I don't understand how you all know if your tween daughters have pubic hair.

Don't know why other posters are uppity. I have 9 year old who hasn't started her period...i appreciate knowing that this is a possibility.

My daughter was anovulatory. One of the first signs was lack if hair--underarm/pubic but dud have other development. She was bleeding all of the time. At first we chalked it up to 1 year irrational cycles. She had to go on a low dose birth control pill to stabilize her cycles and control the bleeding. If it concerns you, do check in with pediatrician during normal office hours or better yet see a gyn.

Hello OP,
you have not said how old she is but I started my periods when I was 11 and I too had no underarm hair (that appeared when I was 13) I had already started getting boobs and already had pubes though.

Breast and uterine development is driven by estrogen, and the process is called "thelarche."

Body odor and body hair development is driven by androgens, and the process is called "adrenarche."

It is true that usually adrenarche preceeds thelarche by about a year, but that's a rough estimate. Often when things happen atypically, everything is fine, but it is worth having anything atypical checked out by a pediatrician. There can be problems, but they are rare -- nonetheless, they do happen, and sorting that out is beyond the scope of an internet post.

This is worth talking to her pediatrician's office about. Barring any other symptoms, it can wait until Tuesday.

(I am a board-certified pediatrician.)

Is the concern that she will never grow hair under her arms? Would it be a problem if she didn't?

JH Christ! How old is your DD and why are you grooming her like you are mama gorilla and she is Tarzan(yes I just watched the movie.)

This is not something I would consider important enough to bother her pediatrician with. And why on Earth do you think I consider this an "emergency"? A message board that frequently deals with issues of puberty and which people have the option of clicking and responding to threads that interest them seems more appropriate to pose this question to than actually contacting her doctor.

Oh and Google and books can help anyone who posts medical/health related questions online. Do you attack everyone who posts health related questions or do you reserve your vitriol for only those who have questions regarding puberty?

First, "emergency" was in quotes so of course, I mean it is not an emergency. Second, if this is your version of being "attacked" than you have a rosy life. Thirdly, I do not "attack" everyone only the special...remember this is DCUM. I think I was being polite. I am not ashamed of girls or women's bodies but, don't see why people have to post about normal everyday events that you can find the answer to yourself. We don't know your daughter or your family history. Unless you want strangers to come over and observe your daughter's armpits it seems rather silly to post on here. And lastly, I posted because it was interesting to me and everyone has the right to comment on anything they want. Hint: that's how this works.

Happy 4th of July weekend!

Anonymous wrote:I think her pediatrician would know best rather than asking complete strangers.

Not OP, but our pediatrician said not to worry about breast buds because underarm and pubic hair always come before menarche.

Anonymous wrote:I was attacked for asking a similar question. Any question about a tween's puberty or development seems to set off a bunch of lunatics who feel that even the mere mention of a young female's development is somehow deeply suspect and must be confined to confidential discussions between a mother and her pediatrician.

I have no idea what drives such posters, other than, I guess, a deep shame and revulsion for their own bodies and an extreme discomfort with public mention of female development.

OP, I was under the impression adolescence happened in a certain order too but I guess there are outliers.

I was about to say the same thing. It's a bizarre reaction.

NP, but I got my first period at 11 and didn't have any hair under my arms when it happened. Even now, as an adult, I don't have a ton of armpit hair; certainly more than I did then, but it took awhile to come in. She may just have scant underarm and body hair until she's further along in puberty, especially if she's on the fair side.

Anonymous wrote:
Of course. Because I'm really going to call her pediatrician at 10:49 at night rather than pose a question that I'm curious about on a message board that commonly deals with puberty issues.


So, you can't wait until Tuesday when their office is open? This doesn't seem like an "emergency". What do you think will happen between 10:49 pm and Tuesday morning? Google and or books on puberty are your friends, too!

This is not something I would consider important enough to bother her pediatrician with. And why on Earth do you think I consider this an "emergency"? A message board that frequently deals with issues of puberty and which people have the option of clicking and responding to threads that interest them seems more appropriate to pose this question to than actually contacting her doctor.

Oh and Google and books can help anyone who posts medical/health related questions online. Do you attack everyone who posts health related questions or do you reserve your vitriol for only those who have questions regarding puberty?

I think people are worried about chemicals and the environment, foods, etc. bringing on puberty too early these days, so that is why people keep an eye on it and ask if they have questions.

Of course. Because I'm really going to call her pediatrician at 10:49 at night rather than pose a question that I'm curious about on a message board that commonly deals with puberty issues.


So, you can't wait until Tuesday when their office is open? This doesn't seem like an "emergency". What do you think will happen between 10:49 pm and Tuesday morning? Google and or books on puberty are your friends, too!

My daughter has prec.puberty. What I have learned is that the hair and the period are not tied together. Breast development and periods are. Normally hair does come before the period, though- just the way things "normally" go. So you could mention to pediatrician to make sure there is no adrenal issue.

GL!