No, lip plates are not permanent.
Lip plates, also known as lip plugs or lip discs, are a form of body modification where gradually larger plates are inserted into a pierced lip, typically the lower lip. While the stretching process to accommodate the plate takes time and can result in a significant alteration to the lip's appearance, the plates themselves can be removed.
The women who practice this tradition, such as those from the Mursi and Surma tribes in Ethiopia, often remove the lip plates for eating, drinking, and sleeping. They choose when to wear the plates, and the plates can be quickly inserted and removed. The stretched lip maintains its altered form even when the plate is removed, but the absence of the plate itself is only temporary and reversible at any time.
Therefore, although the stretching of the lip might be long-lasting, the lip plate itself is not a permanent fixture.
