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caring for braces, piercings, contact lenses, etc. |
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If You Can Pinch It, You Can Pierce It "Body Piercing 101"
Written: Jul 10 '01 (Updated Nov 19 '06)
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Pros: Simply put ... the ultimate form of self expression.
Cons: If done incorrectly, it can have serious repercussions.
The Bottom Line: Body piercings, tattoos and body modifications are a great way to express yourself, do your research and you'll be rewarded with a unique personal piece of art.
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| Freak369's Full Review: caring for braces, piercings, contact lenses, etc. |
DISCLAIMER: This article provides factual information regarding all aspects of body piercing. If you are easily offended please do not read this.
I am going to go out on a limb here and make a general assumption that the majority of Epinion users are not into body piercing. Over the past ten years the trend of body piercing has come out of the closet and into the mainstream. In my honest opinion the “fad” peaked several years ago; sorry but when little Brittany Spears clones are running amuck flashing their belly button rings while chatting on cellular phone while simultaneously sucking down the third in a string of Starbucks Cappuccinos then I have to take a step back and re-think my position on the subject.
The roots of piercing can be traced back thousands of years. They were used in ancient tribe to denote seniority, masculinity, sexual maturity and to provide a more stimulating visual appearance. Some religions promote cultural piercings that revolve around a certain event or holiday. To outsides these pictures may seen gruesome and on the border of torture. Some of the more extreme practices involve “coma suspensions”, where a person is hung from a device five to seven feet off the ground using hooks strategically placed on the body to support the person’s weight. Granted, this may sound painful but if done by a TRAINED professional there is no bleeding, infection (providing that proper aftercare takes place) or trauma. You can’t just build a rack and throw some fishhooks in your friend after they pass out. This is a more extreme realm of the body-piercing world that most people do not delve into. Contrary to what most people think, the administrators of these events are well educated, intelligent and fairly well off financially.
When body piercing became popular the tattoo shops were flooded with requests for nipple piercing, tongue and eyebrow piercing and the all too common belly button piercing. People rushed into a commitment without thinking that for the next two weeks they would have to keep certain parts of their body as clean and sterile as possible. Of all the piercings I have done, a rough estimate of 1 – 2 % of my customers have reported an infection. The most common infection came from eyebrow piercings when women did not shield the piercing when they were applying hairspray. Get even a few drops of this on the ring and have it work it’s way into the hole and you are in for a world of pain.
The Basics
When deciding on what to get pierced, you should spend even more time choosing the person who will be doing the piercing. Some of the questions you should ask or know before you get pierced are listed below:
1. Is the environment sterile? Free of debris? You wouldn’t eat at a place that had garbage lying around, so don’t tolerate a sloppy facility. You should also ask for references if you are new to the area.
2. Is the person doing the piercing trained? Have they had any formal training or certification? Some states have implemented new standards in body piercings and tattoo work, if your state is one that has these new laws, make sure that the shop is in accordance with the local health department before you have anything done.
3. Are the instruments one-time use or are they reused and sterilized in an autoclave? If a person can not answer this or has to go check with someone else, you should turn around and walk out and not look back. Ask that the needles and hemostats be opened in front of you and ask to see the sealed bag first.
4. Do they provide you with any aftercare instructions? I always go over the after care instructions before and after a piercing or tattoo – this way the person knows exactly what to be prepared for when they leave. I have had a few people back out of nipple piercings because of the possibility of having to clean it for months.
5. Do they take a few minutes to answer your question? If you have to ask a question and the person acts too busy then find someone else YOU feel comfortable with. You aren’t going to click with every person you come in contact with on a day to day level – same thing goes for piercings. Talk to people, do some research, body modification, tattoos and piercings aren’t something you should do on the spur of the moment.
6. Ask about the jewelry. Is it sterile? What company did they buy it from? All of the jewelry I use is auto-claved, sealed inside a plastic bag and not opened until the piercing is about to happen. If you are providing your own jewelry then you may have to sign a waiver stating that the jewelry is your own and they will not be liable for faulty materials. If you are unsure about the sterility of the piece, ask the shop owner or piercer to autoclave the item before the day of the piercing.
