Illustrated Guide to Navel Piercings
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A navel, or belly button piercing, passes through the rim of the navel. Although typically done just above the navel on the top ridge, belly button piercings can go anywhere around the outside of the navel wherever there is a fold or "lip". Navel piercings are fairly common, particularly among women, and almost every body type can be pierced in this location. The only exception is if the line your torso creates when you bend over runs directly through the belly button rather than up around the ribs. If this is the case, healing will be extremely difficult due to constant pressure and irritation and should probably be avoided. Traditionally, navel piercing are not the easiest to heal. I personally have had my belly button pierced twice; the first time, while in college, I ended up having to remove the ring due to an infection that occurred when I got really sick and my immune system decided to stop functioning properly. I later got it re-pierced. Out of all my piercings, however, I will say that the belly button is the one that gives me the most grief., frequently getting snagged on blankets and becoming irritated every time I am hit with a cold.
Navel piercings are usually done with a curved barbell and can take anywhere from 4 to 12 months to heal completely. Once healed, standard navel piercings can be changed out and replaced with captive bead rings or J-bars (which is a curved barbell in the shape of a J.) Navel piercings seem to be the body modification of choice among teenage girls, but it is important to keep in mind that wearing tight clothing can irritate the wound and prevent healing from occurring.
Navel jewelry comes in all shapes and sizes and can be purchased practically anywhere--up the mall, at Hot Topic, even down the shore. Many belly button rings include attachments such as butterflies, hearts or stars that adorn the jewelry by dangling down off the ring.
If you have an outie belly button, don't fret: it can still be pierced. When an outie is pierced it is called a true navel piercing. Rather than passing through the skin just above the opening, a true navel piercing goes through the belly button itself.
An inverse, or lower, navel piercing is a vertically placed piercing located on the bottom ridge of the navel.
A double navel is a combination piercing that involves a standard belly button ring paired with an inverse.
A deep navel is a similar to a standard navel piercing except that it passes through a much larger area of skin. Regular barbells will not usually fit in deep navel piercings.
A horizontal navel piercing is a surface piercing that passes horizontally above the ridge of the navel, rather than going through it. Because it is a surface piercing, it is especially prone to rejection. Rejection happens when the body does not take to the foreign matter that has been inserted. Instead of healing around it, the body attempts to push the jewelry out. Poor health can also contribute to rejection.
Another form of a horizontal is the double horizontal, two separate piercings on either side of the navel that are then joined with one long barbell.
Any stomach that contains one or more navel piercings may sometimes be called a multi-navel, or navel project. This can consist of any pattern of navel piercing and an array of body jewelry.
Belly buttons, just like ears, tongues and noses, can be stretched (also called gauging.) This is done by gradually stretching the piercing over time, coaxing it to hold thicker and thicker jewelry until you have achieved the desired size.
MORE NAVEL PIERCINGS
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Comments
Only odd people get piercings like that.
Wow. Very interesting, cool hub. There's a lot more variation with this than I had realized!
I like your hub, I Love you
Dude "true navel piercings" are unsafe to get done.
You know I just can not see the attraction..
omg! this hub is really great..
i have my belly button pireced and its the best thing i have ever done befor my 17th birthday...
I have my belly button pierced, but no one can see it unless I lay on my back! Nice Hub by the way.
THIS HUB WAS GREAT!! It answered my biggest question
Hey..I recently got my belly pierced abought 4 weeks ago..and im just wondering how long the oringanl belly bar has to be in before i can change it to a different one..please reply as im going on holidays in 6 days and im hoping to get a new belly bar over there
:)
hiya i have had my belly button pierced for over a year now and the bottom hole has a red circle on it does this mean its infected please reply xx
I've had my belly button pierced for 6 years now. Within the first year or so it got infected. Since then, the skin around my belly button would dry up and flake off. This caused the outer part of the skin to become really thin. So thin that just yesterday the skin tore and my belly button ring fell out and now I'm left with little nubs of skin!! It doesnt hurt one bit, but it looks hideous!! Do you think the little nubs of skin will go away or do you think i'll have to get them surgically removed before I get it re-pierced?
i had my belly pierce for 2 times ,the lady who pierce for me she said it ok nothing worng with my belly ,it will be ok! a week later my belly gone black and it look like old grandny skin. i dont know what to do every night i just cry and cry. i don't know what to do anymore. someone can tell me?
whats a hub??
