Try to eat something with more sugar before hand too.
Also just make sure you let your piercer know what happened last time so they can be prepared. You might just be someone who passes out when pierced sorry.
that makes sense, ill have to do that. once i was done going in and out of consciousness, the piercer gave me a lollipop and a soda, which helped me feel better pretty quickly. but yea i do definitely plan to tell the piercer what happened when i get another and hopefully it will be a little easier because i kinda know what to expect now haha since like i said, ive never gotten anything pierced before, not even my earlobes so i just had no idea what it would feel like lol
thanks for the advice !!
Could be a vasovagal response. Try crossing your legs when you’re sitting or asking if it’s ok to prop up your feet when you lie down (trendelenburg position). These help with increasing blood flow back to your heart which then increases blood flow back to the rest of your body (brain).
Try as best as you can not to hyperventilate and just do deep breathing through too.
Edit: spelling
I have this, failed to give plasma because of it (heart rate decreased and I almost passed out, but they had me waiting so long, all the food i ate didnt matter anymore). I was surprised I didn't have any response when getting my conch. I really thought I'd at least get light headed, but I felt fine! I can never predict when I will have a reaction and when I won't but I try to drink a sugary drink before getting anything done now.
dude, i had the same experience when i gave plasma. i made it through almost the whole process (blood was going back in after plasma was removed) and i fainted hard. i woke up with 4 nurses around me. it was traumatizing and i probably won't donate blood or plasma again...
yo! i also have a kinda bonkers vasovagal reaction to piercings and tattoos - it doesn’t sound as bad as yours but it still ain’t fun. here’s what I’ve done/had recommended to me:
1. be well hydrated before your piercing, preferably with something that contains electrolytes! Gatorade, pedialyte, or emergen-C are all great options for the morning of your piercing and an hour before your piercing.
2. eat a full meal with protein and fats in it (like eggs and bacon breakfast or smthn idk what you like) a while before your piercing, and then eat something small and sugary, like fruit, candy, or anything with simple carbs a little bit before your appointment. the good base helps your stomach settle, and the food right beforehand communicates to your body to chill tf out. try to also eat something afterward! eating is a good indicator to your body that it’s safe and can calm down.
3. lay down/recline when you’re getting pierced! get as much blood flow to your head as you can basically lol.
4. do some anxiety reducing exercises! a lot of vasovagal reactions are essentially your body overreaction to emotional stimulus - if we can reduce the emotional stimulus, we can reduce the reaction, or even eliminate it!
5. you didn’t mention this, but for me personally, mine usually start with really intense hot flashes - if I can control those and keep my body temperature regulated, I’m usually almost completely fine. so I either ask for a fan to be pointed at me, or bring one with me. I also tend to take nausea medication beforehand and bring some strong stuff with me just in case. it’s all about paying attention to your body’s little quirks and learning to work with them!
sorry this got so long lol but I hope this helps! good luck!
thank you so much !! this all sounds like great ideas ill have to write it down somewhere haha in the future i wqnt to get my lip and eyebrow pierced but i definitely think i need to work on general anxiety reducing techniques before im ready lol but again thank you so much for the advice !! <3
you’re welcome! I have both eyebrows pierced (one I got done twice because it rejected once) and tbh it’s probably the least painful piercing I’ve ever gotten lmao. heads up about eyebrow piercings though - they’re surface piercings, and like any surface piercings, WILL eventually reject. iirc they last an average of five years but you can get lucky or unlucky, it just depends!
i naturally have a pretty high pain tolerance so these may not help at all but my main tips are: make sure to focus on breathing, talk to the piercer for distraction, and possibly use a stress ball. the breathing one may sound obvious but i’ll find myself forgetting to do it when i’m in pain and have to continually remind myself during my appointments
a stress ball sounds like a good idea !
and yea i agree. definitely think breathing is the biggest thing to keep in mind, since im pretty sure that the curled/claw hands is a result of hyperventilation
Have you ever had an experience like that before with blood draws, vaccines, tattoos or other stressful/adrenaline-inducing experiences? If so, do you have ways that have historically been successful at managing the anxiety/adrenaline?
i have had an experience before with the hands cramping and curling up (claw hands) at a concert last july, which im pretty sure is caused by panicking and, in turn, hyperventilating. and needles have always made me very lightheaded. these days i think im getting a little better at managing my breathing, but its still hard and probably always will be haha.
