Before You Get Pierced: Choosing a Piercer: At the Mall, or the Professional Piercer?
Are you thinking about getting a new piercing? Is it an itch you’ve been wanting to scratch? Well, before you go ahead and get that new hole with a pretty new piece of jewelry, make sure you know entirely what you are up for! Yes, the mall kiosk piercer may be much cheaper than the professional piercer, but you will seriously be paying for what you get.
Millions of people all over the world have piercings. Wild or tame, piercings are beautiful and such an amazing way to enhance your individual style. Many people view piercings as a fun way to mark a rite of passage, or an accomplishment. Overcoming a feat, graduating college, turning 21, are all great reasons to get a body piercing. The most important factor to keep in mind, however, is to do your research prior. It can seem fun to randomly get something pierced, but if you are a novice, please don’t do anything too impulsively!
Finding a qualified, trustworthy, professional piercer is of utmost importance. The last thing you want to do, in all honesty, is to get pierced by some random person at a kiosk in the mall, with a gun. Doesn’t sound too legit in words either, does it? Hmmm, a guy in the mall, with a gun vs. a professional who has undergone intense training for several years before they can be trusted with clientele.
Professional piercers have actually been working to have piercing guns outlawed for all the traumas they cause. In addition to the tissue trauma, there is also an enormous debate about the sterility of piercing guns, as well as the measures taken to ensure they are. One thing for sure, within these arguments, is that there is no actual proof on whether or not these guns can be sterilized. Some claim they do not even touch the skin, however, the hands of the person who is using the gun do touch the skin. In most cases, these people are not professionals, and much care has not been taken to ensure that they understand the likelihood of blood-borne pathogens, as well as cross-contamination.
The needles used by professional body piercers are extremely sharp, and hollow. Rather than impact the skin with the blunt force of a dull stud, they literally pierce the skin and gently create the hole. This safely makes room for the jewelry to be put into place. The process can be painless for many areas of the body, because it happens so quickly and smoothly.
Professional piercers, on the other hand, have. Part of their extensive training involves in depth training about the body. How the body responds to piercings, and how the circulatory system reacts to piercings are extremely critical for the professional piercer to understand. Piercers are also taught in enormous detail about the locations of specific vital nerves, so that when piercing, they know how to avoid them. Hitting these nerves can create severe pain, discomfort, and trauma to the customer, and as a professional, its best to know how to avoid such a situation.
Most importantly, to a professional, it is an extremely essential part of the job to have an understanding of sterilization and avoiding cross contamination. If an instrument cannot be sterilized by autoclave, it is discarded immediately upon use. In the best studios, entire work stations are disinfected after every piercing. As piercings can be breeding grounds for bacteria and infections, it is the goal of any reputable piercer to take the precautions of their clients seriously.
Another difference between the professional and the kiosk, is the question of the jewelry quality. A professional piercer will fit your piercing with a very durable, sterile, high quality piece of jewelry, usually in a high grade, nickel-free material, such as 316L surgical steel, titanium, or 14K gold. These are the scenarios most likely to ensure a safe, healthy healing process, as well as one that is free of infection as well as allergic reactions.
So, this concludes our advice for choosing a piercer. Hopefully, after reading this you will be more informed, and feeling confident on choosing the right person to mark your rite of passage. May your piercing go smoothly, be free of infection, and bring you lots of joy!