Okay, first of all, I'm 40, a mother of three, and a corporate attorney. Not your typical piercing candidate--I don't even have my ears pierced! But a few months ago, I started joking around with my 10-year-old daughter about having my bellybutton pierced. She was horrified by the idea. Moms just don't DO that! But I lost 25 pounds two years ago (the same time I got divorced), I work out a LOT, and frankly, I look better than I did when I was 20. Last summer, I bought my first two-piece swimsuit in years (I was pregnant during most of the nineties, and would never have dreamed of showing my stomach to anyone). So, I started thinking, maybe . . . . I kind of wanted to rebel against my own stodgy, corporate, suburban, mom persona. And to rebel against my very loving, but very controlling parents (yes, I realize 40 is a little late for such rebellion, but I was a VERY good girl up until now).
At A Glance Author anonymous When A month ago Artist Kenny Studio Taboo Tattoo Location Dallas, Texas I did a lot of research on it, and I understood that it takes a very long time to heal, and that I would have to take good care of it. I knew to have it done in the winter, so I wouldn't be going swimming for several months afterward. A couple of times when I was out to dinner, I looked around at the piercing and tattoo studios, picking out the one that seemed the cleanest and most professional. I came very close a couple of times, but always chickened out. But I reached the point that I REALLY wanted to have it done.
So, one Friday night in January, after my having two Cosmopolitans with dinner, my boyfriend took me down to Deep Ellum (the funky warehouse/bar district in Dallas). I chose a studio called "Taboo Tattoo." It was light, clean, and they seemed to know what they were doing. The piercer was a nice young man, covered in tattoos. But he was quite professional, and used single-use, sterilized equipment. They didn't give me any choice of jewelry--the ring he inserted is hypoallergenic surgical steel, with a hematite ball on it. It's kind of cute.
It was very quick, and frankly, painless. HOWEVER, as soon as I stood up, I said, "That didn't hurt at all!" and passed out. I spent the next 45 minutes drinking a Sprite and trying to sit up without passing out again. Afterward, I was shaky and faint--like I feel after I give blood. I swear it affected my blood sugar somehow.
But by the next morning, I was so psyched with myself! I proudly showed it off to a few friends, who were shocked and delighted. That was the fun part. My kids were horrified, especially my 10-year-old. She was convinced that, in addition to being the only divorced mom in the neighborhood, I would be the only one with a pierced navel. But she seems to have accepted it now.
Then came the not-fun part. By Tuesday, four days after the piercing, it was swollen, red, and painful. Despite my following all the studio's aftercare recommendations, it was infected. I went in to the doctor's office. How embarassing--usually I'm a mom bringing in a kid with an ear infection, and I had to say, "I'm here for an infected navel!" But the physician's assistant was very cool about it, assuring me that I didn't have to take it out, that they could treat it and it would be fine.
She prescribed Bactroban, a prescription antibiotic cream, and Cefzil, an oral antibiotic. She also recommended cleaning it with hydrogen peroxide, which the studio had said NOT to do. But I figured she knew best, so I followed her instructions.
Well, the infection cleared up, but it was still very painful, oozing and red. I was afraid that I might be allergic to the ring. I had been keeping it lightly covered with a gauze bandage, and even though I used hypoallergenic, paper, surgical tape, it caused big red places on my tummy (I apparently have VERY sensitive skin down there!) It was uncomfortable and unsightly, and not the least bit sexy. Every time my eight-year-old son hugged me, I gasped with pain. My four-year-old wisely said, "Mommy, if you didn't want your bellybutton to hurt, you shouldn't have had it pierced!"
So I went back to Taboo Tattoo. They said, stop the Bactroban, stop the hydrogen peroxide, clean it in the shower with liquid Dial antibacterial soap, use Dead Sea salt soaks and Vitamin E oil. (I found the salts at Whole Foods Market. Be sure and get the ones with no added fragrance.) So I've been doing that for about 10 days. It's much better now, but still slightly red at the piercing site. And I can't wear anything with a waistband on it--that really limits my wardrobe! On the other hand, it's a great aid to my diet--whenever I think about eating a cheeseburger or a big dessert, I think, "No, then my bellybutton won't look cute this summer."
I truly hope it's healed by summer, so all this trouble was worth it. I'll be the only mom at the pool with a pierced navel!