29 October 2023 , 17:08
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A mum found herself in a tricky situation as she wondered whether she should allow her eight-year-old daughter use hair removal cream on her legs or not due to her being insecure about her legs.
She shared how her daughter was worried about the hair on her legs, which, because she has dark hair, could be noticeable when she wears a skirt or shorts and the mum is torn over whether to allow her to remove the hair, not wanting her to make her even more self-conscious about her appearance.
But she explained she just wanted to cheer her daughter up, insisting the insecurity was 'in her head'. "I have an eight-and-a-half-year-old daughter who is really worried about the hair on her legs", she said.
"She is mixed race and has dark hair which does make it show up more. She is so concerned about it that she will not wear skirts/shorts. She is so young I didn't want her to start worrying about her appearance but she is so concerned about it I am considering helping her use hair removal cream to remove it."
Posting on Netmums, she added: "I know people will probably judge me but I just want my daughter to be happy. I have given her the talk of how everyone is different but she just has it in her head that if she wears a skirt/shorts people at school will laugh and stare at her.
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"She is a very shy little girl with a few confidence issues anyway but do I give it a try or just keep telling her she is too young and allow her to continue wearing leggings/trousers?"
Another user suggested that the girl should be taught body positivity rather than have her appearance changed. They said: "Isn't eight or nine-year-old too young for that. I understand that it may boost her confidence, but I think you need to work on her confidence within. Naturally, only you know your child, but I think there is a deeper issue which needs addressing. Sorry, not much help from me."
However, most other mums who replied were supportive of using the cream. One said: "I would remove the hair. She sounds really unhappy and it'll be affecting her confidence. Better to remove it than have her worry about it instead of just enjoying herself."
Another wrote: "My daughter is nearly eight and we've used hair removal cream on her legs a couple of times in the last year or so. She doesn't have dark hair or dark skin but the hair on her legs has always been dark and long.
"It was really noticeable and she started to get very self-conscious. She loves wearing skirts and dresses so she was aware that people would notice. I did leave it a few months before giving in. I left it until she'd mentioned it a few times before I said that there was a way we could get rid of it. I didn't want to do it as she's only young and I really didn't want to make her feel that she needed to change the way she looked for other people."
Another added: "My daughter is seven and I have noticed that by the top of her knees, there is quite a bit of hair but haven't said anything to her. A month or so ago she did mention that she didn't like it and I reassured her that it isn't something to worry about and she hasn't mentioned anything since.
"If she was getting really upset about it I would remove it as she is really shy and her confidence isn't the best and if I can help her to feel more confident I will."
Another said: "If it was my daughter I would help her to remove the hair with cream. Yes, she is young, but if she's conscious about the hair then maybe others have pointed it out to her, so it makes her feel uncomfortable.
"When I went to school one girl got badly bullied because she had hairy legs. Don't give nasty kids a reason to be cruel to her. She's your daughter, do what you feel is the right thing."