Unibrow...

[Kali]

My oldest (8.5 years) daughter has a unibrow that is both prominently bushy and will soon be dark. My husband thinks emphatically that I need to start waxing/shaving/whatever immediately. He thinks she will be laughed at and made fun of and she already has a lot of problems being sociable and making friends. I, however, feel that she is too young to start anything like that. But even if she were old enough, I don't want to give her a complex about needing to fit into society's standards or that she has to change anything about herself just to please others. I want to wait and let her come to me if she ever feels she needs this done. My husband doesn't think she'll actually come to me, though, and he may very well be right.

So what do y'all think? Should this even be an issue? Should we just ignore it until she says something? Should I start alleviating the issue right away? If you think it IS an issue, how old should she be when I bring this up?

 

[akmom]

Unless you're talking about a serious deformity, I think cosmetic issues should be left alone in children that young. If it bothers her, she will express that concern herself, in her own time. Talking about in within earshot of her falls into that category.

Besides, big bushy eyebrows can be beautiful. Just look at Lily Collins in the new Snow White movie "Mirror Mirror."

 

[Xero]

I would ask her about it. Start with the fact that you think she is perfect and beautiful just the way she is, and that you don't think she needs to change at all. But then go on to tell her that some people adjust their eyebrows a little because they like the way they look better that way, but that some people like to leave them the way they are, it's a personal preference. Ask her if she likes hers, or if she would like them to look different. Ask her if anybody ever says anything about it, or if it bothers her at all, and just let her know that if she wants to clean them up that it is totally possible and that you are happy to help her with it, that lots of people do it. Just make sure she knows its totally up to her and you support her either way, and that there is no one specific way that anyone's eyebrows have to look. But that if she wants hers to look different to just ask you and you will happily be there to help her do it. I only say this because I think a lot of kids at this age might not like the way something on them looks or might get teasing remarks about something changeable on them, but not realize that they can be fixed so they just accept it as the way it is you know? I don't think you should push it or do it if she doesn't want to, but just make her aware that you CAN do it if she WANTS you to, know what I mean?

 

[Mom2all]

If it was something I was sure would cause her to be singled out, I would use trimmers and keep them controlled. I would look at it like a hair cut.. or trimming her nails. Don't make a big deal out of it.. its just something to be done to keep tidy. If were talking normal but big brows.. I'd leave them be.. cave man bushy brows are different and I wouldn't wait until someone else makes her feel bad about them.

 

[mom2many]

Ahhhh, we have this issue in our house. Uni-brows and bushy eyebrows are a family trait for some of the kids. Lupan's always joking about how he is going to be one of those old men who's eyebrows can be brushed into a come over....he could be right lol

Anyways, we have always waited for them to come to us. It takes a lot of maintenance to take care of those pesky wayward hairs, and the best way to do it is by waxing, but she's to young right now. So when she has a problem with them it will be time to figure out what to do about it.

 

[Incogneato]

I guess it's hard to judge what to do, because if you wait for her to come to you about it, she may never come to you (if she's ashamed or being made fun of).

So is it better to take care of it sensitively now and possibly avoid any teasing about it by others, or encourage her self confidence and let her be the way she wants to be?

It's hard to say, because being teased my entire childhood for many reasons (though not about eyebrows), I can say I'd much rather avoid being teased. Too much teasing can result in possible self esteem or other psychological problems, but putting too much emphasis on appearance can also encourage narcissistic behavior.

Tough call for sure, but most likely I'd encourage more routine maintenance of the eyebrows before it ever got to be an issue.

 

[akmom]

What kind of "unibrow" are we talking about? If you look really closely at someone's face, you'll see that most everyone has some sparse hairs across the brow. The color and texture are just less prominent than the hair on the eyebrows, so you don't notice. Some people have a little more color and/or coarseness in some of the hairs, and it may or may not be noticeable, depending on how closely you look at them. I've never seen anyone with enough hair between the eyebrows that it actually looked like an eyebrow itself (you know, like Bert on Sesame Street)... so the term "unibrow" is a bit of an exaggeration.

Personally I've never encountered a young person with an obvious unibrow. Maybe some "interbrow" strands if you look closely, but nothing that looked unsightly. So I would hesitate to start plucking an eight-year-old's face over perceived flaws that she may very well never perceive herself. You might fulfill your own fears by being the ones to make her thnk it's a problem.

 

[Xero]

I guess I'm picturing this as a mild thing, like nothing super noticeable or major, but I guess if its bad enough that it really looks like a problem or you think most likely she WILL get picked on for it, then I do tend to agree with the others that you maybe should just take care of it before it becomes a problem. I guess it's hard to give a good answer without actually seeing. Cause I mean if its just a little extra hair, then it's not really a big deal unless it bothers her IMO, but obviously if its real bad then you maybe might want to just take care of it idk.