Ear, Nose and Navel (Body Piercing)

Member Name:

Product:	Body Piercing
Date:	17/08/00 (120 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Looks good - in moderation, great adrenaline rush

Disadvantages: nose rings fall out, infections etc.

Since I only have experience of piercing in these three body areas, I will try to restrict my review to what I know about. There's something about piercing which gives me a thrill. Since aged 14, every piercing I've had has been unplanned, a spur of the moment thing. I totally get off on the adrenaline high!

I first got my ears pierced when I was 12, at the chemist (£8). My ears were "frozen" for this piercing. I was one of the last girls in my school to have my ears pierced, but I think that it was a good age, as I personally don't like seeing small children with pierced ears.

Soon I discovered that I could only wear silver earings, otherwise my earlobes protested by turning into a weeping scabby mess. many people have similar sensitivities, so it's best to buy only silver, gold or surgical steel to begin with.

At aged 14, I got a second piercing on m left ear (£3). This time my ear wasn't frozen, and I found it much more comfortable. In my experience, freezing is unnecessary and uncomfortable. My second earing looked cool, and I got my required street cred.

Age 15 - the fourth piercing. This was done myself at a friends house. Drunk and stupid, I put an ice cube on my right ear for a few seconds then stuck my friends earing into it, just above the first one. This method comes highly unrecommended by me. It took a long time for this piercing to heal. Eventually I took it out, and it closed up.

Aged 16 I got my right ear pierced again in the same place, and another one at the top of my right ear (£5 in total). The one at the top took months to stop hurting, and I had to sleep on my left side for ages. But once it had healed, this is the piercing with which I had the least bother. You should choose your earings carefully for a piercing in this area, otherwise people may only see the butterfly on the otherside. A hoop works well.

Next came the nose stud, aged 19 (£6). This was a beauty
, didn't hurt a bit by the time I was out of the piercing shop. I liked my nose studs, especiallt the ones in all different colours. Beware though - red ones can look like spots, and green ones like snotters - I have warned you! Unfortunately my nose stud fell out only a few months after I'd had it pierced, and by the time I found another one, the hole had closed up.

Next came the belly button ring (£30). Ow! This is the most painful thing I've ever had done - it was out within the week. Saying that, I have a friend who didn't even know when the needle had gone in. Some people have less feeling than others in their navel, so it's really a matter of luck. One thing I have learned - people have much more success with navel piercings if they are pierced with a bar initially, rather than a ring. The piercing is straight, and you can always put a ring in once it has healed.

My last piercing was another nose piercing (£6). This time I got a ring put in - big mistake! Because I wear glasses, I looked really silly. However, because it healed again pretty quickly, I swapped it for a stud a couple of days later.

I feel like I really suit a nose stud, but somehow I can't help losing them. So my advice is to keep a couple of spares with you at all times!

About caring for your piercing - although you are often given a "care kit" with your piercing, you can use surgical spirit, TCP (smelly) or simply salted water. Several of the people who gave me my piercings recommended that I avoid using an antiseptic cream like Savlon, but many people do so and have found that this gives adequate protection against infection. In my experience, even the best cared for piercings can become infected, but taking precautions like regular cleaning, washing hands before touching and only turning the ring when cleaning can help to keep infections at bay.

Overall my best successes with piercings were my first nose stud, an
d my earring at the top of my ear.

Summary: