Cheek Piercings 101!

The day I had them done

Someone asked me in my FormSpring if I could make a post on my cheek piercings and all that jazz because they're quite the complicated piercing and they were looking to have theirs done. First and foremost, let me just say, this is a piercing you should REALLY think about before having it done. You should think about any and every piercing beforehand, but the common misconception with these are that you can just take them out and all will go back to normal. They won't. Cheek piercings are something that more likely than not, you will be living with for the rest of your life (much like a tattoo!) so think long and hard, and research, research, research!

I've wanted cheek piercings for years. I've always thought they were so super cute and I loved the thought of having dimples (I had one... but it was a silly little thing). So in this little entry I'm going to go through the most commonly asked questions I get and then give you a few links to read up on!

Q #1: Do those hurt?

A: No. Neither the piercings nor the aftermath (currently) hurt. I was actually shocked at how painless the actual procedure was. I was very very nervous but the needles went straight through and that was that. However, the next few hours/days following the piercings were a bit rough. Mainly because my face was swollen and it was hard to eat/smile/laugh. That soon faded but for about a week it hurt pretty bad to laugh hysterically. And I really like to laugh. But that too went away.

Q #2: Do you ever bite down on the balls on the inside?

A: Sometimes. I'll catch myself just grazing them but I've never done a full CHOMP on one. It's important to have the balls on the inside (as opposed to a flat-back labret like on monroes) because the moist tissue in your mouth regenerates so quickly... if the flat back is against your cheek, you can almost guarantee that your cheek will grow over the flat back and you'll need to cut it out. I just find it better to forgo that all together and have a ball. Right now my balls are steel but I'll be trading them out for acrylics to minimize the chances of tooth chipping in the future. [Edit 10/16/10: It's 6 months later and I currently have gem discs on the inside. They're much less cumbersome than balls, and I've never once bit down on them. They don't ding on my teeth either. I highly recommend them. They can be purchased at BodyArtForms.com]

Q #3: What size bars do you have?

A: I'm still wearing the ones I had from day one, the 3/4" bars. I could size down to 5/8" or to 1/2" but I have yet to do so. Mainly because the balls are VERY tricky and I need Mike's help to change them out. That is not fun! [Edit: 10/16/10: I now have 1/2" 14g bars in my cheeks with 3mm steel balls on the outside and 4mm gem discs on the inside. This is the perfect size for my cheeks, but it varies with each person.]

Q #4: Did you have dimples before the piercings?

A: No. I had one little dimple on the left cheek but I decided to go for the piercings because they'd give me dimples.

Q #5: How does a piercing give you an actual dimple?

A: Your cheeks have 18 muscles that run through them... When you put a hole in a muscle, this causes a dip in the tissue, therefore leaving you with a dimple.

Q #6: If you take them out, will you still have a dimple?

A: More than likely, yes. The likelihood is heightened with time.

Q #7: Will they scar?

A: YES! This is the most important thing I think everyone needs to think about before getting them. 99% of the time, you WILL have a scar as a result of these piercings! You need to make sure you can live with this for the rest of your life! Depending on how your body/skin reacts to breaks in tissue will be the defining factor to how noticeable this scar may be. I do know people whose dimples fill out but they still have little dark spots where the holes were.

Q #8: How high maintence are they?

A: VERY! These piercings generally take a very long time to heal (8-10 months usually). You need to keep them clean at all times! I'm lucky because I've always had really great reactions to piercings. I've hardly ever had to do anything to make sure they heal properly. Even with my cheeks, after a while, I did very little, if anything. Mine have been great, but I know so many who have had the exact opposite happen.

Q #9: What about those little lumps that people talk about getting?

A: Those are lymphatic lumps (and/or hypertrophic scars). Caused by trapped lymphatic fluids in your cheeks. They develop pockets around the piercings. Sometimes you can drain them (either inside your mouth or outside) and they're much like cystic pimples in a way. I've had them. Almost everyone gets them at one point or another with these piercings (but it is so very very possible to avoid them! Keep your hands clean, don't fidget with the jewelry, etc). Some are much larger than others so they're actually visible. I've been fortunate enough in the past to be able to drain mine and they go away. I've never had a full-on infection, thank goodness!

