Before You Get Your Body Pierced...
By Teresa Ambord
If you’re a teen considering body piercing, check it out thoroughly before you decide if it is for you. With both piercings and tattoos, the best place to start may be talking to friends you trust who have already experienced it. Just make sure that the friends you ask will tell you the truth instead of trying to be macho or cool. If he or she went to a piercing shop that was professional and the experience was satisfactory overall, that’s a good place to start. Ask your friends if the pain was worth it, and if they would do it again. Did they have any problems with healing?
Depending on the area you have pierced, such as the navel, it can take up to a year to fully heal. This will be important information if you’ve got big plans in the near future, like your wedding, or even wearing a two-piece bathing suit.
Know the Risks
Body piercing carries with it significant risk. If the piercer is careful to use sanitary techniques, like washing his or her hands, using gloves, and sterile equipment, and if you take adequate care of your piercing, the risk is reduced but not eliminated.
The risks include:
- infection caused by hepatitis, HIV, tetanus, bacteria and yeast
- allergic reaction
- bleeding
- damage to nerves and teeth
Be aware that even a fully healed piercing can become infected.
Whatever you decide, do not let the piercer use a piercing gun to do the job. These guns cannot be sterilized and should never be used for body piercing. Not only that, but the gun crushes the body tissue. If the piercer tells you otherwise, run, don’t walk to the nearest exit.
Here’s a basic description of how a piercing is done:
A hollow needle is passed through the body part, after which the body jewelry is inserted into the hole. Some bleeding may follow. There will also be some swelling, so you need to choose a type of jewelry that allows for that expansion. If you’re having your tongue pierced, do not choose a short barbell or you’ll run into problems when the swelling begins. The best metals to choose are non-toxic, to avoid infections and allergic reactions. Piercers recommend such choices as 14k gold, titanium, niobium, or surgical steel.
There’s no doubt…body piercing is very popular these days. Just keep in mind that this is an important decision, not to be taken lightly. Besides the risks to your health, you should also know that some employers have policies that prohibit employees from wearing visible body and facial jewelry, other than earrings. In the future, employers may ease up on such rules as body piercings become more accepted. But for now, you might want to consider the effect an eyebrow ring will have on your employment possibilities.
