I received this message from a concerned piercee:
Hi, I would like your help and advice on a recent spontaneous piercing.
I went into a tattoo and piercing shop yesterday at niagra falls, inside the tourism area and got the piercing done to my belly button. However, the girl did it wrong the first time (it was not straight), so she pierced the same ring again a second time. I do not remember her sterilizing my belly or ring. She only sterilized the ring by dipping it into dollarama hand sanitizer gel the first time. She did not give me any cleansers or solutions, and I was not asked to sign a consent form or anything like that.
Today my piercing area is a bit red and sore, it hurts when I bend over or even sit down on a bus or chair. I am a fitness instructor and my movements are very limited at the moment I can not exercise. I am wondering if this is a sign of infecton? I have applied water and sea salt mix with a Q tip, and coconut oil and tamanu oil to reduce the redness, and to help heal any possible scarring... is that ok? I am now worried about the two piercings, will the first one create a scar even though the barbal was taken out immediately after? Any information you have is greatly appreciated.
My reply: