Piercing Guns and Needles

[Oo_Psychadelica_oO]

I'm not sure if anyone's already written a topic about this... Also sorry for the typo in the title. x3 I edited it, but I still see it spelled 'peircing' in the forums.
_

If you ask a person where they got their ears pierced, it's most likely they'll tell you it was at a place in the mall such as Claires. And when you ask them what they had their ears pierced with...a majority will say "piercing gun."

What is the piercing gun?

It is a device made from plastic and metals similar to a nail gun that uses force to push an earring stud into the ear. The stud is placed into the "earring adapter", then the "tension regulator" is pulled back and cocked just like a gun. The person piercing will take aim, pull the trigger, and POW! The stud, which is usually pretty dull, will pierce the ear.

Piercing guns should -NEVER- be used to pierce other body parts such as nipples, navel, ect...
Other body piercings = NEEDLE

Ear piercing guns -may- be fast and 'easy' and not hurt that much...but there's so many risks...

1) Guns cause blunt force trauma. The gun forces a blunt stud through the skin, causing it to literally rip in order to make room for the jewelry. Then, it pinches the back of the jewelry in place snugly against the skin, allowing no way for the new wound to breathe and heal properly. The customer is then told to turn the jewelry a couple times a day, which only further pushes growing bacteria into the wound, causing infection. Sometimes the tissue can be so damaged that is won't heal at all.

2) Jewelry. The ear studs aren't fit for healing lobes and cartilage. They are short, tight, and don't allow enough room for the swelled lobe to breath, and have grooves in the studs that irritate the tissue and prologue healing. Also, studs can't be cleaned as thoroughly as hoops. Some people change their jewelry because of this, but it just irritates the tissue more and makes healing longer.

3) Crookeeeed. Some of those people at the mall were only trained for 2 hours on how to use a gun...from a booklet or tape. So it isn't uncommon for them to make the piercing a bit crooked.

4) Sanitation. An autoclave is what professional piercers use to properly sterilize their equipment, but because the gun is made of plastic, it cannot be autoclaved. When people are pierced, there is sometimes a tiny spray of blood released into the air due to the tissue being ripped. Antiseptic wipes don't kill germs instantly and can't kill blood borne pathogens like Hepatitis or HIV. The only reason why sales people spend so much time wiping is to reassure the customers things are 'fine'.

True, guns aren't that painful and lots of people haven't really had any problems, but doctors will agree that needles are still so much better.

A professional body piercer goes through years of training and is familiar with the human anatomy and the circulatory system, so they know how to avoid hitting nerves and causing severe pain to their customers. They also learn to properly sterilize their equipment. If you ever go to a studio and they're gonna use a gun on you...yeah that's not a good place to get pierced, because a real piercer hates piercing guns.

People may think needles are more painful, but having your piercing done with a needle is much safer and less painful because there's no blunt force trauma. The needle is extremely sharp and carefully penetrates your skin, safely -pushing- the tissue aside so the jewelry can fit. It's a very quick process and usually doesn't hurt.

The professional piercer will also give you proper jewelry for the healing made from high-grade material, not cheap metals.

The only downside is that the prices cost more than mall stores, but at least you get good service and non-traumatized ears.
_____

When you get a new body piercing, the piercer will give you instructions and if you have any questions, you can always call them.

A new piercing needs love and care. If you slack off on the aftercare or use harmful chemicals, then the healing will only prologue.

Some people put neosporin or hydrogen peroxide/rubbing alcohol on their new piercings...but that is not good.

Unacceptable Healing Aids

Neosporin and other ointments don't allow the wound to breathe, they only clog pores and/or kill good cells trying to heal the piercing. It slows the healing instead of speeding it up

Hydrogen peroxide and rubbing alcohol kills bacteria, but it also kills the white blood cells attempting to heal your piercing. It can dry out the piercing, causing irritation and lengthen overall healing time.

Ear care solutions that are provided by jewelry boutiques and department store piercers usually contain alcohol, hydrogen peroxide and other harmful chemicals that only aggravate a new piercing.

Acceptable Healing Aids

Tea tree oil is a soothing liquid that cools and refreshes an irritated piercing. Use only high quality tea tree oil that has been diluted with distilled water.

Emu Oil is universal healing product that has been discovered to also produce exceptional results when healing a piercing.

H2Ocean , although some would call it "glorified saline solution," most do report excellent healing results with this product.

