Thursday October 22nd, 2009 @ 2:03 PM
Filed under: Navel
I would like to get my naval pierced, but I compete in rodeo and the jeans that I have to wear are very tight and high waisted. My rodeo circuit doesnt start for about 4 months. Would this be long enough for me to be able to wear the jeans??
Also, I have a very active lifestyle (rodeo, riding dirtbikes, wakeboarding, etc.). Should I be worried about the piercing getting ripped out??
I remember when I first started piercing, jeans that went over the navel were still common. Girls would leave the studio with there pants rolled down over there fresh piercing, but before you know it, they would have to put there jeans on regularly and the pressure proved detrimental to the healing of the piercing. Nowadays, girls jeans barely cover a hood piercing, so this problem is almost totally avoided.
Get the piercing ASAP, so it has time to heal up somewhat before starting the rodeo and other sports. Then during active sports use the eye patch trick, buy a hard plastic eye patch and tape it on over your piercing, which will provide a protective barrier for your piercing. This should greatly reduce trauma to your piercing and allow you to have a new piercing and still be able to participate in your hobbies.
+12 / 14 votes 
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Posted by Sean Philips | Permalink | 1 Comment
Monday August 10th, 2009 @ 2:33 PM
Filed under: Navel
So I got my navel pierced twice back in frebruary. It seems like it’s perfectly healed, but as of tomorrow I’ll be going on antibiotics because i’m having all four of my wisdom teeth out (oh joy!)
I realise it’s proooobably a bit late to be asking this, but is my precious piercing at risk because of the antibiotics?
Seeing as your navel piercing is just a barbell under your skin and not an infection, your antibiotics won’t harm the piercing.
+1 / 1 votes 
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Posted by Lexci Million | Permalink | 1 Comment
Thursday June 25th, 2009 @ 12:31 PM
Filed under: Navel
Hi.
This is my third time getting my navel pierced. The first time, the piercing grew out. The second time, the top ball kept going inside the hole so I just took the piercing out. Now, on the bottom ball, when I move the bar a little, it seems like spongey bloody tissue is coming out. Also, there’s like a raised bubble around the hole. I’m just wondering what I should do, because the bloody tissue is really scaring me. Any suggestions?
First of all, don’t be freaked out by the bloody tissue. The bump/tissue you are describing is not uncommon with navel piercings. They typically show up around the 2 months mark, but sometimes they show up later and sometimes earlier.
Without seeing your piercing, I can only talk in very general terms. Very often, those bumps are a result of jewelry that does not fit well/right. The mechanical irritation keeps the piercing irritated, hence the bump/blood tissue. To figure out if this is the issue, a piercer would need to take a look at it.
You didn’t mention what you were doing for aftercare, but cleaning too frequently and/or using something too harsh can also contribute to irritation. If you are doing anything other than sea salt/saline soaks a few times per day, it’s probably best to consider changing your aftercare routine.
Another thing that many people miss is being sure to dry out your navel really well after you shower or soak it. Extra moisture can inhibit healing.
Good luck!
+7 / 9 votes
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Posted by Derek Lowe | Permalink | 2 Comments
Monday June 1st, 2009 @ 6:30 PM
Filed under: Navel
Hi,
I’ve had a my navel pierced for over 16 weeks, and the darn thing just won’t heal.
About two weeks ago it looked really good, I honestly thought it might finally be healing. Then bam! A nasty puss blister formed on the top hole. Within a week that blister grew, shrank,grew again, bleed, shrank, and now looks like a bloody scab and its still bleeding.
What is going on with my top hole? I honestly dont think its rejecting, that placement is still the same, and there is no skin thinning. There isnt much pain. The bottom hole is perfect, I have never had a problem and it looks like its completely healed.
Just top hole.. I clean it daily, do sea salt soaks.. ugh. Help?!
Thanks!
It could possibly be that the jewellery is a little too tight for a fresh piercing. There should be a little room between the balls and the piercing otherwise it can’t drain and the discharge will become trapped, resulting in the formation of a what resembles a boil. It’s hard to say without seeing but that would be my first guess. Alternatively, it is not uncommon for the skin around the ball to ulcerate if shower/bath products with added moisturiser are used, as these soften the delicate tissue to the point that friction between the jewellery and the skin causes irritation. And of course, there is also your aftercare regime to consider. It’s worth noting that you cannot expect a navel piercing to be healed at four months. They usually take between eight and twelve months (sometimes longer) to fully heal.
