Belly Button Piercing

The sad news is that not everyone is a good candidate for a navel piercing. "Outies" get in the way, so "innies" work best, and the farther in your navel is, the better the resulting pierce. Let a piercing professional help you decide if a belly button piercing is a good choice for you.

Selecting Your Body Jewelry

Before you get pierced, pay close attention to the materials used in the piece of body jewelry you select to wear. Any metal used in a piercing is going to come in contact with body fluids that could cause it to rust, tarnish or corrode, so it's very important to choose your jewelry carefully, especially for a fresh piercing.

Some of the best materials to use include:

• Surgical stainless steel. This metal is one of the best choices for body jewelry, as you'll never have to worry about deterioration or an allergic reaction, unless you actually have metal allergies.
• Surgical titanium. This is the same material used for denture implant posts. If it can hold up to saliva, it will hold up to pretty much anything else.
• Tygon plastic. This is a good alternative for people who are allergic to metal.
• Solid 14K gold This is another good choice, but remember that gold is fairly soft for a metal and can bend when it is warm. You might want to remove a gold belly ring if you plan to suntan.

Materials that present a variety of allergy and corrosion problems, and are best avoided might include:

• Nickel
• Sterling silver
• Bone jewelry
• Bamboo
• Gold and silver electroplated jewelry

Belly Button Piercing Procedure

You've selected your first belly button ring, and now you're ready for the actual procedure. Then next few minutes are the most harrowing of the process, but even though everyone has their own personal pain threshold, this piercing is not as painful as it looks.

1. The piercing room should look immaculately clean, and the chair should have a paper or plastic cover to protect it and to catch any body fluids. A quick look around the room should reveal bottles of disinfectant nearby and a hand sink.
2. Your piercing professional should wash his/her hands thoroughly and wear a fresh pair of surgical gloves and a mask. All this good hygiene goes toward lowering the possibility of transmitting blood borne diseases such as HIV and hepatitis.
3. Your navel will be exposed and scrubbed with a surgical wash to sterilize the area prior to piercing. Most likely no topical anaesthetic will be applied, but a few piercers do keep it on hand for the especially squeamish.
4. Your piercer will then puncture the piercing area with a surgical needle and thread your jewelry into place. You will feel some pain, but most people describe it as a momentary pinch or prick.
5. Once the body jewelry is in place, the area will be washed clean and patted dry, and you're finished!

Caring for Your New Piercing

Remember, your piercing is just like any other wound that needs to be cared for and protected.

• Always wash your hands before touching your piercing. There's no faster way to infect a fresh pierce than by fingering it with dirty hands.
• Avoid fiddling with your new piercing. It's natural to feel preoccupied with your new goodie, but moving the jewelry around can add extra irritation at the site. Just keep telling yourself, "Look, but don't touch." Also, avoid wearing clothing that will rub against the area.
• Wash the piercing no more than twice a day with a liquid soap. Make sure to wash your hands first. Gently work the soap around the jewelry, moving it as little as possible. Washing a belly button piercing too often can irritate the skin more than necessary, so once or twice daily should be sufficient. Always pat dry rather than rub.
• Avoid swimming and tub baths until you are completely healed.
• Sea salt soaks can help relieve a sore piercing. Mix about 1/8 to 1/4 of a teaspoon of sea salt in eight ounces of water. Bend over slightly and press the entire rim of the cup around your belly piercing, then bend back, and allow the water to soak the entire area for one or two minutes, then pat dry. You can repeat this procedure up to three times a day as needed.

belly button piercing

Expect your navel piercing to take as much as twelve months to completely heal. Once the outer area is healed, the inside of the piercing will still take a while to toughen up until you no longer feel any twinges of pain.

Note: It's normal to see clear fluid leaking from a fresh piercing, but a yellowish-green coloring accompanied by a foul odor means it's likely infected. Should your belly button piercing become infected, leave your jewelry in place. If you remove it, your piercing will close over, trapping the infection inside where it will continue to grow. Keeping the belly button ring in place allows the fluids to keep draining. See your physician if the infection doesn't clear up with regular cleaning.

Summing It Up

Make sure your navel is a good candidate for piercing, choose a qualified professional piercer and a high quality piece of body jewelry, and follow through with your after care. All of this should result in a fabulous navel piercing you'll be proud to show off.

External Links

• The Association of Professional Piercers, lots of good info about where to find a piercing professional, and other care tips.
• AllPiercings.com, the body jewelry superstore.
• Europierce Body Jewelry, navel rings and so much more.

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