Q #10: Do all piercers do cheek piercings?

A: No. In fact, this is a relatively *new* piercing in the world of body modification (It's been around a very very very long time, yes, but not all piercers are familiar with the muscle structure of the face or how to position them correctly). My suggestion is to go to a piercer who has done this well over a few dozen times, and even better if they have theirs pierced, too! I went to Betty Ann at Icon in Nashville for mine. She had hers pierced for 7 years already so she was great.

That's not even remotely all of the questions I get but you get the idea. I figured 10 was a good number and I'm going to link you to a few great articles on what could happen (and does!) if you're not totally thorough in planning and piercing! Click the following links to read along:

• Cheek Piercings (great article!)
• Cheek Piercings Gone Wrong! (read the comments!)
• Cheek Piercings

Also, it's a good idea to check out the Cheek Piercing videos on YouTube to see how it's done. This can put your mind at ease when you're thinking about having them done. Hope that was the slightest bit helpful! I think they look super lovely, but at the same time I don't recommend them because they're a pain in the butt to deal with. 

xoxo

Blog Award.

I was the lucky recipient of a Blog Award from the darling Kendra over at Kendra Diaries. I was sick today and took the day off of work so I figured I should get to posting this while I'm cooped up in my tiny tiny room ready to feel better. Thanks Kendra!

This award comes with the following rules:

1. Thank the person who gave you the award.
2. Share ten things about yourself
3. Pass the award along to 10 bloggers who you have

recently discovered and who you think are fantastic!
4. Contact the bloggers and let them know you've picked them for the award.

I'm really bad at writing random facts about myself, and I think I've already done this a time or two, but it's hard to remember so I apologize if some of them overlap! I'm just going to write what comes to mind first!

1. I can literally feel my passion for shark research and conservation growing on the daily. It's become such an important part of my life. I never considered myself a "beach gal" but I know that no matter what, I want to live very very close to the coast. I want to be able to pursue my passions even if I choose to not go after them as a career. I really wish I could educate more people on the never-ending problem that the largest predator of the water is facing (*cue super dorky moment!*)

2. I really dislike when people type in shorthand, especially via text messaging. Sometimes you have to do it to make it all fit (ie; twitter, etc) and it's okay if it is REALLY necessary, but otherwise, I feel like it's a true disgrace to our language.

3. I do not like mac'n'cheese, nor do I like Ramen noodles. Will not eat them... ever.

4. I do not see myself doing graphic design for the rest of my life.

5. I bounce back between what I think I want in my future. My priorities shift on the daily. I know I want a family and a stable life, but sometimes I want to be a young wife and mother, and other times I think I need to truly push myself deeper into my potential career field. I'm a very impatient person, and I like to have solid plans, so this scares me.

6. Contrary to popular belief, there are days when I just absolutely hate myself. I hate the way I look, my personality, my actions, etc. Some days I don't want to get out of my pajamas because I feel like it's a waste. These days are few and far between but I'm definitely not without. Luckily I know better than to let them get the best of me for too long so I can usually talk myself out of the funk.

7. I really want to adopt in the future. At least one child. This is very important to me. Preferably a little girl from China (most likely) considering how they handle female babies. I think it's absolutely cruel and unfair and if I can give that little girl a second chance, I would in a heartbeat.

8. I'm terrified of what lies ahead for me after college is over. I feel like college is sort of a "safe zone" and you're not really thrust out into the real world yet so you can play it cool with part-time jobs and the security of classes every day. Who knows if this degree that I just spent 4-and-a-half years procuring will do anything for me after December 2010. Who knows if 7 more years of college for Marine Biology will reap the same outcome?