My friend had her belly button reject her piercing twice, she ended up with two little tenticles and it was freaky looking. She put neosporin on it all the time and eventually they just went away, there is still a scar but its flat now. Good luck!
Jessy: Visit your GP straight away, you either have an infection, or some idiot has put the wrong type of jewelry in you. It is also possible that you're allergic to your jewelry...it's impossible to tell without seeing it, but get yourself to your doctor as soon as possible.
FreakGirl X
hi
im a swimmer
if i get my bellybutton pierced how long until i can swim again. could it seriously be a year?????
anyone may answer!
im considering piercing my belly button for christmas. how many months do u think it will take til i can go into water and stuff because i dont want to not be able to in the summer. also, where are good places to get ur bellybutton done?
hey! can you show me a navel stabbed by a sword? i've stabbed my compititor by stabbing him into his deep navel.
hi
i had my belly button peirced when i was 10 and it didnt hurt so i f unsure about having it done go ahead its fine.
I WANT 1
DID YOUR MOM GET MAD AND YOUR DAD 2
Okay so I've gone to a bunch of tatoos places, and they said I can't pierce the top of my bellybutton, and if I pierce my bottom, I won't be able to wear belling rings with ike flowers or dangles on them will I?
hey there i had my belly pierced for my 16th birthday which was in spetmeber its no janruary following year and my belly bar has falen out the skin become so thin that it just fel out i was told to take my belly bar out and let it heal and tenre pierce it again i was just wanting to no how long it will take before it completley heals to get it repeirced
I have the same problem. I've had my done for about a year and it never properly healed was awlays dry and sore and red, and then latelty the skin was just getting thinner and thinner then tonight it just fell out, and left me with 2 dangly bits, which i find hideous, So i am hoping to be able to get the bottom done. Would this be wise though? I dont know :S
i got my belly button pierced 2 days ago. iv been cleaning it well but i keep catching it nd it reli hurts. how long does it stay sensative for n how long before u can change it?
bethany-leigh, If your belly button is getting caught on things then you can try putting a bandage over when you're not showing it off in a belly shirt. use a thin gauze and not a rubbery band aid so you can keep from smothering it. It might be tender for a few more days, and i would most definitely wait at least two weeks before you change it. but if you wear gloves or sanitize you hands well then you could probably change the balls. That's what i did.
Ive had my belly pierced for about two and a half years now and its still pretty and in tact. WOOT!
I have just recently gotten my belly button pierced. But ever since it's been it, it's be red, and flaking off my skin. Is that a problem, or is that just something you go through in the first few weeks?
I'm sorry if this comes out dumb, but, I am 13, and i am getting my belly button pierced, probably by myself. I don't know.
And u know i'm not afraid of needles. I'm good with needles too, but i want to do it by myself.
What ointment should i use? Can i use neosporin? and some schools do not allow you to have your belly piercing in P.E.? They either say you need a plaster or something like that.
what is a plaster please tell me somoene,please i might do this tonight.
Ok, all of you dummies that can't figure out why the skin has gotten thin and your harware fell out: It's because you are wearing big, heavy, obnoxious barbells. If you hang 8 ounces of metal off of a cm of skin, what do you think its going to do? So, put away your dangling flowers, stars, whatever and just wear a normal barbell.
i had my navel pierced 3 wks ago an it didnt hurt 1 bit it was only red for the first couple days right now it just a little tender cant wait 2 change the ring
.dose that hurt
DON'T EVER PEIRCE YOUR BELLY BUTTON YOURSELF!!!!
it can turn out horribly and hurt like crap because of all of the nerves that are above your belly button. just wait to get it peirced i peirced my own about six months ago, i was pushing the needle through for hours and then i had to STRETCH it myself. it was one of the most painful things i've ever gone through. its perfectly fine now but don't do it yourself i've heard that people die from that.
Just wanted to let you guys know, the most important thing you can do with a navel piercing is to ask a professional. They know what they are doing! You can really really hurt yourselves and young ladies be patient about changing the rings. You need to keep in in for at least 4months before you change it. When the skin is getting thinner and your ring falls out, your piercing is getting whats called rejected. It is the body's natural way of fighting off harmful things. (it doesn't know you put it there on purpose and treats it as a puncture wound with a forien object trapped in it) Make sure you are not allergic to the jewlery and do NOT use any kind of cream like bactine or neo wash it one time a day. Keep it dry use a salt scrub once or twice a day...leave it alone and let your body heal it..take care of your self sleep well eat well try taking a multi vitamin....take care ladies and good luck!
Okay, honestly, the depth of your piercing makes a huge difference. I've had mine done for months now, and it's a thinner surface, but if you take care of them they'll be fine. Don't wear big heavy rings, don't TOUCH IT, don't change it all the time, just wait and ignore it (but still clean it!) and then once it appears healed, THEN start showing it off.
Mine personally looks shallow but it's still not rejecting cuz I take care of it.
It's not rocket science.
I "m fourteen and me and my friend are getting ours done in a couple weeks. but we wanted to do it right before spring break so we could walk around on the beech and stuff with it in. is that a good idea? and will it look weird to get it pierced on the bottom, cause most people get it done on the top. and DOES IT HURTTTTT?!
Actually, that's hurt, but if you really like piercing, do it once for all your live. Because that's not good for your health, i recommended to fix your health periodic. This is just my best suggest for you to keep your live healthy and happiness
I had mine done about 6 weeks ago. I've had a few problems.. You can over wash it, and it will dry out if you do that. So only wash it in the morning and at night. And don't be afraid to ask a professional, they wont turn you away. I've gone to the same tattoo parlor twice now to ask about it to see if everything is fine. That guy has helped me alot both times, so if you have any questions, no matter how simple they are, just call or stop in to a local tattoo place.
ew............
i wanna get my belly buttom pierced this week and my dr. recommended that i get a hepatitis shot! so after that shot im gna wait a couple of days and then get it done! i play basketball year round..will that affect my belly buttom ring? because i dnt want it to be uncomfortable after it heals!
i did it...yay!!!
ive had my bellybutton pierced for over 10 years now. with a notmal barbell and balls it never gets snagged or caught. the only time i had an issue was when the bottom was a 3 piece lizard. it got caught alot. till the color wore off and the lizard broke lol. if it ever starts to turn pink/red lay on your back for 15 min with a glass of salt water upside down over the piercing. i cant speak about how chlorine would effect it but if you wanna swim before its healed swim in the ocean it accualy helps it heal
i GOT MA NAVEL PIERCED 3 TIMES!! The reason being that..i am allergic to surgical steel....so the 3rd time i used taitanium ring and its perfect!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i have 19 piercings on my body right now however......... only 3 of them have been done professionaly. i have been doing all of my piercings myself simply with a needle...... no infections, problems.... nothing. ive done my belly, chest, 11 in my ears, nipples,and one other :).... i had my first set of earings done profesionaly as a kid and my tounge done last year.
(Mandyyy)...... Answer to your question. no getting the bottom of your belly actually hurts less than the top. i pierced the bottom of mine because its different. its good to be different hun. good luck 2 yourself and your friend :)
Heyy im 13 and i really want mine done i want my done but i dont know if my mam will let me can you help me i want my mam to say yes please please help me!! and yes im english!! =]
I've had to get both my top and bottom belly button piercings redone (stink piercers doing them crooked etc) twice but I have to say that I love my bottom one the best. I think it's way more flattering and sits way better than the top one. It's also less common which is an attractive aspect.
ok, for what I've read here most of you are quite stupid...
1. YOU SHOULD NOT PIERCE IT YOURSELF!! And definately not w/ a safetypin. If you want to fuck your body up, go ahead, its not my problem when it gets infected.
2. If your ring 'suddenly' falls out it means its rejected. You should know those sorts of things when you're getting a piercing. If it gets infected you should NOT take it out...
3. t's not recommended to swim w/ your piercing till its fully healed, that could be up to a year. It's also not smart to 'tape' your piercing waterproof since it needs air...
4. If mommy said no cuz youre not even 14 then no is no. First learn how to take care of a piercing, show some maturity, look up what could go wrong and what should be normal after pierced etc. Its not just getting a needle through and you got some pretty jewlery hanging on your tummy ¬¬
5. Any questions about your shit, crying doesnt make it go away, just go and see a/your piercer. If it gets infected or rejected you could end up w/ some nasty scarring.
Think, read, and look up before you poke a hole -,-
To Jay 1 yes some of the people on here should go and resurch it and to if you were aiming the "if your not 14" bit at me then i live in england and i can get it done and my mammy said i can get it done.
Also to the people who are putting the same questions that people have already asked and have been answed learn to read and look up everything that could go wrong. Also dont ware big jellwery your body will reject it !!! thats all i got to say!
hey im ten years old and my mom SUGESTED! that i poke holes in my navel. but im worried abot flaking bledening and other crap. please help!!!!!!!!!!!!
I got my navel pierced in april ,& it got infected ,which many do when not taken care of properly ,I will admit i didnt good care of mine ,I just figured if i left it alone it will heal ,but you must clean it once or twice a day ,no more no less .cleaning it more tends to make the skin dry ,cleaning it less, well it will more then likely get infected .I waited three months before changing mine ,but i only changed it because it was healed ,it takes differnet amounts of time for different people .I just suggest you keep it in untill the redness & irratation goes away ,& what im going to do is keep simple bars & such in for about a year .& i also dont advise you to get it done right before the summer ,cause you never know how infected it might get .which is why i got it done months before .good luck to all !
I've had mine done for two years and it's never been infected, If you clean it twice a day and don't continuously touch or play with it while it's healing it shouldn't get infected. And continue to clean it. Also tight clothing isn't good for it, it can irritate it and may lead to infection. My sister has had to get it done twice,both times her body jected it. The skin started pealing where the bar was under the skin. And it's not because your not taking care of it, it's just because your body is pushing it out like it would a splinter. And getting it doesn't really hurt but it's different for everyone so you won't really know until you do it. And my advice is to definitely have a professional do it, that way everythings sterile! And it will have a less chance of infection and they actually know what their doing. And I did a bunch of research before i got mine done but your not supposed to tan, or swim for 2 weeks after you get it done. I learned that from my piercer. And also you shouldnt change it for a couple months, i waited three. And now whenever i change it i spray a little Bactine* on it and move the bar up and down bc i used to share my belly rings with my sister.
*Bactine is what my piercer recommended to spray on it. It's a pain-free numbing/cleansing spray and it can be found at most drug stores, i got mine at Walmart.
Hope this helped, good luck :)
A lot if not all of your picture are stolen from BME. I sincerely hope you got their permission to use them.
I got my Belly done two days ago, played netball the next day and its fine!! It looks awesome and i cant wait for it to heal a bit more so i can get the bottom done. Ever since i got my nipple done 3 weeks ago ive been adicted to piercings, they rock!! My parents dont know about any of them. The main thing is just to keep them clean, and get the checked by professionals regulary. As long as you keep them clean, you'll be all good.
youu can go swimming straigh after well... its best to wait a few days.
you cannot swim right afterwards!
well, ive had tons of experience with navel piercings, i've had it done 5 times!
Thie first, I was only 15 and my parents did not know, however, it WAS done professionally, but i would like to say, piercings as a minor in that area may not heal well or may reject because your body is not fully grown! Alot of ppl suggest waiting till your 17 or older, cause you'll be grown. but there is an alternative if you are TOO YOUNG FOR A PIERCING: go to bodysparkle.com and they have "fake belly rings" kinda like clip ons, and they have dandly ones and sparkly ones and they only cost 7 bucks! you can get it custom for you body!
also, a good way of cleaning is H2Ocean spray $10.00 has 60 natural elemnts to help heal
rejection, mine has reject 4 times, the first time was because of care, i was told to was with peroxide NOT GOOD..but all times were with a surgical steel 14ga so this time I tried a titanium wich contains NO NICKEL, just in case i was sensitive to the other metal, and I also upped the guage to a 12g. There has been a theory such as its easier for your body to push out somthing smaller, and i can always go back to a 14g and you will not feel a size difference. so if your rejecting up ur gauge clean it use anodized titanium...to see what happens
ewww. those outty piercings are disgusting.
W.O.W iM GLAD i CAME TO THiS SiTE CAUSE i MiTE GET MiNE DONE FOR MY 15TH BiRTHDAY NEXT MONTH AND I GOT SOME SCARES AND iNSPiRATiONS SO THANX EVERYONE LOL XSPECIALLY JAY ♥ LO
ok, my belly ring is ssoooo awsome. i got it done for my14th Bday. oh and MY DAD STILL DIDN'T FIND OUT THAT I GOT IT PIERCED!!!!!!hehehe. but sooner or later he will find out........
eso es una pura loke
I got my belly button pierced about 2 years ago when i was fourteen. I was really scared when the piercer was setting up the supplies. When it was time i felt like i was gonna throw up. I closed my eyes then in 1,2,3 it was done. It felt weird but painless. I cleaned it 2 times a day for like 2 weeks then i stopped cause it looked like it healed then a month later i changed it. Soon after it got infected because i wasent cleaning it and i changed it too soon. I started cleaning it again for about a few more months after and it healed beautifully. Now is looks awesome and i change the bar all the time =]
i got mine done when i was eleven.many people think its too young but i loved it and i still have it done now, and im 14i never cleaned it at first, and it got infected so i had it done again when i was 12,but now i clean it all the time- and its lovely! i love showing it off
I had my belly button pierced about 10 months ago now, and it appears to have healed, should i still be cleaning it?? I used surgical spirit to clean it before but it took the shine off my belly bar as it is very strong so if you want to keep the shine on your belly bar i would advise you used boiling, salty water. also, using warm water is bad, it might as well be cold, always use boiling water.