+11 / 13 votes
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | 2 Comments
Sunday February 22nd, 2009 @ 9:21 AM
Filed under: Navel
I just found out I am pregnant (hooray!) and though I have a few months before my stomach gets to this point, I like to plan ahead. I have 2 navel piercing (top and bottom) and I was just wondering what would be best. Should I just take them out when the time comes or just get the barbells to put in? I would rather not retire these to piercings, but if it is what’s best then I will. Thanks for your help.
Congratulations!
What you can do is when you notice that you are starting to require a longer bar, is pop an oversized PTFE bar in there and this will accomodate any extra length your piercing may require as your belly grows. I, personally, am not normally a fan of PTFE but this is one of those instances when it does prove useful. Take care not to catch it, though.
+11 / 15 votes
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | Comments
Sunday November 23rd, 2008 @ 5:12 PM
Filed under: Navel
I got a standard navel piercing on December 11, 2007. It was pierced absolutely perfectly. The initial jewelry was a 14g J-shaped barbell, which I am still wearing. My problem is that, after almost a year, it still hasn’t healed. It gets crusties, and bleeds whenever I have to take it out to clean the crusties off the barbell. There is no tenderness, redness, or evidence of rejection. Why hasn’t it healed, and what can I do to get it to heal?
Thanks!
Navel piercings can take a year, sometimes longer depending on the individual, to heal. I suspect that the continual removal of the jewellery to clean the piericng is irritating it and lengthening the healing time. If you are getting crusties then that is indicitive of not being fully healed therefore you should be leaving the jewellery in situ and continuing with your twice daily seasalt soaks. That is the best way to allow your piercing to heal.
+14 / 14 votes
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | 1 Comment
Wednesday October 15th, 2008 @ 10:35 AM
Filed under: Navel
I got my navel pierced (on the top) in the first week of may and I haven’t been having any problems. But recently in the past month I’ve been noticing that the skin covering the bar has been getting thinner and thinner, and I’m worried about it getting ripped out or falling out. I tried looking it up online, and what I figured was that it’s a migrating piercing. What should I do about it? If I take it out, would the scar tissue left over after it healed let me get it pierced again?
Thanks!
I’d say it is rejecting - a defence mechanism the body has for ridding itself of foreign objects, which is what a piercing is. If you leave it your body will eventually push the jewellery right out and you will be left with a scar. If this happens it is unadvisable to get it pierced again as scar tissue lacks the properties of normal skin and the same will most likely happen again. However, if you remove the jewellery now and give it at least three months before considering having it pierced again, then you may well heal the future piercing.
Also, you need to understand why it rejected. It could be poor placement, not having the right shaped navel to support the piercing, poor aftercare, irritation from clothes etc or you could just be unlucky.
+13 / 13 votes
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | Comments
Friday August 22nd, 2008 @ 7:44 AM
Filed under: Navel
I have had this particluar piercing for about 9 years, had no trouble at all when it was done (it is one of three in a triangle formation -one top, two bottom)
It is one of the bottom ones that have gone a bit wrong, I can only asume I slept on it funny and it swelled up a little then got infected, it is not oosing pus or anything, its just red under the skin and rather hard and swollen.
I feel very similar to when I got cellulitus at a festival last year in my leg.
sick, head aches, fuzzy head, swelling, funny redness under skin surface, etc. by the time I got to the doctors (could walk to get there) it had cleared up and they of course did not believe there was a problem.(pfft doctors eh?)
I know it can be a re-occuring problem, is it possible to get cellulitus via piercings?
I would go to the doctor about it but they never actually help, at all.whatever the problems they seem to just assume I’m after prescription drugs or something. which is baws as I have no interest in such things, prescription or otherwise
Cellulitis rarely clears up without antibiotic therapy. It is a bacterial infection of the subcutaneous tissues (usually staph. aureus, sometimes streptococcal). It is characterised by a red, spotty rash, heat, intense throbbing pain and later on, fever and general feelings of malaise. It is treated with urgency (in some cases intravenous antibiotics may be administered) due to the potential it has to lead to septaecemia. Usually, there is a point of entry for the infection - a wound of sorts, but it can be systemic if infection exists elsewhere in the body. I am not a doctor but I would also have doubted your diagnosis based on what you have said.
