Problems with a Navel Piercing

~GoldDustWoman~ · #1 09-29-2009, 07:49 AM

I got my belly button pierced 3 months ago and the other day went swimming, and now the bottom looks dried out and kind of pinkish. I went to three different places and they all said keep it clean it isn't infected and if so is only minor and should clear up. My mom suggested peroxide cause she got a bad infection in hers and it cleared up really quick. I'm in the Marines and can't go to the doctor for it, unless I absolutely need to cause i'll get in trouble for having it. It doesn't look worse but it's got like a bloody kind of tissue coming out which i looked up and it said it's normal. I don't think it's ever been healing right and i've been complaining about it, but they tell me nothing is wrong with it. I don't want to take it out if it is infected but as soon as it clears up i'm definently taking it out. Any advice.

jannieC · #2 09-29-2009, 09:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ~GoldDustWoman~

I got my belly button pierced 3 months ago and the other day went swimming, and now the bottom looks dried out and kind of pinkish. I went to three different places and they all said keep it clean it isn't infected and if so is only minor and should clear up. My mom suggested peroxide cause she got a bad infection in hers and it cleared up really quick. I'm in the Marines and can't go to the doctor for it, unless I absolutely need to cause i'll get in trouble for having it. It doesn't look worse but it's got like a bloody kind of tissue coming out which i looked up and it said it's normal. I don't think it's ever been healing right and i've been complaining about it, but they tell me nothing is wrong with it. I don't want to take it out if it is infected but as soon as it clears up i'm definently taking it out. Any advice.

I would take it out and heal it up.

Dodfather · #3 09-29-2009, 09:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ~GoldDustWoman~

I got my belly button pierced 3 months ago and the other day went swimming, and now the bottom looks dried out and kind of pinkish. I went to three different places and they all said keep it clean it isn't infected and if so is only minor and should clear up. My mom suggested peroxide cause she got a bad infection in hers and it cleared up really quick. I'm in the Marines and can't go to the doctor for it, unless I absolutely need to cause i'll get in trouble for having it. It doesn't look worse but it's got like a bloody kind of tissue coming out which i looked up and it said it's normal. I don't think it's ever been healing right and i've been complaining about it, but they tell me nothing is wrong with it. I don't want to take it out if it is infected but as soon as it clears up i'm definently taking it out. Any advice.

Whatever you do, do NOT take it out yourself. Get a doctor to do it. If the flesh is a little infected or slightly torn on the inside (unsure what you mean by bloody tissue coming out but that could be it) then removing the peircing could exacerbate this. Not to mention it will leave you with an open wound which is far more prone to further infection than the one you already have. Even when you dress it to help it heal, this can lead to problems. Only have the piercing removed by a doctor. I'm not trying to worry you unnecessarily, I'm sure it isn't as bad as this, but if you think there are ny problems at all then get someone to remove it. Don't take no for an answer.

If it is becoming inflamed and increasingly tender then there may be a slight infection inside which is working its way to the surface. On many ocassions people don't think it's infected because they don't see pus or anything, but infections often incubate under the skin before you see the evidence of them.

Also, what metal is your piercing made of? It may be that you have an allergy that is irritating the skin and causing it to be tender and, since there's something in there anyway (the piercing) it could be causing the bleeding.

One other very common problem with piercings in this area is that they can snag. It may not be the fault of the puerciig itself but you could have caught it on the bedlinen while moving in your sleep, on a t-shirt/top which dressing or just while nmoving around generally. Clothes often rub against naval piercings and cause ittitation by pulling at the skin. This can happen without you knowing it until it starts to hurt. This could have caused a tiny cut which can't heal because of the piercing that blocks it, not allowing any air to get to it.

I'm sorry if this all sounds very sinister. This kind of problem is very common and is sometimes an infection but other times something else like an irritation etc... Either way I definitely think you need to get it checked out properly by a doctor, as much as you don't want to. It may be healing properly and just be taking a long time but...

I hope this helps, take care and let us know how you get on.

GODDESS6 · #4 09-29-2009, 09:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ~GoldDustWoman~

I got my belly button pierced 3 months ago and the other day went swimming, and now the bottom looks dried out and kind of pinkish. I went to three different places and they all said keep it clean it isn't infected and if so is only minor and should clear up. My mom suggested peroxide cause she got a bad infection in hers and it cleared up really quick. I'm in the Marines and can't go to the doctor for it, unless I absolutely need to cause i'll get in trouble for having it. It doesn't look worse but it's got like a bloody kind of tissue coming out which i looked up and it said it's normal. I don't think it's ever been healing right and i've been complaining about it, but they tell me nothing is wrong with it. I don't want to take it out if it is infected but as soon as it clears up i'm definently taking it out. Any advice.

i have had mine pierced for a couple of years~ i got a real cute playboy bunny & a winged heart navel ring at spencers at the beginning of summer & snagged it on the top of my panties one day~ & omg, did it hurt~ i asked my piercer guy & he told me i could take it out for no more than a day & soak it in a hot soapy tub & slather it in triple antibiotic cream, i also soaked my belly button in epson salts & it healed right up~

they can be so painful, but as long as you keep it clean & the cream on it, especially the dry parts, it should heal right up~ good luck, they can really hurt~

i have taken mine out bymyself several times & never had any problems~

Dodfather · #5 09-29-2009, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GODDESS6

i have had mine pierced for a couple of years~ i got a real cute playboy bunny & a winged heart navel ring at spencers at the beginning of summer & snagged it on the top of my panties one day~ & omg, did it hurt~ i asked my piercer guy & he told me i could take it out for no more than a day & soak it in a hot soapy tub & slather it in triple antibiotic cream, i also soaked my belly button in epson salts & it healed right up~

they can be so painful, but as long as you keep it clean & the cream on it, especially the dry parts, it should heal right up~ good luck, they can really hurt~

i have taken mine out bymyself several times & never had any problems~

Sorry, I'm not sure I was entirely clear... if it's healing up properly then yes, it's fine to take it out yourself, but if there's any infection or it's very, very painful (basically, if you think something's not quite right) then leave it in in case there is something wrong.