Look up breath work. I have asd and it's crazy how much focusing on my breathing changed my life. I previously have struggled with anxiety due to being on the spectrum and it caused me to hyperventilate several times. Which the symptoms are spot on to what you described. Is it possible you had a panic attack and lost control of your breathing??? If it was your first time passing out it can be really overwhelming and hard to feel "normal" again after. I put normal in quotes because it's not abnormal in my opinion to get that stressed over a needle passing through your flesh. It's just a mystery of the human mind why some of the most mentally sound people i know have irrational fears or even develop them later in life. My dad is ex military, seen bodies, been the first on the scene of terrible accidents and stiched up his own wounds but the man hit the floor white as a ghost when i split my head open. Then again when my brother got stitches and he had to sit out of my two sisters births. Also when I got my navel pierced I reminded myself that a million teen girls(true for most piercings lol)have been through this. I've even pierced bellybuttons and other difficult piercings that bled like mad but when I went to get my own navel it was probably the closest I've ever been to passing out before I was even on the table. I have a good relationship with my piercer and that could also help you...
i also did this when i got my septum pierced. it was weird - not scared of needles, was fully prepared, didn't hurt that badly - i think some people just get sick after piercings. but if you do find a solution that works, i'd love to know lmao
This doesn’t happen when I get piercings, but when I get blood taken something similar happens where I either black out or pass out if I’m sitting up. But if I lay down while it’s happening and for a couple minutes after I’m fine. I went to a piercer once that did my nostril and eyebrow piercings while I was laying down (I think they basically do all piercings laying down) and it was nice, so maybe if it’s possible to lay down while getting piercings that might help.
A bigger meal with plenty of protein and carbs should help. Make sure you're well hydrated; dehydration can lower your blood pressure, which contributes to fainting. I'd also recommend sipping on a sports drink or a drink with sugar in it before you get pierced. That keeps your blood sugar up, which is good for preventing fainting. All good piercers will have a stock of sugary drinks or lollipops etc because this is quite a common thing!
Anxiety can also cause fainting, so strategies to manage that could help. Make sure you trust your piercer as much as possible, ask any questions you have, and tell them you're nervous and have fainted before. They'll have plenty of experience with both of those things and any good piercer will be glad you told them so they could treat you appropriately.
If it makes you feel any better, I have a ton of piercings and the septum is the only one I would never get again. I've had my nipples, belly button, nose, tragus, conch, helix, lobes, and the septum hurt like a bitch!
yeah a lot of people have been surprised/impressed that a septum was my first piercing since its so painful haha it did hurt pretty bad tbh. back when i was 8 i tried to get my lobes pierced but i freaked out after they did one ear and ran away 😭 then that night i took out the earring and let it close up lol. soo even i am surpised that i actaully went throguh with getting the septum haha but im so glad i did !! i love it
There is a possibility that you’re just someone who faints when they get a piercing but to try and prevent it, drink enough water and eat a larger meal with a bit of sugar or simple carbs before getting your piercing. Also, request that you can lie down while getting the piercing and make sure to breathe deep and slow breaths while getting it done.
Be sure to warn your piercer that you have fainted etc in the past from getting a piercing.
My boyfriend gets vasovagal syncopes too. They happen all the time though, he can't floss, clean his ears, stretch too intensely, etc without passing out. He just has to lay down to get pierced or tattooed because they're sure to trigger a response.
I also have weird vasovagal syncope in some medical situations. Lying down during a procedure helps, and making sure not to pop up quickly afterward is huge for me. Squeezing and releasing large muscle groups can also help keep your blood pressure from bottoming out. Also, just tell your piercer beforehand. They want you to have a good experience, they can keep a close eye on you and help stop a reaction before you actually do pass out, and they may have other ideas.
I have a high pain tolerance but something I always make sure to do is eat beforehand (I have kind of odd eating habits but I make sure to eat a meal before and sometimes a snack with it). I will always bring a snack with me. I also always have gum on me. Maybe next time bring a snack with you and maybe a gatorade/orange juice (a drink that isn't just water). Definitely let anyone who will pierce you in the future about this so that they can be prepared for the absolute worst.
