When something catches my interest i like to read up on it until i think i know everything about the stuff i want, but when it comes down to it i'll just go for the first thing that looks good instead of holding out for what's best. the impulsiveness of desire, i guess. I've been wanting to get a tattoo with my bud for a long time, but since it looks like it will be a long time before that happens, i figured a navel piercing would tide me over. in fact, i made it my "new year's resolution" (a nice selfish one ;P) and by january 4th there was a barbell in my belly.
At A Glance Author juniper Contact juniper@bme.anon Artist gothic guy Studio Gothic Hair Salon Location Campbell, California however - I LET WHAT I WANTED GET IN THE WAY OF WHAT I KNEW WAS SAFE.
i researched on the net before i got it done, including a fair bit of reading the stuff here on BME :). i knew that any good studio should have a seperate piercing room that looks clean and well-organized, everything including jewelry should be brand-new, autoclaved and sealed, etc. etc.. the first studio i went to ("pierced out" in san jose, part of the "marks of art" tattoo studio) seemed to fit the criteria, and the chick seemed knowledgable, honest about risks and open to all the questions i had written down. but she said she couldn't see doing anything but an inverse in my tiny navel. i just hadn't envisioned that, since i really want a navel shield when it's healed, so i was kinda dissapointed by that prognosis.
so, i wanted a second opinion. i found another close to home, called "gothic hair salon" in campbell. i was satisfied by their answers to the sterility questions - they offered to show me the spore tests for the autoclave, explained their procedures to my satisfaction, and i agreed with their aftercare sheet. BUT, there were some things my instincts definitely didn't sit well with. hair and piercing were different parts of the studio, but it was still one room. the jewelry was in a showcase instead of clean and bagged like the other studio's. somehow i let myself believe that soaking the jewelry in some sort of surgical scrub was good enough. i was swayed by the pretty black titanium jewelry, which was much nicer than the plain steel barbells they wanted to use at "pierced out". they pinched my navel and said there was enough skin on top for a standard placement, which really sold me. i would have done it right then if they hadn't wanted me to make an appointment.
My Wishful Thinking:
This place seems ok, and they'll do what i want. Everything will be fine.
My Gut Instincts:
This place seems ok, but if you know what's good for you, you'll go somewhere better than ok, or not get a piercing at all.
Wishful Thinking won out, so i came back that evening and got pierced. i was so excited the adrenaline made me shake a little. I'm of the opinion that navel piercing HURTS, for about two, long, seconds. none of this "i felt a little pinch" bullshit...i'm ususally pretty good with pain, needles and blood don't bug me, but it forced a few "OW"s out of me. maybe it was the jewelry going in, i should've gotten an internally threaded one... i didn't watch cause i was just lying back letting him do his thing. in any case, the guy had me sit down for a few minutes afterwards, gave me water and sat with me til i assured him i was ok, which was nice. i was still jittery from adrenaline untile i got in my car and turned up the heat to a relaxing temp. good thing i made sure to EAT an hr beforehand. i didn't expect piercing to be so DRAINING!! even the next day i had NO energy, and it was pretty sore for awhile. some quick advice - don't plan anything active for yourself immediately, i just wanted to sit around at home.
when i got over how very CUTE :) it looks, i decided i hadn't gone about things in the best way. the guy made my piercing 3/8", the same as my barbell, so there's not much room for cleaning or blood circulation. i later read that hepatitis is a real concern, and i spose aids isn't something to discount out-of-hand. the conditions were PROBABLY sterile, but i can't be sure. BE PICKY!! this guy was clearly only halfway satisfactory, which isn't really satisfactory at all.
my piercer (...) advised against changing out the barbell right now since it's still a pretty fresh piercing, and it does look to be healing well with no redness or anything abnormal. so i'm just gonna take it as it comes and keep my fingers crossed, and get help if and when it gets infected. i really think everything will be fine, i'm keeping it clean with Satin antimicrobial scrub (i got it from ringsofdesire.com) and sea salt soaks twice daily, not touching it etc.. and it does look super nice!
still, i'd like to say my story is an example of what not to do.
Don't be afraid to be SUPER ANAL, any good piercer should respect that. know your stuff, ask tons of questions, look at everything, and Go With Your Gut. you know what you want and you SHOULD know what's safe, and the latter is really more important.
The End of my Preachy Experience! questions are welcome.