~GoldDustWoman~ · #6 09-29-2009, 09:55 AM

It's painful I thought it was starting to look better, it's not like spreading or anything but i don't think that they are correct in saying just keep it clean. I think i'm going to just put peroxide on it see if it clears it up like i said my mom tore hers and had a really bad infection where it had green fluid coming out and it cleared it up, and by all rights she should have seen a doctor. I don't have any thing like that, but it is bleeding which I don't think sounds right. But on the other side, the skin around it seems very very irritated not red but a pinkish color and it looks dry. I swam two times before, and it didn't do this until now. Like I said I really cannot afford to see a doctor i'm about to get promoted and if i get caught, i'll get in a lot of trouble. But like I said i really don't think this is healing right at all.

Black_Moon · #7 09-29-2009, 10:05 AM

Belly button piercings can get a bit pink and sore. My sister has hers pierced and it started to get a scab on it, but it wasn't infected. It's just the healing process. If the pink starts spreading and it becomes painful then I'd take it out. Until then, like those people said just make sure you clean it every day (cotton buds work) and don't fiddle with it.

Dodfather · #8 09-29-2009, 01:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ~GoldDustWoman~

It's painful I thought it was starting to look better, it's not like spreading or anything but i don't think that they are correct in saying just keep it clean. I think i'm going to just put peroxide on it see if it clears it up like i said my mom tore hers and had a really bad infection where it had green fluid coming out and it cleared it up, and by all rights she should have seen a doctor. I don't have any thing like that, but it is bleeding which I don't think sounds right. But on the other side, the skin around it seems very very irritated not red but a pinkish color and it looks dry. I swam two times before, and it didn't do this until now. Like I said I really cannot afford to see a doctor i'm about to get promoted and if i get caught, i'll get in a lot of trouble. But like I said i really don't think this is healing right at all.

Sounds like you've just irritated it. Your swimming costume may have caught onit while you were swimming and pulled it slightly. It could be anything though, swimming pools are notorious! If it's bleeding and not oozing (sorry..eeww!) then yes, it soundsmore like it's irritated/cut than infected, which is MUCH easier to deal with! Just keep it clean and avoid infection and you should be ok.

~GoldDustWoman~ · #9 09-29-2009, 01:15 PM

Yeah i read that blood and tissue isn't necessarily a bad thing neither is it being pink. Like I said it is painful though, but lookwise it hasn't gotten worse. Plus i'm cleaning it constantly which can aggrivate it even more. They told me clean it like 3 times, but i'm using so much **** on it i think i'm paranoid and probably irritating it worse. They told me let it settle down and then take it out which is what i'm gonna do. I'm afraid to get caught and get NJPed i'm about to be a Cpl i've been in 3 fricking years to get busted down now would really piss me off, but hey i went and got it done can't say i didn't know! Then again keeping from getting ill is better than worrying about my rank.

LikeAWillow · #10 09-29-2009, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ~GoldDustWoman~

Yeah i read that blood and tissue isn't necessarily a bad thing neither is it being pink. Like I said it is painful though, but lookwise it hasn't gotten worse. Plus i'm cleaning it constantly which can aggrivate it even more. They told me clean it like 3 times, but i'm using so much **** on it i think i'm paranoid and probably irritating it worse. They told me let it settle down and then take it out which is what i'm gonna do. I'm afraid to get caught and get NJPed i'm about to be a Cpl i've been in 3 fricking years to get busted down now would really piss me off, but hey i went and got it done can't say i didn't know! Then again keeping from getting ill is better than worrying about my rank.

Mine's pierced, and I've been lucky enough to not have problems with it yet (knock on wood.) You said that you've had in for 3 months? Many piercing places will tell you that within 12 weeks, you're still in your navel piercing's initial healing period, and chlorine is especially irritating to your piercing at this point. I really wouldn't be too concerned with redness and marginal bleeding at this point, and I second the notion that you should NOT take this out yourself if an infection does start to show.

Good luck

kak125 · #11 09-30-2009, 11:35 AM

i would def keep it in. i know when i got mine pierced it took forever to heal, i would say at least 6 months and it kept getting infected until one day i just stopped touching it. after that i had it in for 12 years. i was so mad i got a new belly button ring a few months ago and put it in without cleaning it first so it got infected a bit so i took it out and then tried to put it back in the next day and it was closed up. i was surprised that after 12 years of having it piereced and a ring always in it that it closed up so fast. i am thinking about getting it pierced again but i am 32 now and figure its prob best not to even bother. i miss it though and now my belly looks so plain!!

Livia · #12 09-30-2009, 07:27 PM

When I got mine pierced (back in 1990, '91?), they told me to clean it with betadine while in the shower (it's messy and will stain everything), and gently slide the ring back and forth so it wouldn't get caked up and stuck. I think peroxide would definitely be too drying - I'd stick to betadine or neosporin. I like to sleep on my tummy and couldn't do that for about 2-3 weeks. Good luck!