Hey folks...
At A Glance Author Christie Contact ChristieCap@msn.com Artist Marisa (she's probably got a last name, but I don't know it) Studio Holey Rollers Location Colorado Springs I got my belly button pierced about 5 months ago, and since I've been cruisin' BME looking for pictures of double navel piercings, I thought I'd let everyone know what my experience was like.
I did it kind of on a whim; I had just left a military school, and I decided I wanted to do something a little daring...(I grew up in a fairly strict family) So, I decided to get my belly button pierced. I stopped by a shop with my boyfriend, and to make a long story short, the people there answered my questions very angrily, like I as wasting their time, and the place had a strange smell to it... kind of like rotten watermelon or something like that. So, I figured that I would not pay people like that to put a hole through my skin, and we were off to find someplace else.
When we got to the place, it smelled like disinfectant (a good sign, if you ask me) and we were greeted very courteously. Obviously these people knew what they were doing. It was very quiet, and I actually felt right at home, if you can beleive that. So, I told them that I would like to get my navel pierced, and they asked me to lift my shirt up a little bit just to make sure I was piercable. (Another good sign...) I guess my belly button doesn't have as big of a "flap" as some people, but we decided to go through with it anyway, and the piercer said she'd make it a little deeper than normal, just to be safe. Also, she used a curved barbell instead of a ring, because I figured it would heal easier if there wasn't some big ring sticking out to get caught on things.
So, I paid my money, waited about 5 minutes on a comfy leather sofa, and then I went back to the clean room that looked quite a lot like what they have at the dentist. She then marked with a pen that she had just taken out of the package (she was wearing latex gloves as well) the spot where she would do the pierce. I agreed that I wanted it there, and I proceeded to lie down on the chair and roll down the top of my pants and lift up the bottom of my shirt. She then asked me if I wanted to have a little aromatherapy to calm me down.. I was a little nervous even though I don't mind needles or blood at all, and she swabbed some aroma oil above my upper lip, which smelled really good, and whenever I inhaled, I got a pleasant whiff of the scent. So, she changed her gloves, let me watch her take the needle out of the autoclave bag, and when I lied back down, she told me to keep breathing normally. She put the clamp on, and I braced myself for this since I heard that's the part that hurts the worst... but that didn't hurt me too much. Then, she pushed the needle through easily. She told me she was inserting the jewelry, and as soon as she screwed the ball on I was all done! It didn't hurt too much.. just a little pressure, and even that didn't last an unbearable amount of time.
Now, a little more than 5 months later, my navel seems to be healing very well. The whole first week or so, I barely noticed that it was there, and then the week after that it seemed to always itch a little bit, and it was a little bit red around the hole, but I made sure to keep it really clean. I cleaned it with dial antibacterial soap (in the liquid form) and also I dipped a Q-Tip into some Neutrogena Alcohol-Free Cleanser (that's what the shop recommended) and cleaned the jewelry by pushing it back and forth through the hole... pretty easy. I never really got that crustiness that some people talk about. By now, the redness is gone, and I've changed the barbell to a different one with a jewel in it. I love it, and I'm going back to the same place next week to get the bottom of my navel pierced, just to get something that not everyone has. It seems like so many people have pierced bellies! I may even get two more hole in it, one on the right and one on the left, so I get that cool-looking compass effect. Who knows?
OK, if anybody is reading this and wants some tips on choosing a studio...here's some things I've learned in my own experience.
1. If you walk into a place and the people are rude, or if it "just doesn't feel right," it's probably best not to go there. You're getting a needle stuck through your skin!! Why add more discomfort that is unnecessary?!
2. Ask the piercer if you can see their autoclave and if possible, watch him or her take the needles and other equipment out of the autoclave bag.
3. Make sure that your anatomy allows you to get pierced. Never pay your money before that aspect is decided. You don't want to fork over a lot of dough just to get a piercing that will most definitely grow out.
4. Ask the piercer to explain what they're doing while they're doing it. It eases the tension.
5. Make sure they go over aftercare with you, and also see if they can give you recommendations on cleansing agents and how to use them. Printed instructions are usually available at a reliable piercind studio!
good luck and happy pierceing!!
CHRISTIE