Many people think "It is just a little piece of jewelry getting stabbed through your skin. It does sting, but it looks cool, so it's worth it, right?" Not necessarily.

Some areas of the body are sensitive to jewelry and have an allergic reaction to the ring, or things get into the open piercing and infect it. So when you get a piercing, you should to be aware of your allergies and you have to take very good care of your piercings.

For instance, my sister once wore necklaces that weren't stainless steel, solid 14-karat gold, niobium or titanium (which is what people wear when they have allergic reactions to other metals) and she got rashes around her neck from them. So she knew that she wouldn't be able to wear cheap earrings if and when she got her ears pierced.

Another thing you must be aware of when you get a piercing is maybe, someday, you won't want that piercing anymore, so you'll have to let it grow over. However, it may take a while. Your navel can take up to two years to fully heal, and may even take longer if you aren't eating healthy or if your clothing or bed sheets are dirty. Navel piercings are thought to get infected easiest because they get caught on belts or the waist of your pants and are usually covered by a shirt. And just think if you spill something on your shirt -- it's now in your new piercing.

But all piercings can get infected, even with something as simple as not washing your hands before you touch it when it is still in the healing process.

Well, if you don't want an infection, then you should clean it as much as possible, right? Actually, professionals say that you should only clean it two times a day at most. Any more than that may affect your body's natural ability to heal itself. It also helps if the disinfectant that you use doesn't have any scents, because they often irritate people's skin as well.

Still want a piercing or two? Let me tell you about mine. My first ear piercings were done professionally and they never got infected because I cleaned them everyday for about two months.

Then I decided to do a little experiment for my second set of piercings in my ear, with parental OK, of course. I don't recommend this experiment to younger people or if the person doing the job doesn't have good hand-eye coordination. Number one, you absolutely MUST be sure to ask your parents first. In fact, if you are allowed to do this, I would suggest that you get a friend or parent/guardian to do it for you.

For those of you who have also pierced your own ears, go ahead and skip the next three paragraphs.

First, you need a needle -- not too thick, but not too thin. I used a sewing needle. Make sure that it is clean and sterilized and have another pair of sterilized earrings ready to put in the hole after.

How do you sterilize a needle or earrings? Boil 'em! Yep, that's the basic rule, from what I understand, but make sure you check with your parents. Maybe you can buy a sterilized needle if you want to be really careful. If you boil them, be sure they go somewhere really really clean to cool off before you use them for the piercing.

Then, pick the perfect spot on your ear where you want your piercing, and put the needle straight through. Try not to do it at an angle or it will be hard to get earrings through after it's healed.

Be careful you don't poke your fingers. You may want something on the other side of the ear if you pierce it quickly, like a piece of apple or potato, so that it will stab that and not your fingers.

It stings for a few seconds, but then your ear just gets really hot, so you should probably have some ice nearby. Don't take the needle out right away, because the skin will just close up again. Make sure you turn it so the skin doesn't try to heal over the needle, too.

After the right amount of time (sorry, I don't have a specific time here), take the needle out of your ear and replace it with the earring. Don't make the backing too tight, either, because your ear may swell a little and will hurt if it's too tight. When you do the other ear, make sure it looks even with the other ear.

Anyway, I had fun with my experiment, and it looks pretty cool. And just think; you would get to tell all your friends that you pierced your own ears! But I don't suggest you pierce your own ears without asking your parents first or if you don't have clean tools. This is absolutely important. And if your ears start to hurt afterward, you may have an infection, so have it checked by a doctor.

I would also recommend that if you get piercings anywhere other than the ear, get it professionally done. At least when you get it professionally done you can be sure that it won't be messed up, for those of you who are perfectionists.

Thanks for reading!
~Twigsy