You say you are feeling unwell? Sometimes, even well-healed piercings can flare up if you are under the weather so your angry piercing could be a symptom of something else. If the redness isn’t accompanied by excess heat, pain and discharge then I wouldn’t be too concerned. You can do twice daily tepid seasalt soaks to help reduce the inflammation and ensure you eat a healthy, balanced diet and keep well hydrated. If you are under the weather then taking a multivitamin may be of benefit. If you have changed the jewellery recently, then this could be a factor. If you haven’t removed the jewellery to clean it in the last nine years then this could also be a factor!
Of course, if you are in any doubt whatsoever, then a trip to the doctors won’t do any harm.
+3 / 7 votes
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | Comments
Thursday August 14th, 2008 @ 1:33 AM
Filed under: Navel
I will be going to get an industrial navel piercing and i am wondering weather i should get a bioplast or stainless steel barbell. I’ve done some research and have heard pros and cons of both types of jewlery. I have a somewhat active lifestyle and I would like to know which will be more comfortable.
thanks for your help:]
Realistically neither would be “more comfortable” with someone who has an active lifestyle.
Also have you visited a reputable piercer to inspect the navel area and make sure what you’re looking for, is even capable of being done? As more often then not, peoples navels are not suited for the type of piercing you’re referring to.
If you are suitable to get both your Standard Navel and Inverse Navel pierced. You could technically heal the each piercing with separate jewelry. Then once healed place a Tygon piece of jewelry through the pathways and leave it in until it becomes firmer/harder. From there remove it and the piercer can either order a custom bent Barbell or if they have proper non-damaging (ie: won’t gouge the hell out of the surface of the jewelry) bending pliers they can attempt to make the shape themselves.
If you want you can do a search on AskBME involving BioPlast and it will explain why BioPlast is not a suitable jewelry material to be used in fresh/initial piercings.
But realistically if a client came to me looking for this and mentioned they lead a very active lifestyle, I would have tried to really make them understand that a very active lifestyle is not conductive to the healing of this specific piercing. If they were still interested in going through with it, then I would stress to the client to consider it a “project” and encourage it be done the way I mentioned above. Where its pierced with two pieces and then later figure out the pathway shapes and create/order a custom barbell shaped specifically for what your navel requires.
+3 / 5 votes
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Posted by Warren Hiller | Permalink | Comments
Tuesday July 22nd, 2008 @ 8:08 PM
Filed under: Navel
I had surgery April 11th of this year. I have always wanted my navel pierced, but never got it done. Now I have had surgery and am dealing with this scar that is on top of my navel going down to below my navel.
Are my dreams of having my navel pierced gone for good or can I still pierce it?
What are the risks, issues with doing so and how long should I wait to do it? It’s been 3 months so far
Thanks so much
I always hate to have to say this when answering a question…but your best bet is to visit a local piercer who you trust/hear good things about and have them look at the scarring. They will (should) be able to give you much more precise information about what is and isn’t possible if they can see/feel the scarring.
In general, I would say that your hopes of having a navel piercings don’t need to be abandoned. Piercings can very often be done through scar tissue. In some cases, a slight adjustment of the placement might be necessary to avoid large sections of scarring. Piercing through scarring can sometimes increase the likelihood of migration or rejection. If you were my client, I would likely suggest starting off with 12ga curved barbell. The slightly thicker jewelry should put less pressure on the tissue, reducing the likelihood of rejection. While scar tissue is harder than normal tissue, it is also more “brittle”, so the less pressure/irritation on it, the better.
A piercer who can see the scarring in person will be better able to advise you in terms of how long to wait. Based upon what I can see (size and color of the scar), I would probably suggest waiting about a year. It might not be easy to wait that long, but you obviously want to give yourself the best chance of success when you finally decide to do it.
Best of luck!
+8 / 12 votes
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Posted by Derek Lowe | Permalink | 4 Comments
