Round 1: Flash back to about three years ago when I had just started college...fresh faced 16 year old... I had wanted my bellybutton piercing for about a year by then, and had only just managed to convince my mum. By then it had become a fashion, but I didn't want it for that, I wanted it for the fact I wanted it. I couldn't care less about what anybody else thought.
At A Glance Author Solada Contact kaz386@gmail.com When Three months ago Studio Pulse Location Peterborough At the time I had just managed to get away from everyone at school who had it done, I say everyone, I mean most of the girls...I actually lied about having it done, just because everyone was making fun about me not having it, stupid really because they found out and made even more fun of me.
Anywho, I managed to convince my mum to let me have it done for an exam present, you know, "get good grades and you can have it done." Well to my luck I got mostly C's and a B.
I was kind of expecting my mum to still say no when it came around to it. She had never been keen because of all the horror stories of people getting it done and it going wrong, getting infected, causing them to have TSS and such, so she was really very wary about me getting it done. It took about four months of begging to have it done before I actually got it, and even then I paid because I had the money before my mum did...looking back it's strange to see how much it's actually gone up in cost, used to be £25, now it's about £35! Still I suppose it's down to trends.
I was scared to death, I knew people who had it done and said it hurt, and others who said it didn't. Fun!
I went with a friend, who was getting hers done too, we had been arranging it for about a month, and we met outside the place after she finished work.
I was silently swearing to myself as I read a sign on his wall saying, "we do not numb piercings". Apparently you can't do it without a certificate saying you're qualified.
"The clamp is the worst part" he says, "It won't hurt a bit," he says. He lied. I felt it all right, if its one thing I hate it's being told that having a piece of metal shoved through your skin won't hurt at all...yeah right. Well the clamp was not the worst part; the worst part was when he was changing a plastic tube for jewellery...that pulled.
I was first, my dad held my hand while my mum stood outside smoking herself silly. My friend was now worried as she heard me whimper. I walked out of the little room to see her looking at me as much to say, "I should have gone first".
Mine stayed in for about 18 months; my friends migrated in a week. She never got it done again.
During that 18 months all was pretty good, it didn't hurt or bleed...it wept a little every now and then, winter was a pain in the posterior - it was always covered and got slightly infected but cleared up without any attention needed.
It was about 16 months after I had it done when I noticed it had started to move, not outwards, but side wards. My mum took a look and said it had ripped *joy*. So out it came, the day before I was due to go to a concert!
Round 2: about 17 months ago - I went to a different place as I'd heard the original person who did it was now an alcoholic and drug addict.
At the time we had found a good place in Peterborough (UK) called "Concept" still no freezing, more info on how to take care of it and a longer bar! This one lasted for just over 12 months, I don't actually know why this one started to migrate - it just did. A few people have told me it's because I changed the bar a lot or because I didn't wear titanium, but to be totally honest nobody knows and I don't suppose anyone ever will.
The real pain was that I had just spent £10 on two new bars, pretty ones too, and they were now not going to be used. I decided I didn't want it re-doing as I was going to end up with a large scar down my stomach.... Oh how my mind changed!
Round 3: About 3 months ago now, I went to "Pulse" also in Peterborough, I don't know the guy's name, but he's cool. Had / has a green Mohawk! It was frozen, *yay* done with titanium, which aided the healing - I don't where anything but titanium now, as far as I can tell it isn't coming out, so far all is good.
I've been told that I shouldn't wear anything but titanium, as for some reason anything else tends to prolong the healing process, still haven't worked out how come. Instead of salt water I have a solution by metal morphosis, which actually cleaned it and helped it heal much faster, also helped my labret.
The only problem with getting one piercing is that I now want more. I have my lip / labret whatever you want to call it, if have my ears and up until recently I had my nose as well...
Mum isn't really saying anything about it all, she knows what I want, and her theory is if anything goes wrong it can be taken out and will heal over.
It's addictive, just like tattooing, and strangely enough...I enjoy it!