I got my belly button pierced in April 2007. I was 14 I told my mom that I wanted one. Her immediate answer was no. I got on the computer, and did research to persuade her. If youre trying to convince your parent to let you get it pierced, you should research:
-common problems/dangers
-how to take care of it/aftercare
-healing time & how to speed the process
-local piercing parlors
Once you do that, you should call the piercing places you found and ask the following questions:
-How much will it cost?
-Does that include the body jewelery?
-Do you take credit cards?
-Do you reuse your needles? (if they say yes, DO NOT GO THERE)
-Do I have a choice to be pierced by a man or woman?
Find out the hours the piercing places are open and write them down along with the Q&As.
When I approached my mom with a notepad of Q&As, she took me WAY more seriously and said she will take me to get it done.
A few things I learned that may help you ...
--When I got it pierced, my piercer said that when I shower, I should clean it with antibacterial hand soap. Rinse it well so no soap is left behind because that can irritate the piercing.
--My piercer also recommended Bactine. I used Bactine whenever I touched the ring, if it hurt, and once in the morning. It's a spray that is pain-free (as mentioned in an earlier post). It didnt dry my skin out, but I didnt O.D. with it.
--The sun is good for your new piercing!! The sun makes you produce more of the vitamin (I think its vitamin K or D)that helps your body absorb calcium. Calcium is great for your immune system, and if you have a strong immune system, your piercing is less likely to get infected.
--My belly started to have pus come out..not a lot, just a small amount that would crust around the balls of the ring. Pus is your body's way of cleaning it so it doesnt always indicate an infection. Cleaning it more thoroughly can dry it out I found that tea tree oil works wonders. After I cleaned it, I would lay on my back and put the oil all around the piercing for 5 or 10 minutes. I'd slide the bar up and down to get the oil in the piercing. That REALLY speeded up the healing process.
My bellyring never really gets stuck or caught on anything. The only time it gets stuck is when I wear a really long ring that gets stuck on my belt or pants when I sit down.
So my mom took me to the Ravens Nest in Norwalk CT (GREAT PLACE WITH PROFESSIONAL PPL) she had to fill out some paperwork (because I was 14). I picked out a ring for 10 more dollars (which I realized was dumb because I picked out a $1 plastic beaded bellyring--just get the regular barbell thats included with the price). When all the paperwork was filled out, the lady was like "okay come with me."
She led me to the back room where all the piercing is done. She told me to stand up straight and she did 2 dots--where the needle would go in & come out. I layed down on a brown dentist-like chair. She got all the tools out, which looked kind of scary at the time. She clamped where she was going to pierce and asked if i was ready... when she first pushed the needle through, I felt it but it didnt hurt. I thought she didnt pierce it all the way because I was expecting a pop sound, or pain or SOMETHING. I looked down and saw a needle going right through the skin. She put the ring on the end of the needle and as she pulled the needle out she pushed the ring in. I didnt feel a thing and it looks GREAT.
AFTER I got it pierced, I found that i could still lay on my stomach, but it felt weird. It didnt hurt, it just felt like it wasnt supposed to be there, but thats the ONLY time I ever felt it..it didnt hurt, I just FELT it. After about 2 or 3 months, I no longer felt it when I layed down.
I have had my navel pierced for 2 and a half years and I've never had a problem. I love it and I'm going to get it pierced again (on the bottom this time) soon.
I hope my story helps at least 1 person!
Piercing Outies is Grooossss! Sorry to say. I guess maybe that is all you outies could do...
it looks so kool but does it hurt?jajaja
it looks so kool but does it hurt?jajaja
Why does it take so long to heal? I'm getting the navel project this week is it going to hurt like really bad?
Whitney05 says:
2 years ago
I need my belly button piercings repierced. Neither the top and bottom piercing took up enough skin. Although, their healed, I just don't like it. I just don't want to take them out long enough to let them heal for repiercing.