When I was younger, I was fascinated with piercings. I used to find those little clip-on "piercings" and put them on my navel and nose an lip and such and walk around like I was cool. I knew at the age of eleven or twelve that I was way too young to even consider asking my parents. At the age of 14 I got a second set of holes in my lobes, but I felt that I was still missing what I had always wanted.
At A Glance Author Adel Contact pretty_hollows@hotmail.com IAM pretty_hollows When N/A Artist The reisdent piercer Studio Island Republic Location Bluffton, SC When I was 15, I asked my mom if I could get my navel pierced. I figured that it wasn't a visible piercing and a lot of girls my age had them (but that was just leverage, not my reason). After a while of begging, the agreed to let me get it done when I turned 16 if I kept my grades up. Whenever we were in the car and passed a piercing shop, I would remind my mom of the deal we had but I was always told that we needed to wait because of "this" or "that".
Finally, the day came when she agreed to take me to get it done. We had to call around to a few shops and see if they could do it because a lot of places around here won't pierce anyone under 18. We finally found a shop about 30 minutes away called Island Republic. It was one of those beach souvenir shops with piercing in the back. I called the place to schedule and appointment and talked to a guy who hardly spoke any English. It worried me a bit.
We got there and told them what we wanted. I was told that it would only cost about $40. I started to pick out jewelry.I was shown to the jewelry cabinet with all of the pieces of jewelry in it. It took me a while to pick the one I wanted, but I finally decided on a standard navel barbell with a pink stone in it. The piercer took it to the back to get it in the autoclave. Then came the worst part, the waiting.
After waiting about 30 minutes and signing all of the paperwork, I was called back to the back room. I walked in and it was a little dark. The walls were painted a dark purplish-blue color and the room was dimly lit by one half working florescent light. I felt pretty easy, but I wanted to get it over with. If I had known then what I know, I wouldn't have gone through with it at this place. It just seemed to be way too sketchy.
I was cleaned up and marked with a pen. I accepted the placement and laid down on the table. I remember staring up at the ceiling and seeing all the pictures of the piercings other people had gotten. I was very uneasy and a little shaky. This was my first "real" piercing and I had no idea about what would happen. The piercer, who had a very thick middle-eastern accent, kept calling me "honey" and sweetheart" and told me about the aftercare instructions. He spoke very quickly and basically told me "Don't touch it, wash it and you'll be fine."
I felt the clamps go on rather tightly. Then, he got up and went to get the jewelry. After fiddling with it a but and preparing the needle, he sat back down and told me to get ready. With no warning at all, I felt him push the needle though. I winced with pain. It hurt about as much as a stubbed toe. He kept asking me if I was okay. I responded with a meek "yes" each time.
He put the jewelry in, which felt pretty strange and took the clamps off and cleaned the area again. He told me I was bleeding and gave me some gauze to stop it. I sat back up and was a little light headed. I looked in the mirror and couldn't believe what I saw. I was finally pierced! I was pierced. After removing the gauze, I saw that the clamps had actually dug into my skin and that's where I was bleeding from. Even though I didn't know much about piercings, I knew that that wasn't supposed to happen.
We got ready to pay for the procedure and the total came up to $75. They told us that it was because of insurance and aftercare information and cleanser. I was pretty pissed. I had my new piercing, though, so I was happy for the time being. After a while, I realized that the piercing was too shallow and I had a hard time with it. It took just about a year to fully heal, but now, about two years later, I have little or no problems with it.
I really want to remind people to check out the shop where they're planning to go. Take a good look at portfolios and make sure the piercer is licensed. Ask around and find out where people near you go and ask them about their experiences. Piercings and tattoos are serious things and not to be done by people who aren't professionals. Also, if you don't feel comfortable, don't be afraid to change your mind, This is your body and it helps a lot if you are completely comfortable with the person and the setting for the procedure.