she was desperate and happier now then what the heck. It's just leg hair.

When I was 11 in the early 90s it was normal for girls to shave their legs. I wasn't allowed so used a blunt orange Bic and cut my legs to shreds.

I think it's great the OP is supporting her daughter to do what she wants with her body.

My best friend at school never shaved her legs - her mum took her to be waxed from a similar age. By the time we left school she barely had any leg hair left and now only needs to wax very occasionally. It’s an excellent idea!

@SmiledWithTheRisingSun you're kidding right?

Boys are getting this more and more now. My son is going through exactly that, right now.

If she wanted to then I say fine.
She'll hopefully have the added bonus of it being much thinner growth in even 10 years' time. I'm 32 and that's how long I've been going, and the growth is significantly sparser.
"Waxing is painful" is oversimplistic as it's different for different women - even down to different areas of the body. People warned me off underarm and bikini waxing but I actually find it much less painful than having my legs done. Different areas of the body have different sensitivities and not always in the way you would expect, and we all have different pain thresholds too.

Nornironrock interested to know what boys get put through. Have DS just turned 13 so got it all to come with him

I wasn't allowed to remove any hair until I was old enough to go against my mums rules. I hated it and my mum. I played a lot of netball in a very short skirt and my hairy legs would make me cry.

If I had daughters I'd do exactly what you did. Lucky her for having a mum that listens and also takes her to get the treatments that will do it properly and make her feel like this is something she can do.

I wish my mum had been like you!

You might find at first that you will need to take her every 3-4 weeks so that all hairs are "caught" and you then get them in the same growth cycle which means when you do wax it's a much more thorough job and it will last longer.as others have said , if she keeps in a regular routine the hairs will most definitely start to become more sparse and much finer. No flaming here, I would do exactly the same for my daughter, it's unfortunate that it's the society we live in but I'm not going to use her discomfort to push my feelings regarding feminism and equality out 😊

Oh and also if you can find somewhere that offers Lycon or hot wax rather than strips you will find the discomfort much much less!

@toobusytothink Thanks for aksing. Actually, mine is only 10, but it has started already. It's mainly weight, athleticism, hair, and of course the universal comparison of clothing/schoolbag/shoes/trainers etc.

He carries a little excess weight due to his asthma medication, and it's a big deal to him. He constantly compares himself to others, and they don't seem to mind reminding him.

In my opinion, the media is now going the same way as it has with women (shamefully) for years. Apart from the dad-bod phenomenon, when was the last time you saw a guy in an advert that looks like a normal guy?

Sorry, I've gone off topic a little.... I could go on, and start on clothing sizes for instance.

OK, maybe not a medal but I do think the OP deserves to be praised for this. I had dark hair and was getting the piss taken out of me. When I asked my mother to do something about it she told me I was too young, so obviously I took matters into my own hands and started shaving. This resulted in cuts and unpleasant regrowth. When my mother realised what I was doing (not until about a year later - she wasn't around much) she was angry and couldn't understand why I'd gone against her instruction - even though I had explained the problem a few times.

If she'd just taken me to get waxed from the start the whole thing would have been much less fraught - no sneaking around with razors and worrying about not being able to get my regrowth done before people noticed it again. It gave me a lot of stress. Like others I didn't find waxing that painful and it reduced my regrowth enormously. It also made me feel rather grown up. Just keep waxing as she needs it and then once she's older investigate laser treatment. She will remember this always, that you helped her instead of left her to be laughed at.

why not treat her to laser hair removal for her birthday? if she has rather dark hair 8-12 sessions and shell be done with the issue for life, plus it deffo hurts less than a wax poor thing. its how they do it here (middle east somewhere) and i think it really makes a lot of sense: think of how much thought, time and money you spend all your life on hairy everything. just get rid!

I dont think boys get quite the pressure girls get, certainly not at 13, but there is plenty of pressure for them too. A lot of it around height/weight/athleticism and muscular development. Having too much body hair can be an issue too.