Growing up a teenage girl means a host of painful, annoying hair removal. But how early is too early? Well, it depends! My daughter was 14 years old when she got waxed for the first time. Like most mothers, I was pushing the inevitable till I could. I knew that once we jumped on the waxing bandwagon there was no turning back for my little one.
I wanted to spare the pain that I had dealt with for so many years.
Why did we take the plunge finally? Well! Coz she asked me. Till now she hadn’t said anything about the hair on her legs or her arms. But as we planned our trip to the beach with some family friends, she got super nervous. The other girls were waxing and she didn’t want to be teased by the boys. Girls anyway feel self-conscious about their appearances as they enter adolescence. Plus, some research shows that kids are going through puberty earlier.
When your child feels apprehensive and talks about feeling conscious, listen to them and know that your timing is right. Peer pressure, body positivity questions, raging hormones – they have so much to deal with. You don’t want them to be bullied or called names because of the excess hair on their body.
When it comes to waxing, it entirely depends on the amount of hair your daughter has. Some girls don’t need to have any hair removal experience even until after their teens while some may need it by as early as the age of 12 years. However, the average age for any waxing or threading experience lies between 13 to 16 years.
However, before doing anything it is important to do research. There are a host of hair removal techniques available including
- Waxing
- Shaving
- Hair removal creams
- Laser treatments
- Epilators
Explore different options to find what is best suited to your daughter’s skin and preference and limits pain as much as she needs. The one thing to keep in mind, however, is to do any of the above in a parlour for the first time. It is likely safer, more hygienic and less painful than at home.
The First Wax
We opted to use Chocolate Wax since it was supposed to be the best and not the regular honey wax I grew up using. Besides giving you a softer waxing experience, it reduces the possibility of redness and itchiness.
I am going to be honest here. She found it super painful. Halfway through waxing one arm she was wailing and wanted the waxing didi to just leave it like that. It broke my heart to see the tears rolling down her face. I just gave her my hand and she literally crushed it. But once the deed was done she was so happy with her clean and smooth arms, legs and underarms. Totally worth it.
The pain does get better as we know from our own experience. Just make sure you don’t wait for all the hair to grow out again before you take your daughter for her next wax.
If you have had a similar experience with your daughter, we would love to know your story. Write to us at contribute@kidsstoppress.com.
Vaishnavi Venkatraman
Parul Gupta
Dr Amodita Ahuja
Elisha Parikh
