My parents are definitely strict, definitely conservative. Getting my ear lobes double pierced was something they wouldn't even allow me to do, so when I brought up getting a navel piercing, I already knew what the answer would be. I begged, pleaded, argued, and cried about it to them for nearly four years when finally they gave up and said I could.
At A Glance Author Holly Contact lil_holly7@hotmail.com When Six months ago Artist Can't remember name Studio The Asylum Location Ames, Iowa I was so excited, I could hardly believe it. When I told my friends, we made plans to go to Ames to the Asylum as soon as we could. I went with one of my friends, her boyfriend, and my now ex-boyfriend. My friend was also planning to get her navel pierced too. The whole way down there, we were kind of nervous and kept asking each other what we thought it would be like. The guys laughed at us and told us not to be wimps.
It was about an hour drive to Ames, and when we finally got there I was starting to get nervous. The guys wanted to look at some stereo stuff for their car, so I had to wait another two agonizing hours while they looked at subs and speakers. Finally they said they were done and we started heading for the Asylum. After we found it and parked, I could feel my heart beating in my chest, I was definitely scared.
We walked into the Asylum and the guy behind the counter had more piercings on his body than I have ever seen on a single human being before. My friend and I walked up, told him what we wanted, and then showed him our ID. You had to be at least 16 to get the piercing done without a parent, and I had just turned 16 at the time so I was good, and my friend was 18 so she was fine. Next we each paid, it was $25 I think. We then had to fill out a form with personal information and also sign it, which stated that they wouldn't be liable for any things that could go wrong resulting from this piercing.
After that we each picked out the jewelry we wanted. I got a silver 14 ga barbell with a clear diamond and my friend picked the same only with a green diamond. They then handed the barbells to us and told us to go wait on some chairs. I found it odd they just let us hold the barbells ourselves, but being new to piercing I didn't say anything because I didn't know for sure.
After about 20 minutes, although it seemed longer, the piercer told us he was ready. I went into a room that had a small window in it, and some people gathered around to watch. I didn't really mind, but he told me he could close the curtain if I wanted him to. I told him it was fine. My friend and I decided that I would go first. The guy told me to lift up my shirt, and then he proceeded to clean my stomach. Next he put the clamp on. I had heard that the clamp was painful, but I didn't feel it at all. He did have a little trouble getting it on though, because my stomach was fairly flat at the time. Then I was told to go lay back on the chair.
I laid back and started to wonder exactly how much it was going to hurt. I heard him put gloves on, and then I saw the needle. It wasn't nearly as big as I had expected, but still was a little intimidating. It was probably only three inches or so long. My boyfriend walked over and gave me his hand to hold. I took it, and then the piercer asked if I was ready. I said "Yeah, just get it over with. Why am I doing this? How bad is this going to be?" But by the time I finished asking all that, he said "Well, the needle's through." I couldn't believe it. I thought he was just messing around with the clamp or something, it blew my mind that the needle had gone through and I didn't even know it! He put the barbell through, which I did feel, and then it was done. It was so easy and painless.
My friend disagreed, she nearly passed out when hers was done, so I guess it depends on the person a lot. I loved my new piercing, I kept staring at it in the mirror, I was so happy with it and I still am. It was sore for the first few weeks, but now it's fine. I've had it about five months, and haven't had any major problems. It was crusty for about the first month, and I cleaned it with salt water soaks then. At one point it did bleed and get a gross looking lump that was pussy and bled, but that lasted only about one week and I haven't had any other problems at all.
My parents cringed, and the look my mom had on her face made it all worth it. "Does it hurt??? Is it infected??? Does it like pierce your insides???". Their remarks and funny looks keep me entertained.
If you're thinking of getting a navel, I say go for it! It didn't hurt at all, and it's definitely cute. I am planning to get another surface bar put in under my navel piercing or to get three more added to my navel so that I have a star. Good luck and thanks for reading this!