Hygiene

Generally, people do take care of themselves and properly clean both their living environment and themselves. With any piercing, even professionally done ones, things can go terribly wrong. Cleanliness is a must for body modification. Considering that a piercing is basically a foreign object being stuck into your body, other things may get stuck into you too. Things like dirt and bacteria see a piercing, which is really an open wound, as a gateway into your body. A professional piercer will sterilize their equipment and disinfect the piercing area. There isn’t any way to duplicate this in the comfort of your home, no matter what homemade methods you use. Alcohol of any kind does not truly disinfect a needle, neither does burning it with a match. You are probably better off consulting someone who is trained and knows what they are doing.

Placement

A good, long lasting piercing usually is in an area where it isn’t bumped or forced to undergo a lot of friction. If you go to a professional, they usually have a list of what is possible, what is suitable and what they are willing to do. Some are more comfortable with certain placements than others, and it pays to look around to see what’s reasonable. Self piercing can be alarmingly dangerous if attempted without basic knowledge of what is possible and what isn’t. For example, a person could easily blind themselves trying to pierce their eyebrow in the wrong spot (near the inner part of the eyebrow, close to the nose). Even particularly accepted placements can aggravate certain parts of your body. Jewelry close to the teeth and gums can wear it away and lead to dental problems. Always make sure you know what you want and the effect it may have on you.

Visibility

Not everyone is accepting of piercings but this is more of a concern in the workforce. Some employers may even consider your piercings as some form of self-mutilation if they know you did them yourself. The acceptance of body modification has grown a great deal from what it once was, but sometimes it is not all encompassing. Certainly, most people are unable to tell from a glance whether your metal (or other material) has been done by yourself or someone else, but it doesn’t matter if it isn’t acceptable to them or their customers. What you see as a form of expression may not make sense to some people, and so you must consider what you could be limited to if you get piercings of any kind.