|
|
|
|
htotsu
Nov 2, 2005, 9:47 AM
Post #1 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 11, 2005
Posts: 673
|
Hey ladies. I know a bunch of ya are belly-pierced because I've seen the threads, but there isn't a thread that I could find specifically on recovery time. (Thanks to the search process, though, I have been exposed to the horrifying tale of a nipple ring, a fall and a rope. Maybe you've seen that one. I may not sleep tonight - "traumatized" is just not the word...).
But back to my question. How long did it take after your belly piercing before you could twist comfortably? Stretch backward, lean forward? I want to have a sense of what to expect. For example, is salsa dancing that night out of the question? Or is it merely a question of pain tolerance/Advil consumption? How long did it take for you to get back to your normal routines, climbing included?
Backstory - I actually went to the shop today to do the deed, but you have to be there by an hour before closing for paperwork, waiting, choosing, educating, et. al. They close at 10. I arrived at 9:06. :evil: There were already about 7 people sitting and waiting, so I guess I can see why they had to be strict, but DANG. Six minutes? (Traffic is wicked in Philly right now because the public transit union is on strike, so that more than accounts for the delay). The guy was super nice, though, and gave me a card so when I go back I get 20% off the jewelry for my trouble :)
I'm just wondering how functional I'll be on the day of, and for that first week. Thanks for your help.
|
|
|
|
|
clausti
Nov 2, 2005, 3:46 PM
Post #2 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Oct 5, 2004
Posts: 5690
|
only thing i've had peirced other than ears was eyebrow, but i'll tell you this.
if you leave it alone, you'll be totally fine; it really wont hurt that bad. you can twist, bend, ect all you want. what i WOULD be worried about if i were you wouldbe my shirt or my partner's hand getting caught on it while salsa-ing.
getting something caught on it is obviously gonna hurt like fuck.
|
|
|
|
|
outdoorsie
Nov 2, 2005, 5:26 PM
Post #3 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jan 15, 2003
Posts: 302
|
Ok, I just tried to post and got an error. So now you get the condensed version. I was climbing about once a week when I got my belly piercing, and I don't remember it interfearing with climbing, or hurting while climbing, at all. I remember the first night, it was pretty bloody/scabbed and sore. So if you do go salsa dancing right afterwards, I just wouldn't show it off... wear a long shirt and all. Could be gross. After about 3 days it didn't hurt at all. Just kinda itched, or felt like something was there that shouldn't be, ya know? :-)
|
|
|
|
|
sportclmbr20
Nov 2, 2005, 6:50 PM
Post #4 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 31, 2004
Posts: 66
|
After I got my belly pierced I could not lay on my stomach for the first couple of nights trying to go to sleep. Other than that, it was fine, can bend, twist, everything. When I bought a new ring to change, it was like a sun with rays coming out of it and that would get caught on my harness, so just be careful if you want to show it off while climbing to wear one that is short like a stud and not a dangling one. Those ones get me when I climb.
|
|
|
|
|
lhwang
Nov 3, 2005, 1:17 AM
Post #5 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 4, 2005
Posts: 582
|
When I got my navel pierced, they told me it would be about 6 months to a year before it had healed fully... now it's five years later, and it has never really completely healed. It still leaks serosanguinous fluid, and the bottom hole is always pink/red. The stud also fell out about a year ago and the hole closed up in about 2 hours and I had to go to a piercer to get the hole stretched so I could get my piercing back in!
None of my other piercings on my earlobes, tragus and rook have never given me any problems. I think part of the problem with my piercing is that my climbing harness tends to snag the top part of the barbell and yank on it, and also, my hockey pants hit at exactly the same place. The only solution I've found so far is to tape a non-adsorbent gauze pad over my navel so that stuff rubs against it less. I would have taken it out 3 weeks ago at Skaha but I thought it might be infected and also I couldn't get the screw undone.
It wasn't particularly painful right after the piercing but like some of the other posters said, I didn't want to sleep on my stomach or have anybody touching it. It's still kind of tender.
|
|
|
|
|
squierbypetzl
Moderator
Nov 3, 2005, 4:34 AM
Post #6 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 6, 2005
Posts: 3431
|
Thatīs... not normal...
Anyway, if you take good care of it and your immune system is in decent shape, it should be healed in about 3 months; Iīve seen them completely healed after 5 weeks and others that arenīt after a year.
While I donīt personally have a navel piercing, I have friends who have climbed within 2 or 3 weeks of getting them done.
|
|
|
|
|
htotsu
Nov 3, 2005, 5:31 AM
Post #7 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 11, 2005
Posts: 673
|
Well, it turns out that, after all the trouble, I am a poor candidate for belly button piercing. Essentially I don't have enough of an overhang (oh, the irony). There are worse things, but still,
BUMMER! :(
Ah well, c'est la vie. SIGH.
While we're here, hey lhwang, if you are leaking five years later, that can't be good. If you get it checked out by a doctor hopefully you can find out what's coming out and how to stop it.
|
|
|
|
|
comet
Nov 3, 2005, 5:38 AM
Post #8 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Feb 5, 2005
Posts: 358
|
I have never had any pain with my belly piercing, other than the piercing process itself. It would get a little crusty for the first few months, but it was not painful to move it around to clean it with saline.