Saline Solution is less expensive and more readily available than most other products, saline solution is very effective in soothing and healing a new piercing. It's also an acceptable substitute for sea salt soaks.

It's not good to rotate the piercing. Some say it's good and will keep the piercing from 'healing and being stuck' but that's not true. It only pushes the crusties and dirt in your piercing. There's no such thing as a piercing healing and getting 'stuck', also.

If you're going to dry your new piercing, be sure the towel/cloth is clean and hasn't been used by anyone else.

What You May Need To Clean
* Anti-Bacterial or Antimicrobial Liquid Soap/Wash (Like Provon or Satin)
* Cotton Balls
* Cotton-tipped Swabs
* Paper towel or newly cleaned washcloth


Cleaning Your Piercing:
1. First, wash your hands thoroughly. Never touch your piercing or jewelry with dirty hands.
2. Saturate a cotton ball with warm water, and gently wipe away any "crusties" that have gathered around the piercing site. Throw the cotton ball away.
3. Apply a generous amount of liquid soap to your fingertip, and apply to the piercing site and jewelry. Make sure you get the soap everywhere, but rotating the jewelry is not necessary as long as you work the soap around the piercing and jewelry completely.
4. Rinse the piercing and jewelry several times with warm water, ensuring that all soap has been removed.
5. Dry your piercing with a clean paper towel and then dispose of it.

[Oo_Psychadelica_oO]

My thoughts and experiences.

I had my lobes pierced with a gun...and it healed pretty good.

Some mall stores have disposable guns, too, I hear. But...when it comes to cartilage...NEVER use a gun, you hear me?

A few friends who had their cartilage pierced at a mall place ended up having a bubble in the back of their ear that contained their shattered ear cartilage. I think it's permanent and the only way to be rid of it is with surgery.

>.o

[Miranda_]

I've had my lobes done with a piercing gun; but my upper ear piercings were all done with a needle. A gun is fine when it's just lobes, but anything else must be done with a needle gotten out of a fresh packet.

[alabamablonde13]

I think my friend git her belly button done with a piercing gun but it's just fine. I've never heard of anyone getting their belly button done and not using a gun...

[Oo_Psychadelica_oO]

Yes, I agree. The basic lobe piercings are fine 'cause they're soft anyways, but anything other than that...yay needle x3

Originally Posted by alabamablonde13

I think my friend git her belly button done with a piercing gun but it's just fine. I've never heard of anyone getting their belly button done and not using a gun...

O.o; Seriously? With a gun? It's supposed to be done with a needle...Pretty much all navel piercings are done with a needle because the navel tissue's thicker. But at least she's fine...I wonder how her piercing came out if it was done with a gun...

[cricket_cutie]

I got my lobes done with a gun, and they were fine. Now granted, they did get infected like a month later. But that is because I wasn't cleaning them like I was supposed too.
Ha.

Anyway, this was pretty interesting to read. Thanks for posting it. It may change the opinions of some people that haven't been pierced yet.

[Silver_Wolf_Kitty]

I had my lobes done with a piercing gun and was perfectly fine. I cleaned regularly with the stuff I was given, made sure no crusties or dirt as getting in, and I have perfectly fine piercings in them. In fact, my skin isn't even pinned to the back or anything. It might be the fact that its been many years since I got them done, but even now I haven't ever had an infection or trouble with them.

I agree that you shouldn't get anywhere else done with a gun though. Its just not professional and as you clearly pointed out, dangerous.

[TheHayleyDoll]

I got my nose stud done with a gun. I'm still alive. XD

And I saw the strangest thing today. A guy on the bus I take (22) had his lobes pierced SO big (her had this huge whole in his ear with a metal plate thing around it - so you could see through it) it was big enough to fit a quarter inside. On BOTH ears. Now that would be painful. His lobes were stretched downwars so much with the pressure.

Here's a picture of what it looked like. This isn't him, but someone else. Image of Vertical Lobe RIP (erster Versuch!) - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

How would that even be done?

[Silver_Wolf_Kitty]

I haven't done it, but I think I have the basic gist. There are different sizes of those "tubes" and over time you gradually up them until your ear lobe has been shaped to your liking. I don't know why people do it really.

[TheHayleyDoll]

Neither do I. It's what I thought, then. Sorta like in some cultures where they like women with long necks and they have rings gradually added all through a girl's life.