I cannot stress the importance of having a clean environment when it comes to any type of body modification. Essentially, that is what you are doing, modifying your body. The piercer should put you at ease and explain the procedure step by step. Remember, if at any time you that you cannot go through with a piercing please be honest and say you changed your mind. I would rather have someone back out on a piercing than have him or her get hysterical and pass out.
Choosing a Site
My motto is “If You Can Pinch It You Can Pierce It”. The most common piercings are nipples, belly buttons, eyebrows, tongues, cheeks and assorted genitals including the labia, cl-itorus [Epinions won't allow me to use this word...], scrotum and testicles. To date I have over 500 piercings logged in my date book and the trend shows no faltering. The mainstream has skipped over “the fad” but it is still very much a part of an underground lifestyle.
A factor in choosing what you want pierced should include your lifestyle, pain threshold, budget and activities. You wouldn’t want to get your nipples pierced if you are going to a concert that night. Trust me, if someone bumps into you the pain is not something to laugh at. On the same token, any type of genital piercing will require sexual abstinence for a certain time period. The famous Prince Albert could keep you out of commission for up to four weeks depending on how fast you heal, the placement (top or bottom) and how much care you take in cleaning it. A condom is recommended when sexual intercourse takes place to keep the piercing from getting ripped or infected. Take extreme care and know your partner well, you are more likely to contract a sexually transmitted disease if your piercing is fresh.
Knowing what you are in for is half the battle. With nipple piercings you will experience tenderness of the breasts, nipple and even parts of the chest. If you are tense when getting pierced you could strain muscles in your chest cavity which will leave you sore for several days. If you choose a ring instead of a barbell it is very common that the ring will not lay flat for up to a week. This is due to the tenderness of the nipple forcing the ring upward. I recommend barbells to clients; they are easy to clean when in the body, there is no danger of losing a ball (the element that provides tension to keep the ring moving through the hole and also keeps it weighted), they can easily be removed from the piercing to be cleaned and the reinsertion is much easier and less painful. Most men get the barbell rather than the ring for many reasons; it poses less of a threat to get ripped out, makes changing clothes easier and like I said before it is much easier to clean and remove.
After care plays an important role as well. Know what to clean your piercing with, what not to use and what the signs of an infection are all go hand in hand. One panic stricken girl called me up screaming that she had white goo coming out of her tongue after a piercing. After asking her a few questions she admitted that she hadn’t followed the after care sheet. The basic rule of thumb is keep your piercing clean, remove any “crust” from it as often as possible and THINK. Common signs of infection include redness, swelling, green or yellow discharge and extreme heat. If you have any of these symptoms contact a qualified medical professional. If you follow the after-care sheet you shouldn’t have any problems.
How Does a Piercing Happen?
With the wide variety of piercings I have mentioned each have slight variances. Here is an example of a routine nipple piercing. The area is washed with a stringent soap then cleansed with an antibacterial spray. The entry and exit points of the nipple are marked with a permanent marker. A V clamp or spade hemostat can be used to hold the nipple in place but I feel this is too traumatic to the skin. A hallow piercing tube, [which resembles a hypodermic needle] is then pushed through the nipple. Once this is done you simply slide the jewelry into the tube and pull it back through. If the tube, or needle, were not hallow you would have to blindly feed the jewelry into the piercing. From personal experience this is a most unpleasant occurrence. I usually stop after I have gotten the needle through the skin and allow the person to catch his or her breath. Once the piercing is complete I go over the after care and provide them with a zinc ointment to aid in the healing of the skin. You can also take a zinc supplement to further aid in the healing process.
All my piercings are done by hand. The use of guns, like in ear piercing, are not commonplace. They provide no stability and can cause major damage if the insertion site and the exit site are not on mark. I saw several nipple piercings that were done by some girls who worked at a store that had several piercing guns. One night they decided to pierce their nipples. The outcome was a trip to the emergency room and some rather expensive cosmetic surgery. The girl went to pull the trigger on the piercing gun and lost control if it. The insertion was almost perfect but the exit site was almost at the edge of the nipple. This is one of the main reasons home piercing is discouraged.
With some piercings, such as the genitals, you may need to be shaved. This is done for many reasons. If you are getting a labia piercing the presence of excess hair could prove to be a breeding ground for infection as well as making it harder to clean. Urine is recommended to clean the site when you have to urinate since it is sterile as it leaves the body. Toilet paper could leave lint near the piercing which could lead to an infection. As usual, sexual contact should be limited and kept to a tame level. You can expect your labia piercing to be sore for several days. It helps to wear loose clothing, no underwear and sleep spread eagle.
