AITA for medically tattooing my child under the recommendation of a doctor.
A Reddit user shared their story of tattooing their child’s earlobe with a small medical tattoo after their twin boys were accidentally mixed up by their grandmother while giving them medication. The tattoo, which is recommended by the doctor, is a tiny freckle used to distinguish the twins, who are identical in appearance.
The user’s mother-in-law is furious about the decision, while others have mixed reactions. Now the user is questioning if they overstepped in permanently altering their child’s body. Read the original story below…
‘ AITA for medically tattooing my child under the recommendation of a doctor.’
I (31F) and my husband tried for 5 years to get pregnant. Testing eventually revealed I have eggs of f**king steel and without medical help I’ll never get pregnant. So that’s what we did. Gave our samples, one petri dish and 9 months later I have 2 beautiful fraternal twin boys. Jack and Adam (fake).
Thing is Jake has a condition. Without going into detail, requires a shot once a week. Once he is older he can take pills. I went back to work and MIL offered to watch the babes (shes wonderful, I trust her 100%. They were 9months.. Now 16months) during this time she would give his injection as we had a schedule. 10am before snack and nap.
Worked very well until a month ago when she gave the shot to the wrong kid. Now they may be fraternal but they look identical. I’ll be honest my husband and I even mix them up sometimes. Everyone does. She immediately noticed her mistake called 911 and they were transferred to hospital.
By the time I got there Adam had been given the reversal agent and they were both happily sipping on juice loving the attention. We went home the same night told to push fluids. He was never in danger. Its a very slow acting medication that, at worst, would have given him diarrhea in a few days.
MIL was beside herself. I tried to ease her worry but she refused to babysit so to daycare they went. This daycare has a nurse cause some of the kids have medications so she new what to do but the worry of mixing up the kids was a valid concern (and they would NOT keep name tags on) Doctor recommended a medical tattoo.
Explained they tattoo a freckle, no bigger then the end of a pencil eraser, on an area of skin that’s easily seen while the child is under mild sedation similar to dental offices. Because of the area it usually fades in 2-3yrs but by then they should have developed more personal features and may not need it redone. So after discussion with my husband we did it.
He has a 2mm brown freckle on his earlobe. From entering the office to leaving it took 30 minutes. Never felt a thing. MIL lost her s**t the second I mentioned a medical tattoo. I tried to explain but she just freaked out so I put both kids on the floor and told her to pick up Jack and find the tattoo.
She picked up Adam So I handed her Jack and after 20 minutes still couldn’t find it. Stripped him to his skivvies. I finally pointed it out and she went “That’s just a freckle” I just said… “My point exactly. Adam doesn’t have a freckle there.. So that’s how daycare can tell them apart” She’s still pissed and ranting.
Once I explain to others and they fail to find it they understand but they still think I went to far in tattooing my child and altering their body. I believe I took the necessary precautions recommended by the doctor and the tattoo will fade with sun exposure and as he grows. By the time he’s 5 it probably won’t even be visible or it’ll just look like a faded freckle. So.. AITA?
Here’s the input from the Reddit crowd:
[Reddit User] − NTA at all, it’s literally a fake freckle. It’s not like you gave him a full sleeve of pin up girls and muscle cars. Also, it’s to make it harder to accidentally kill him or his brother. You made the right call. Edit: my first gold ever and it’s from a comment about giving a toddler a tattoo sleeve. I love Reddit for this exact reason. Thank you!
Trouble-94 − NTA. You took the recommendation from a medical professional and made the decision with your spouse for the safety of your child. Absolutely nothing wrong with that, especially for something so small.
EntrepreneurOk7513 − NTA. The tattoo is for the safety of both children. It’s a medical tattoo, just like they do for radiation treatments.
theoldgrayhair − Of course NTA. Why are you even asking?
King-Laugh − NTA. When he’s older, Adam is going to love telling people he got his first tattoo when he was one y/o.
mtdunca − YTA, you should have gone with a full face tattoo no wonder everyone was upset.
Befub14435 − NTA- you did something your doctor recommended. And if anyone calls yta, they better hope they don’t have a child thats been circumcised or has their ear pierced both of which are much more medically invasive and not necessary
ostentia − NTA, obviously. This is a good idea, and all that matters is that your pediatrician and husband agree with you. You don’t really think you’re the a**hole, do you? Why would you be? You followed medical advice with the full consent of your husband. Someone being upset with you or not agreeing with your decision doesn’t make you an a**hole.
[Reddit User] − First of all, NTA. Secondly, WTF to other people’s reactions? This isn’t cosmetic, like pierced ears on a baby, this is potentially life saving. I know you said that it shouldn’t harm the other twin, but still…You did the right thing, absolutely.
Kids, babies, toddlers, whatever, are a pain to make them do what you want them to do when you are there. Out of sight, forget it! They will do what they want to do, so there wasn’t anything else you could do realistically. A simple conversation stopper if someone wants to rant at you about it: Not your child, not your call.
Battleloser − YTA should have given the kid a cool tatoo like a flaming skull or something
Do you think the medical tattoo was a reasonable solution, or did the user cross a line by altering their child’s body? How would you feel about a permanent mark like that on a young child? Share your thoughts and opinions below!