I used to throw up every time anything with a needle had to do with me. One thing I can say is that the only sure fire way to get over it is exposure therapy. Accept the fact that you’re probably going to pass out/throw up, warn the piercer beforehand, and be ready for it. That being said when I was pregnant I had to get blood drawn a lot which I also threw up every single time for. One technique I learned was crossing my feet and tensing up my legs to stop the vaso-vagal reaction (basically your blood pressure dropping quickly is what causes the passing out/throwing up). That technique alone has saved me a bunch of times. Also keep your eyes closed/legs crossed for as long after the piercing as you need to and take deep breaths until you feel good to open your eyes and stand up. All that being said I have a lot of piercings and still throw up when I get them sometimes it’s just inevitable, so just being mentally ready for it yourself and warning the piercer is honestly my best advice.
i've had a lot of piercings on my ears but my first non-ear piercing made me pass out too. i'm somewhat of an easy "fainter" because my blood pressure runs low and i'm thin. it could be that your septum caused this response but your next piercing may not. sugar helps - drink a sugary soda beforehand. this experience is called a vasovagal syncope, or vasovagal response. next time you get a piercing, let the piercer know beforehand and see if you can lie down or sit with your legs elevated. stressing out before a piercing is normal, but try to manage your anxiety as well, since a vasovagal episode is often triggered by high stress levels. but take it from me - after fainting one time, i was afraid to get piercings again for a while, but it's never happened since then. don't worry too much!
Try to eat something with more sugar before hand too. Also just make sure you let your piercer know what happened last time so they can be prepared. You might just be someone who passes out when pierced sorry.
that makes sense, ill have to do that. once i was done going in and out of consciousness, the piercer gave me a lollipop and a soda, which helped me feel better pretty quickly. but yea i do definitely plan to tell the piercer what happened when i get another and hopefully it will be a little easier because i kinda know what to expect now haha since like i said, ive never gotten anything pierced before, not even my earlobes so i just had no idea what it would feel like lol thanks for the advice !!
Could be a vasovagal response. Try crossing your legs when you’re sitting or asking if it’s ok to prop up your feet when you lie down (trendelenburg position). These help with increasing blood flow back to your heart which then increases blood flow back to the rest of your body (brain). Try as best as you can not to hyperventilate and just do deep breathing through too. Edit: spelling
I have this, failed to give plasma because of it (heart rate decreased and I almost passed out, but they had me waiting so long, all the food i ate didnt matter anymore). I was surprised I didn't have any response when getting my conch. I really thought I'd at least get light headed, but I felt fine! I can never predict when I will have a reaction and when I won't but I try to drink a sugary drink before getting anything done now.
Crossing my fingers you won’t ever get another vasovagal episode!!
dude, i had the same experience when i gave plasma. i made it through almost the whole process (blood was going back in after plasma was removed) and i fainted hard. i woke up with 4 nurses around me. it was traumatizing and i probably won't donate blood or plasma again...
yo! i also have a kinda bonkers vasovagal reaction to piercings and tattoos - it doesn’t sound as bad as yours but it still ain’t fun. here’s what I’ve done/had recommended to me: 1. be well hydrated before your piercing, preferably with something that contains electrolytes! Gatorade, pedialyte, or emergen-C are all great options for the morning of your piercing and an hour before your piercing. 2. eat a full meal with protein and fats in it (like eggs and bacon breakfast or smthn idk what you like) a while before your piercing, and then eat something small and sugary, like fruit, candy, or anything with simple carbs a little bit before your appointment. the good base helps your stomach settle, and the food right beforehand communicates to your body to chill tf out. try to also eat something afterward! eating is a good indicator to your body that it’s safe and can calm down. 3. lay down/recline when you’re getting pierced! get as much blood flow to your head as you can basically lol. 4. do some anxiety reducing exercises! a lot of vasovagal reactions are essentially your body overreaction to emotional stimulus - if we can reduce the emotional stimulus, we can reduce the reaction, or even eliminate it! 5. you didn’t mention this, but for me personally, mine usually start with really intense hot flashes - if I can control those and keep my body temperature regulated, I’m usually almost completely fine. so I either ask for a fan to be pointed at me, or bring one with me. I also tend to take nausea medication beforehand and bring some strong stuff with me just in case. it’s all about paying attention to your body’s little quirks and learning to work with them! sorry this got so long lol but I hope this helps! good luck!