The piercing did have a raised scar around the hole for around month 3-5, which worried me a little. I have friends who have had luck with rubbing a wet aspirin tab on this type of scarring (the mild acid breaks it down), but mine went away on its own around month 5.
I've never had it catch on anything either (I had a captured-bead ring to start, now have a barbell). I did get my nose stud caught on a boyfriend's nose while drunk and kissing not long after I'd gotten it, which made me want to pass out from the pain. The belly ring has always been fine.
|
|
|
|
|
lhwang
Nov 3, 2005, 6:41 AM
Post #9 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 4, 2005
Posts: 582
|
In reply to: While we're here, hey lhwang, if you are leaking five years later, that can't be good. If you get it checked out by a doctor hopefully you can find out what's coming out and how to stop it.
Ah... the irony, as I am months away from becoming a doctor. I did solicit lunchtime opinions from some of the plastic surgeons while I was doing my plastic surgery rotation (at my hospital, they're the ones who take care of chronic non-healing wounds) but no real help there. Not surprising, as there is no "piercing care" lecture in med school. Barring infection, I doubt a doctor would be able to do much in this situation.
My piercer thinks that the reason for the slow healing is repetitive trauma (my hockey pants and my harness yanking on the barbell). She suggested that I put KY jelly on the barbell to prevent the little crusties from lacerating the skin and it actually helped a lot. Just in case anyone else is having a similar problem...
htotsu, that sucks that you can't get a piercing there...maybe you could get a little tattoo or something instead?
|
|
|
|
|
htotsu
Nov 3, 2005, 3:18 PM
Post #10 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 11, 2005
Posts: 673
|
In reply to: Ah... the irony, as I am months away from becoming a doctor. ... there is no "piercing care" lecture in med school.
Heh heh - well, there's a first time for everything. Maybe you'll be a guest lecturer one day at Med schools one day to cover this topic. :)
In reply to: My piercer thinks that the reason for the slow healing is repetitive trauma (my hockey pants and my harness yanking on the barbell). She suggested that I put KY jelly on the barbell to prevent the little crusties from lacerating the skin and it actually helped a lot. Just in case anyone else is having a similar problem...
In reply to: htotsu, that sucks that you can't get a piercing there...maybe you could get a little tattoo or something instead? |
|
|
|
|
iamthewallress
Nov 5, 2005, 8:17 PM
Post #11 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jan 2, 2003
Posts: 2463
|
Mine was infected to some degree for about two years. Just when I'd get ready to yank it, it would heal up a bit. Then it would get irritated again. I started to put alchohol and neosporin on it for a couple of months against the advice of the peircer, and it totally healed. I've never had a problem with it since or given it any special care beyond washing it during my regular shower or bath. I've had it for 4 years.
|
|
|
|
|
tradgal
Nov 17, 2005, 1:49 PM
Post #12 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Mar 11, 2005
Posts: 384
|
I am a little late on this thread... But, for what it's worth--My belly button did not take long to heal. I used bactine, slept on my back and wore pants significantly lower than belly button. And, I taped over my ring while I was climbing for about a month.
I should have used that same advise for my nipple ring--as I am the one with the fall, a rope and tearing story! Traumatic for me too!
|
|
|
|
|
zenelky
Nov 27, 2005, 10:03 PM
Post #13 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Oct 24, 2005
Posts: 137
|
I've had a belly ring (along with others) for a few years now. I think that it only really gave me trouble for the first week. Total healing time depends on how well you treat it and your body. I believe that mine took about 6-8 months to heal completely to the point that it didn't hurt to give it a good yank when it gets stuck in my belt.
I would recommend that you put tape (make sure it's clean first for God's sake!!) on it while your climbing. That's only to protect it from those sudden oh crap situations when it could get caught up on something. My harness does this sometimes when I'm belaying and the climber takes a sudden fall. So I tend to wear smaller rings with no danglys when I will be spending lots of time outside to help avoid those little hang-ups.
I hope that you enjoy what you're getting. As before, I've had mine for almost 2 years now and it's my favorite. Kinda like getting a tattoo on your back, it's nice to not have it out for the world to see, but there when you're not expecting it :P If you get it and there's a reaction, I'd go back to your piercer immediately or give em a call. Good piercers will always be willing to look at their work and you and hand you useful tid-bits about caring for it. Doctors will almost always tell you to take it out, but I trust my guy cause he's gone to several training seminars for doctors regarding this stuff AND he does it on a regular basis.
Good luck!
|
|
|
|
|
romina
Dec 2, 2005, 1:01 AM
Post #14 of 14
(2769 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jan 19, 2005
Posts: 7
|
hi, i've got by belly button pierced about four years ago. it didn't heal the first year. i took good care of it, but it wouldn't get better no mather what i did. so after a year i changed the ring into half a ring ( don't know the name in english) and it was cured within a couple of weeks.
the problem was that the ring was constantly turning and opening the healing wound again. so after that it couldn't turn/twist anymore and cured.
no pain since that time anymore.
greetz romina
|
|
|
|
|
|
