Infected Piercings

My cousin had planned to get her septum and belly button pierced, and I thought, "This summer, I should do something unique too." With that in mind, I entered the tattoo parlor fully intending to get my septum pierced as well. We were thrilled because there was a special deal—$7.00 per piercing. Eagerly, my cousin took the initiative and went ahead with her piercings. As she underwent the process, I felt a tightening in my stomach. She emitted little grunts and a subtle leg wiggle, indicating her pain. There was some blood, followed by a sigh of relief—her septum was pierced, and she had smoothly surpassed the belly button piercing.

Having witnessed that somewhat nightmarish scene, I began to reassess my choices. I questioned myself, "Was there a genuine reason for enduring such pain? Just to appear cool?" Absolutely not. "You know what, I'll pierce my cartilage instead," I declared abruptly, catching the attention of the tattoo artist. I was extremely anxious, having never experienced anything like this before.

I sat down in the chair with my heart beating and creating all types of symphonies. I held my breath a couple of times because the anticipation was taking too long. While he sanitized my ears reality was setting in. The cold alcohol swabs created an icing feeling that coexisted with the numbness around my body. Honestly, I should have passed out because needles are not my thing. I had opted to get three piercings on the left ear, and then get two on my right ear. For some reason, I thought he was going to use an ear-piercing gun like the ones at Claire’s, but nope he came balancing a thin sharp needle between his fingers.

He looked like he had no time to waste, so I expeditiously stopped scrimmaging in the seat and I allowed him to grip my ear firmly. “Pop” my cartilage had been destroyed. It felt similar to the sensation of crunching down on chicken cartilage. I felt it crack, I had to embrace that crunchy feeling four more times. Thankfully he was nimble. It stung, I composed myself trying not to cry out loud, only on the inside. I don't care what anyone says pain is pain and I hate tolerating it in any form. Regardless of the pain, my inimitableness set in. It was the best decision I had ever made. At that moment, it looked so copacetic and became my identity for most of high school and half of college.

Because I did this in high school, I hadn't gotten permission from my mother, and I was hiding the piercings with my hair. Despite getting disinfectant spray so I wouldn’t get an infection, my ears became infected! I suppose my hair was constantly rubbing against the piercings around the clock. I gave the new gems no time to breathe under my hair. I began developing keloids and when they didn't heal after a month I panicked because I was using a donut pillow to sleep while disinfecting them daily. I could not lay on either side of my face and sleeping with my head squished between a hole was not an option for much longer, not to mention throughout the summer I kept traveling.

When I noticed the keloids were gaining more mass, I had to go to my mother. “You mean you got your ears pierced, and you didn't tell anybody,” my African mother cautioned me. “You mean she has time to yell at me while I am in pain,” I thought. Luckily for me, my uncle a doctor was around, and he gave me some ointment that obliterated the keloids and infection.

My uncle, a doctor, proceeded to tell me how I would have gotten a brain infection and could have possibly died. "Huh, very dramatic. Well, at least my ears look good," I thought to myself. My mother’s mission was to pry my newfound accessories off my ears. I convinced her that if I took them off, they would get more infected. I was telling the truth.

That's how I was able to rock my cartilage piercings for literally all of high school and half of college. She made me take them off in 2019 though; I still regret letting her. “You mean you still have this thing in your ear?” she questioned. “Yes, girl, why would I take them off,” I pondered to myself. After all the pain I went through, why would I take them off? These piercings opened doors for me that you know nothing about. I'm honestly contemplating getting them done again, but I don't want to go through that type of pain, and I am not as daring as I was a couple of years ago. I got away with that at such a young age in an African household. Nobody is cooler than me.

Pearl

Proverbs 12:15

"The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.“