In regards to a tongue piercing, this procedure is a bit different. A strong mouthwash is used to rinse the mouth several times. You must gargle for three to five minutes with the mouthwash and don’t cheat. There are several brands I recommend, if you are interested please drop me a line and I would be more than happy to send off the information. Once you have rinsed, the piercer should have gloves on (duh) and check your tongue for proper placement. Some people have small tongues or they are too closely attached to have a safe piercing. Once a site has been established the use of hemostat or a spade hemostat will be used to hold the tongue in place. Do not pull back on your tongue. The hemostat is only used to provide a steady surface to pierce, not to keep you from pulling it backing your mouth. A piercing needle is then inserted into the tongue and usually into a sterile cork under the tongue to stop the needle from hitting the bottom of your mouth. Word of warning, some people use a large needle that is visibly hallow. This is to core out the flesh so that the piercing has room and to allow easy cleaning. Once the needle is through the barbell is inserted and threaded back though the piercing. There you go, you are now the owner of a brand new tongue piercing. With this goes the after care. After you eat or drink anything except water you must rinse with a mouthwash. I usually suggest people eat with plastic spoons the first few days, the sound of a metal fork or spoon hitting your piercing is not pleasant. Jell-O, pudding, soup and softer foods are recommended. Since you now have a piece of metal in your mouth you should take extreme caution with hot foods such as soup, cocoa, tea and coffee. Sticking your finger in the cup isn’t the same as super heating your piercing. I have done this more times than I can remember and it is not fun. You will also experience some swelling. If you have a friend that is getting a tongue piercing, ask them to spell Mississippi after they get it done. It is hysterical. The swelling should subside after three to four days. You should start to notice slack in the piercing, after a few weeks you can get a new barbell that is shorter and I recommend having your piercer change it for you. Too many people have called me up saying they lost the ball while they were trying to replace it. Sinks must love body jewelry. As far as smoking, this is a real no-no but if you can’t stop then rinse immediately after you are done. You may notice some white slime coming from the top or the bottom of the piercing, it is rather thick and can be most shocking. It is merely you body fighting the piercing and the after effect of smoking or not rinsing after eating.
What Jewelry To Choose
Jewelry has come a long way baby. No longer are you confined to the simple stainless steel hoops and barbells. Plastic, colored steel, gold and hex mixes are extremely common. I personally don’t recommend plastic since it is not sturdy and I feel they are cheaply constructed. You can buy your jewelry from a dealer who provides a wide variety or you can buy it where you are getting your piercing done. If you buy it from a dealer please have it auto-claved before you get pierced. It will only set you back a few hours of your time but it will provide you with a sterile piece and remove any chance of an infection in that regards.
Again, choosing what style or shape should be well thought out. You wouldn’t want a 10-gauge barbell for an eyebrow piercing now would you? The recent styles are small triangles, double hoops and braided metals. Personally I do not like the braided metals. They may look nice but they are extremely hard to keep clean, can hinder healing and promote “grow out”. “Grow out” is when your body rejects the piercing and forces it out much the same way it works out a splinter. Another common reason for “grow out” is that the piercing was not placed deep enough into the body. Belly button piercings are the most common to grow out and the eyebrow is a close second.
Choose your piercings for yourself and not to please anyone but yourself. Getting a genital piercing won’t help a failing relationship, however it may spice up a healthy one :]. The choice is yours but be warned, it is addictive. After my nipple piercing I wanted to rip my shirt off and run down the street and scream “LOOK AT ME”. Considering the amount of pain I had just been through I opted for a hamburger and fries.
I hope this review has helped inform you on the art of body piercing. I welcome your comments, good or bad, and wish to thank you for the visit.
^V^ ^V^ ^V^ ^V^ ^V^ ^V^ ^V^ ^V^ ^V^ ^V^^V^ ^V^
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To learn about body piercing basics, check out:
If You Can Pinch It, You Can Pierce It
And to learn more about tattooing:
Tattoo 101: When The Needle Meets The Skin
Regretting a tattoo? This one's just for you:
Laser Tattoo Removal
Recommended:
Yes
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