I have three piercings in each ear, and my parents thought that was a lot, and always said "that's it, you're done with piercings". I never really had any interest in navel rings, but for some reason over the past few months i've really wanted one... I think it's because there's so much more cute navel jewelry out there now. So, yeah, here's my story.
At A Glance Author Joanna Contact jeffzprincess@aol.com Artist umm... ? Studio 5150 Location Van Nuys, California I begged my mom for it for a few months... and of course it was always "no, no, no, over my dead body !!". you know how parents can be.
My strategy (try it, it might work for you!!) --- I looked in the phone book and found a piercing place that was on the way to where my mom was going to shop that day. So I called them and found out how much it would be, when they could take me, blah blah blah. Then, I called my mom at work and said "Look, here's the place, it's on the way to where you wanna go, it only costs $40, and the place is sterile"... Surprisingly, she said "okay"... I think she just didn't wanna research it, you know? So if you do it all yourself and prove that you knwo what you're talking about, they might just say yes...
So i grabbed my best friend and the three of us - her, my mom, and I, went to the place. There was practically nobody there, just one lady that was getting a tattoo done. Which was really pretty by the way.
So anyways, he leads us into the back room which is very clean and nice, and i sit down on a very comfy big leather chair. He pulls out a nice little package that contains the ring and the needle.
I have absolutely NO threshold for pain, I'm the biggest wuss ever. So honestly, I didn't even look at what he did, I just put my hands over my face... But afterwards, my mom and best friend told me that first he clamped it.. which i didnt feel at all because i was shaking so much... that part didnt hurt. So anyways, apparently he pulled out the needle thing afterwards, and let me tell you, i felt that. But it didnt hurt at all !! Just kind of a strong pinch, and that was it ! I'm glad I didnt look though, because my mom was telling me how he grabbed a big chunk of skin and pushed it through. That would have grossed me out...
So then he placed the captive bead ring in and tightened it, and i was done. (Side note: i HATE plain silver captive bead rings... so i bought the special pliers at Hot Topic, and i took it out about two weeks later, and put in a cute barbell with a pink disco ball at the end, with no problems !!)
So afterwards he gave me the lecture about how to take care of it, and what to do if it bled, and he gave me a paper explaining everything.
***Hint -- Take somebody with you !!... if you're like me, i'm constantly daydreaming and not paying attention to anything... so its a good idea to take someone that can tell you what happened, and somebody that can remember how you're supposed to take care of it and stuff.
Q & A
Did it hurt? --- No... but for me, up until a week after, it felt kind of sore... it wasn't unbearable pain or anything... it just feels a bit sore.
Is taking care of it hard? --- No not at all... but for me, i had to clean it a LOT because of mucus and crusties (yeah it's pretty gross)... all you have to do is put hydrogen peroxide on it, and lately i've been putting Neosporin and a bandaid over it while i'm sleeping.
Should I get it done? --- yes, you should. It's a fun piercing to have, and trust me, it gets a lot of attention =)~
But the bad side is, mine is beginning to scar as it heals... and I scar really easily. If you plan on taking it out, it might leave a scar... so it's up to you to decide whether it's worth it or not.
If you dont think you have a nice stomach --- Get it !! I always hated working out before, but now having this piercing, it's a total motivator to stay in shape... I dont think anybody else has really talked about that, but it's so true !
Gateway -- I always thought that piercings were gross and horrible, but this piercing is really a starter to other things... now i want my tongue (but i'm too chicken), and i'm gonna get my labret done soon... So be prepared, if you get this one, you're probably gonna want so many more.
If there's a question here that didnt get answered, feel free to email me, and I'll answer you right away... =)