Posted by ellie on January 1, 2008 · 18 Comments  

It’s only to be expected. Since body piercing became popular through a counter culture group, there are a lot of myths and half-truths floating around out there about it. Will your face be paralyzed if your eyebrow is pierced incorrectly? Can a navel piercing damage your uterus? Will a nipple piercing make it impossible for you to nurse your baby? What’s true, and what’s just a myth?

Think again. A survey by Body Art magazine about body piercing found that 79% of those responding were over the age of 29 and 58% were married or in long term relationships. Less than half consider themselves adventurous, and less than 20% were involved in fetish lifestyles.

Body piercing has been practiced throughout the ages. In fact, the oldest mummified body in the world, found in a glacier in Austria, has pierced earlobes. Women in the 1890s pierced their nipples, and ear and nose piercing has been practiced in nearly every culture throughout the world.

No, no and no! In fact, in many states in the U.S., it’s illegal to use a piercing gun on any part of the body other than the earlobe. Piercing guns use a high degree of force to push a blunt rod through the skin, which can lead to bruising, tissue damage and difficult healing. All piercing should be done with a new, sterile, hollow needle by a professional piercer.

One of the most common questions asked of people with piercings is ‘didn’t that HURT?’. Pain is a relative thing, of course, but most people find that the pain is no worse than a sharp, hard pinch that lasts for just a few seconds.

Ouch! Piercing involves creating an open wound in the skin, which is an invitation to infection and blood borne diseases. A professional piercing studio has the equipment and facilities to perform the piercing under completely sterile conditions to virtually eliminate the danger of contracting diseases like hepatitis C and B, tuberculosis and HIV. Always have any body piercing done at a reputable, clean piercing studio by a professional.

Not true. Your internal organs are well protected by a layer of abdominal muscle. When your navel is pierced, the piercing artist will use forceps or a clamp to be sure that only the skin is pierced, not the underlying muscle or other tissue. If the navel ridge isn’t prominent enough, most professionals will refuse to do the piercing.

An eyebrow piercing is made through the skin over the brow ridge. It should never be deep enough to disturb any nerves.

Actually, alcohol can increase the chances of excessive bleeding when you get pierced, and most professionals won’t consider doing a piercing on a person who is under the influence.

Healing depends on the person, but in general, if you decide that you don’t want to sport body jewelry any longer all you have to do is take out the jewelry. Even holes that have been healed for years will often close up on their own.

Your tongue does contain some major veins, and there may be a lot of bleeding with a tongue piercing, but firm pressure should bring it under control within 5 to 10 minutes. If you take blood thinners, anti-coagulant medication or have a condition like hemophilia, you should think very seriously before being pierced.

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