9. I'm really really bored of my hair. But I have no idea what to do to it. Sometimes I miss my brown hair, othertimes I realize that red is fun and more "me"... but the cut/style is just killing me. I hate my curly, tangled mess of hair on most days. I think I'm just dying for change...

10. If I were to get married tomorrow, I have no idea who would fill out my bridal party... and honestly, thats the scariest thing of all. I've had so many wishy-washy friendships with girls in the past. Granted I know some of the ones I'd ask, but I feel so detached and far away from some of the people I considered my very best friends. Sometimes you're told that you need to make the effort to bring yourselves back together but sometimes I get tired of trying... I'd really like to meet some totally legit lady friends and not have that fear anymore.

HOKAY! So really that turned into "things I'm pretty much terrified of" haha but either way, those are 10 things about me! Now I'm supposed to tag 10 people but I'm really bad at that (wah wah! Cry me a river!) I know! So instead, I want YOU to fill it out and leave a link to your post in a comment below! I want to know these things about you. I don't want to limit it to just 10... Love you all!

xoxo

Seven Things....

I was tagged by the lovely Riah and I have to blog Seven Facts about myself. This might be a little bit tough but... I'm going to give it a go! in the meantime, go check out her blog and say hello :)

1. I'm blind in my left eye. When I was really young I had constant high high fevers and it was an onset of my severe Asthma [I practically lived in the hospital until I was 7 or so]. Well the constant high fevers practically burnt my optic nerve up in my left eye and thus resulted in me being blind. Now, it's not like it's pitch black or anything... I can see remnants of value, but I cannot distinguish anything or any actual color. I've never seen out of both eyes before, so I'm prone to asking silly questions about the ability to do so. [This hindered me in softball... I was horrible at bat because I lead with my left eye and it really throws off my depth perception.] And a funny story: My dad was never really around much when I was little, but when I'd go visit him I'd tell him my "bad eye" was my right eye because I had to wear an eye patch for several hours a day to strengthen my left eye.. well I'd tell him it was my right eye so he'd put the patch on the left eye and I could still watch cartoons. hahahahaha.
2. I'm an only child. It was really just my mom and myself growing up. Like I said previously, my dad wasn't around. However, he had another son and daughter [16 and 14 years my senior, respectively]. I got kind of close to my half-sister, but now I honestly don't even speak to that side of the family aside from occasional holiday texts from her or my brother-in-law. I like it just being me and my mom [and my step-dad, now].
3. I'm named after my late aunt and cousin [Valerie Kay and Stephanie Dawn] so my name is Kaelah Dawn. My aunt Kay and my mother were really really close growing up. She had a little girl named Stephanie and unfortunately in 1974 they were both killed in a fiery car crash. My aunt was 22 and Stephanie was 2. [This was 14 years before I was born] So in honor of them both, my mother took both of their middle names and named me. The crazy weird part is: I'm exactly like my Aunt Kay. I look like her, I have the same personality as her, and she was always very very athletic growing up. I'll post a photo of her one day. :) If i could go back and meet anyone in the world, it would HANDS DOWN be her.
4. I was 99% sure I'd go to college for Sports Medicine. It just kind of felt 'right' I guess. Being that I played sports all growing up. I'm glad I didn't though... not that it wouldn't be rewarding, but I really love what I'm doing now.
5. I have an undying love of vintage teacups and tea pots. Really. I do. Send me some! :P
6. I have no intention on stopping the tattoo process any time soon. Next on the list are tribute & memorial tattoos for my Nana and Papa on the back of my calves.
7. I have my septum pierced, and have had it for 6 years. I keep it flipped up [it tickles when it's down!] so a lot of people have never even laid eyes on it. Mike constantly heckles me to wear it down because he really loves it. so maybe today I will :)

Awesome! My 7 things are done! Now it's time to tag 7 other people!

Lindsay
Courtney
Carrie
Shea
Merissa
Caitlin
Mandy

Girls, please post your 7 things and tag 7 other lovely bloggers!
xo