Ask Body Candy is our weekly advice column for pierced, inked, and amazing individuals (and everyone else too!) who might need a nudge in the right direction. Relationships, mods, or whatever, Body Candy's got you covered :).

Disclaimer: Body Candy is only here to give you fun and helpful advice and information when it comes to getting pierced. Always consult a professional piercer to make sure a new piercing is right for you!

Dear Body Candy,

How much does a septum piercing hurt? I've seen some people cry getting it done so I'm kind of scared lol.

-Nia

Body Candy: Hi Nia!

It’s true that some people have an extremely low tolerance for pain. However, most nasal piercings, as well as any piercing that is close to the eye area, can cause one’s eyes to water when performed. This can range from a single tear to what appears to be full-on crying. It’s a totally normal bodily response and isn’t actually related to the level of pain itself. Most people report that the septum is one of the less painful piercings, on average. So long as the piercer is in the correct place (aka: “The Sweet Spot”), it should actually hurt a bit less than a standard cartilage piercing. If you have an average or above level of pain tolerance, you should have no problem. And really, the piercing itself is quick and over in a matter of seconds.

When you finally decide that the time is right to get that gorgeous septum piercing, we have lots of options waiting for that healed piercing. You can check them out here: https://www.bodycandy.com/collections/septum

Best of luck!

Love,

Body Candy

Dear Body Candy,

Ok so, dumb question but I totally don't get the whole gauge system. Can you explain how that works?

- Sam

Body Candy: Hello Sam,

First all of all, there is no such thing as a dumb question! Asking questions is how you learn!

When one refers to the gauge of their jewelry, they’re talking about the thickness of the piece – the diameter of what is going into the piercing. For example, you may see a nose ring that is really thin, almost like wire. If you compare that to a standard belly ring, you can see how much thicker the barbell portion of the belly ring is. The confusing part is that the higher the gauge is, the thinner the jewelry is. In other words, that super-thin nose ring is probably something like a 20 gauge (.8mm), whereas the much thicker belly ring is probably 14 gauge (1.6mm).

Body jewelry generally runs from 20 gauge to 00 Gauge (10mm), depending on the part of the body it is meant for. Jewelry that is 10 gauge or larger will generally require a stretched piercing. Hope this helps to clear up some of the confusion! Happy piercing!

Love,

Body Candy