16 April 2007
I lived in Camden for a year, between October 2002 and 2003.
It was a bit of a strange time in my life, but an important one, and a lot of things changed during that year.
One of the things that happened was that I finally gave in to the impulses I'd had for many years and indulged in some body modification.
I had lots of reasons for this - mostly around wanting permanent external reminders of the internal changes I was undergoing, but part of me wanted to do it to see if I could. The thing about having Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is that one of the related issues is poor wound healing, and so with each piercing I knew that it'd carry a bit more of a risk than most, and I'd have to pay more attention to the aftercare, but at the same time, I felt that if I could do this - conquer the poor wound healing - that I could have some control over something I previously thought I couldn't control.
It started with getting my tongue pierced in September 2002, and over the space of the year, I got a further five piercings and a tattoo, most of which settled down and healed and since then it's been as if they were always meant to be a part of me.
Two of the piercings, however, just refused to settle. They'd be okay for a couple of weeks or months, but then they'd flare up a bit again and I'd go through the whole regime again until they'd calmed down, and I'd tell myself that I just needed to be a bit patient.
Then when I was at SXSW, one of the two went a bit icky, ulcerated and bled. Luckily, it didn't happen anywhere public and I was able to deal with it, but instead of just telling myself that I needed to be a bit more patient, this time it was different.
So after letting it settle down and heal a bit, and after considering all the options, I removed the piercings on Friday.
It felt a little weird - after all, they've been a part of my body (and body image) for almost four years - but it really had to be done.
The really funny thing is - in spite of my notoriously poor wound healing - they've healed really quickly and well, and the marks left behind are barely visible on the one which was ok, and slightly visible on the other, and they're fading more each day. I suspect that by the end of the week, I'll have to look very hard to see where they once were.
Which actually disappoints me, if I'm honest. I made the choice to do them in the first place because I wanted a permanent reminder, and although I no longer have the metal in place, i still wanted to be able to see where it once was - gone, but not forgotten.
Oohh... Can I hazzard a guess as to which ones? ;-)
Shame though, as you say, jewelery becomes a part of you for so long, it's funny when it's missing.
It's like when I take my unicorn ring off for whateverr reason... I've been wearing it since I was 19, so it really is part of my hand.
See you tomorrow!
An email address is required, but will not be displayed, nor used for any kind of nefarious purpose.
You may use HTML in your comment, but only for styling. Anything else will be stripped.
... the online home and (not very) alter(ed)-ego of Ann McMeekin, a recently freelance Web Accessibility Consultant.
... passionate about many things, most of which will turn up on this site at some time or other.
... contactable via email.
Design and content copyright 2000-2007 pixeldiva, except where noted.
Copyright of comments remains with the individual author.
All rights reserved.
Left comments