14 year old - birth control pills?

[Cajungaltx]

Okay parents (and non-parents who have opinions).

I've got a 14 year old daughter who apparently managed to get the non-blood related Italian genetics from my step-mom and as a result I'm taking her to get waxed (eye brows, sideburns, lip, and chin area) every other week.

This hair stuff just started in the last year or so, so I took her to our family doctor who ran blood tests to check testosterone levels, etc - and the dr said the tests came back normal - nothing odd.

The young lady who does the waxing said that we could put her own BC pills which would help with the hair issue....

I laughed it off...but after a while, dealing with a 14 year old girl who is dealing with sideburns - seriously - I'm not laughing about it so much anymore. It's frustrating for her to deal with all this.

The mom in me is going - HE double L no - putting a 14 year old on bc pills is just asking for trouble.... but...I've got a pretty good 14 year old kid who at this point, I would say is mature enough to understand that this is not a license to misbehave...

So - oh wise people who have done this kid thing, and survived ... share your words of wisdom.

[BenE]

Originally Posted by Cajungaltx

This hair stuff just started in the last year or so, so I took her to our family doctor who ran blood tests to check testosterone levels, etc - and the dr said the tests came back normal - nothing odd.

The young lady who does the waxing said that we could put her own BC pills which would help with the hair issue....

Seriously?

Ask the "young lady who does the waxing", to see her medical license. She must have one if she is giving advice on birth control pills.

Or maybe ask the doctor, (about the benefit of the pills) since he/she probably has a degree in "medical stuff".

[Cajungaltx]

The young lady who does the waxing is also genetically predisposed to being very hairy - so she was speaking more from an 'experience' level rather than a medical level. ;-)

[auddii]

Personally, I was on them very young to control heavy periods, and it never crossed my mind to go out and mess around just because I could. She will or she won't - if she isn't on birth controls she may feel safe because they used a condom or worse not think about it at all and just hope to not get pregnant. However, if she isn't inclined to have sex, I don't think she suddenly change her mind.

That being said, she needs to go to an ob/gyn to be sure. Excessive hair can be an indicator for specific diseases and cancers (don't know what kind of doctor you took her to). Also, talk with her about it, and get her opinion. Taking pills is a responsibility in and of itself because you can't miss, or she might not want to. They can have repercussions too for taking it early and which type she might take. Discuss everything with a doctor and have her there. It's her life, and she needs to be involved in important decisions like this.

Just my two cents (not a parent).

[Rson]

Have you gone to a endocrinologist? From personal experience, interns and family docs have a set of tests they run (testoterone levels, estrogen, etc) Endo's have more finite level tests and look for a deeper level.

My experience in a nutshell: OB/GYN said that **** happens after 5 miscarries and 1 still birth because statistics say that this happens X amount of times in a life after tests showed she was normal, we didn't take that answer and went to a Repro Endo. He did his tests and found that wife had a mutant gene (his words which I think are hilarious) that prevented her from digesting 3 of the top vitamins properly. Lesson learned 2 kids later and 17 months apart.



How about laser hair removal?

[d2creative]

Originally Posted by BenE

Seriously?

Ask the "young lady who does the waxing", to see her medical license. She must have one if she is giving advice on birth control pills.

Or maybe ask the doctor, (about the benefit of the pills) since he/she probably has a degree in "medical stuff".

There's lots of good medical reasons to put a young girl on bc pills.
Auddii mentioned a common one.

[Coelus]

Our daughter went on them at 15. Biggest problem was the ones she was on were later recalled for causing heart problems. Wish we had known that before all the trips to the pricey specialist to figure out what was wrong with her. I think the issues of anyone taking any medication long term outweigh the behavior issues.

Besides, if she does develop a wild streak consider it insurance.

Might want to look into getting all the stuff to do the waxing at home if you're going twice a month. It would pay for itself quickly.

[drgibson]

I would suggest reading up on BC pills, as a father of 2 daughters I did a lot of research into whether or not this was a good idea when the girls hit that age. Aside from the "moral” implications the pills themselves are not as safe as the Pharmaceutical Companies would have you believe. Hormone Therapy is very risky and can cause long term or permanent side effects and damage.
One of the best places to find out information is Drug Information, Side Effects & Interactions | Drugwatch.com along with U S Food and Drug Administration Home Page but you will need to dig through the site a little to get to the fact sheets and alerts.

There is also www.rxlist.com

Here are a couple articles that you can glean drug names from.
Birth Control Pills Side Effects, Types of Oral Contraceptives, Drug Interactions, Dosing Information and Brands Chart by MedicineNet.com
Comparing Birth Control Pills: Pros and Cons of Different Types and Brands

As to what is the best thing to do I can’t answer that. We opted to not let the girls take the pill until they were 18 and then it became their choice. My oldest is 25 and has never taken the pill, the youngest is now 23 and she started taking the pill in April of 2010… a month after she gave birth to my first grandchild, out of wedlock and the sperm donor was a grade A looser.

[texkam]

the tests came back normal - nothing odd.

That being said, she needs to go to an ob/gyn to be sure.

managed to get the non-blood related Italian genetics

It's frustrating for her to deal with all this.

Donna, at this point your daughter seems physically normal. : ) Going to a specialist to be sure makes sense. If the results are "A OK" A visit to a different person/Doctor may be in order. Someone who can help her and perhaps more importantly, you with social stigmas. I don't mean this as a slam. You are right, It can be frustrating for her and you to deal with all this, but it doesn't have to be. My sister has 5 kids, 4 are adopted. Her children are white, aisian, black, black, and black/white mixed respectively. They all have unique features that others in society may or may not understand or accept, but the good news is they are all heathy and beautiful both inside and out and all successful. They are successful because they have been taught how to "deal" with life. Let your daughter know how awesome she is. I hope this helps you see things a little differently. : )

[BenE]

Originally Posted by BenE

Seriously?

Ask the "young lady who does the waxing", to see her medical license. She must have one if she is giving advice on birth control pills.

Or maybe ask the doctor, (about the benefit of the pills) since he/she probably has a degree in "medical stuff".

Originally Posted by d2creative

There's lots of good medical reasons to put a young girl on bc pills.
Auddii mentioned a common one.

And if you read my remarks you will see I gave no advice, or opinion either way. I did suggest, perhaps in a flippant way, that the advice of a doctor is the best approach.

Medical advice and legal advice are best given by those who know what they are talking about. I try very hard to never give advice on either.

[Rson]

I am not a doctor...i just play one online :)

[TheFantasticG]

Originally Posted by Rson

How about laser hair removal?

Thats a good mostly permanent solution. A lot of the hair removal clinics also run specials at the beginning of January.

[Nikonfan]

Laser Hair removal was the first thing that popped in my mind. I am guessing it may be more effective than the BC and not cause as many sleepless nights. No idea what it costs, but then again BC costs money as well.

[TheFantasticG]

Originally Posted by Nikonfan

Laser Hair removal was the first thing that popped in my mind. I am guessing it may be more effective than the BC and not cause as many sleepless nights. No idea what it costs, but then again BC costs money as well.

$700 - $3000 depending where you go and what time of year you go. They advertise a lot on the radio and billboards around Houston.

[Ricco]

As the father of a 22 yr old daughter, do what you think is medically the best. Audii was dead on as far as the reasons to have her checked out. if her hormone levels are way off, then this might help balance it out. I'm about to have that conversation again with GF's daughter.

While you're at it, give her the HPV vaccine. It is a potential life saver and doesn't deserve the demonization that the talking heads have been saying about it.