Deciding If You Should Get A Body Piercing

Body piercings, overall, are a safe way to express yourself and decorate your body. However, it's important to remember that a piercing is a wound. That means that there are a lot of problems that can occur if you don't have it done properly or take care of it the right way. Here are some of the most common body piercing mistakes and how to avoid them.

1. Not going to an experienced piercer. Many people think that they can bargain shop for body mods, get their friend who works at a jewelry store to do it, or even pierce themselves. This is a mistake. Not all piercing shops are created equal, and not all piercers are equally skilled. Look for someone who knows what they're doing and who runs a clean shop. Be willing to ask about practices - if you're given vague, evasive answers, look elsewhere.

If you're thinking about avoiding professional studios all together, stop immediately. Home piercings and jewelry guns are not safe for use on body piercings. They cause greater tissue damage and cannot be properly sterilized. Without the right equipment and a piercer who's been through an apprenticeship, you're risking a nasty infection or rejection with serious scarring.

2. Not thinking things through. A body piercing should never be a spur of the moment decision. Be willing to spend weeks, or even months deciding on the right piercing for you and thinking about how you'll feel once you have it. Remember that a good piercing is a significant monetary and time investment.

If you're not willing to make these investments, don't get pierced. Never get pierced while on drugs or after you've been drinking. While it might seem like a good idea to have a drink beforehand to relax, this will actually increase bleeding. Have the piercing first, then get a drink.

3. Improper after care. A piercing is a wound, and like any other wound, subject to infection and complications. If you don't take care of your body piercing properly, you could end up with unpleasant side effects. It could scar more than you want, migrate, or even reject, pulling out of your body completely. Some very unlucky people have ended up in the hospital from poor care of a piercing related infection. Don't take the risk - every piercing should be cared for as well as possible, even if it looks like everything is going just fine.

4. Poor choices. Pick the piercing that will work well on your body, not the one you think is the most attractive on someone else. Just like clothes don't look the same on different bodies, anatomy affects a piercing, too. Some are even impossible on some people.

Those with a single large vein in the tongue can't get a central tongue piercing without risking serious bleeding and nerve damage. Other problems include a piercing that won't heal, and one that just looks out of place. When in doubt, discuss matters with your piercer. He or she will be able to tell you what will work best on you.