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Thursday 6 March 2008

Belly Button Goo and Gore

I'm posting this so Lane can show her daughter.

Emily had her belly button pierced, without telling me, when she was about fifteen. I found out about a week later (as mothers do). I didn't say anything to her because I wanted to teach her a lesson. She had an infection - a bad, bad infection.

Emily became ill, had a temperature and wanted to stay in bed. I made her get up and go to school (as mothers do who are not supposed to know that their daughter has a belly button infection). She went to the doctors and got antibiotics - I know because I saw them. I also smelt the antiseptic stuff in the bathroom, so I knew she was treating it.

I threw tales of septicaemia from tattoos and piercings into the conversation a couple of times. She gave me strange looks, but I just pretended to be a daft mother.

I never did tell Emily that I knew, until we were both out having a lunchtime drink two years later. Amy (who I work with) was there too. She had just had her belly button pierced.

I said to Amy, "ooooh - that's nice .... Emily show Amy yours ......"

Emily's jaw hit the table. "How did you know I'd got my belly button pierced ........?"

I confessed. Emily said I was a bad, bad mother.

So - Lane's daughter. If you are going to have it done, ... and I know nothing will stop you if you're determined ... PLEASE PLEASE DON'T DO IT BEHIND YOUR MUM'S BACK AND PLEASE, PLEASE DON'T GO TO A DODGY TATTOO SHOP TO GET IT DONE!!

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hmm, after reading that I don't think I'll get mine done after all.

Deborah Carr (Debs) said...

Thanks for that, I shall show my daughter too. Sounds dreadful, poor Emily and poor you too, I think you dealt really well with all that. I would have probably panicked.

Karen said...

I have a friend who had it done at 30 (tut) and it went horribly wrong. She's got quite a nasty scar there now.

HelenMWalters said...

I have a scar on my belly button from an operation. Still hurts sometimes. I can't understand why anyone would deliberately inflict it on themselves!

Lane Mathias said...

Ooh Annie thank you! What a good mother your were (are). I don't know if I could have kept my mouth shut like that.
I've tried reasoning with her. I've tried frightening her. I've tried everything but she's determined that when she's 16 (only a couple of weeks time) that's what she's going to do.

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She's just read your post and laughed and laughed. She says she's going to the best place in town (?) and she'll clean it obsessively. And she says thank you:-)

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What can I say:-)

Annieye said...

Captain - You do mean your belly button, don't you?

Debs - I did panic but SIL had it all in hand.

Karen - You hear of so many infections from piercings, don't you?

Helen - I have a scar just above mine, too where I had a hernia op.

Lane/Lane's daughter - Get some of those individual antiseptic swabs from the chemists and just keep an eye on it. If there's any sign of redness or it feels hot to touch get antibiotics. If you go to a reputable place you shouldn't have any trouble. What I was most annoyed about was that Emily was only fourteen - they didn't even question her age. I don't think I'd have minded so much if she'd been a couple of years older.

Anonymous said...

Oh that sounds horrible! Glad it was ok in the end. Ive always been much too chicken to get mine done when I was young. My sister has hers done though.