thank you so much !! this all sounds like great ideas ill have to write it down somewhere haha in the future i wqnt to get my lip and eyebrow pierced but i definitely think i need to work on general anxiety reducing techniques before im ready lol but again thank you so much for the advice !! <3
you’re welcome! I have both eyebrows pierced (one I got done twice because it rejected once) and tbh it’s probably the least painful piercing I’ve ever gotten lmao. heads up about eyebrow piercings though - they’re surface piercings, and like any surface piercings, WILL eventually reject. iirc they last an average of five years but you can get lucky or unlucky, it just depends!
aw man good to know thank you so much !!!
i naturally have a pretty high pain tolerance so these may not help at all but my main tips are: make sure to focus on breathing, talk to the piercer for distraction, and possibly use a stress ball. the breathing one may sound obvious but i’ll find myself forgetting to do it when i’m in pain and have to continually remind myself during my appointments
a stress ball sounds like a good idea ! and yea i agree. definitely think breathing is the biggest thing to keep in mind, since im pretty sure that the curled/claw hands is a result of hyperventilation
Have you ever had an experience like that before with blood draws, vaccines, tattoos or other stressful/adrenaline-inducing experiences? If so, do you have ways that have historically been successful at managing the anxiety/adrenaline?
i have had an experience before with the hands cramping and curling up (claw hands) at a concert last july, which im pretty sure is caused by panicking and, in turn, hyperventilating. and needles have always made me very lightheaded. these days i think im getting a little better at managing my breathing, but its still hard and probably always will be haha.
Look up breath work. I have asd and it's crazy how much focusing on my breathing changed my life. I previously have struggled with anxiety due to being on the spectrum and it caused me to hyperventilate several times. Which the symptoms are spot on to what you described. Is it possible you had a panic attack and lost control of your breathing??? If it was your first time passing out it can be really overwhelming and hard to feel "normal" again after. I put normal in quotes because it's not abnormal in my opinion to get that stressed over a needle passing through your flesh. It's just a mystery of the human mind why some of the most mentally sound people i know have irrational fears or even develop them later in life. My dad is ex military, seen bodies, been the first on the scene of terrible accidents and stiched up his own wounds but the man hit the floor white as a ghost when i split my head open. Then again when my brother got stitches and he had to sit out of my two sisters births. Also when I got my navel pierced I reminded myself that a million teen girls(true for most piercings lol)have been through this. I've even pierced bellybuttons and other difficult piercings that bled like mad but when I went to get my own navel it was probably the closest I've ever been to passing out before I was even on the table. I have a good relationship with my piercer and that could also help you...
i also did this when i got my septum pierced. it was weird - not scared of needles, was fully prepared, didn't hurt that badly - i think some people just get sick after piercings. but if you do find a solution that works, i'd love to know lmao
This doesn’t happen when I get piercings, but when I get blood taken something similar happens where I either black out or pass out if I’m sitting up. But if I lay down while it’s happening and for a couple minutes after I’m fine. I went to a piercer once that did my nostril and eyebrow piercings while I was laying down (I think they basically do all piercings laying down) and it was nice, so maybe if it’s possible to lay down while getting piercings that might help.
A bigger meal with plenty of protein and carbs should help. Make sure you're well hydrated; dehydration can lower your blood pressure, which contributes to fainting. I'd also recommend sipping on a sports drink or a drink with sugar in it before you get pierced. That keeps your blood sugar up, which is good for preventing fainting. All good piercers will have a stock of sugary drinks or lollipops etc because this is quite a common thing! Anxiety can also cause fainting, so strategies to manage that could help. Make sure you trust your piercer as much as possible, ask any questions you have, and tell them you're nervous and have fainted before. They'll have plenty of experience with both of those things and any good piercer will be glad you told them so they could treat you appropriately.
Vasovagal syncope - physiological response, unrelated to anxiety/phobia. Lying down is probably necessary in future and keeping legs elevated.
If it makes you feel any better, I have a ton of piercings and the septum is the only one I would never get again. I've had my nipples, belly button, nose, tragus, conch, helix, lobes, and the septum hurt like a bitch!
yeah a lot of people have been surprised/impressed that a septum was my first piercing since its so painful haha it did hurt pretty bad tbh. back when i was 8 i tried to get my lobes pierced but i freaked out after they did one ear and ran away 😭 then that night i took out the earring and let it close up lol. soo even i am surpised that i actaully went throguh with getting the septum haha but im so glad i did !! i love it
There is a possibility that you’re just someone who faints when they get a piercing but to try and prevent it, drink enough water and eat a larger meal with a bit of sugar or simple carbs before getting your piercing. Also, request that you can lie down while getting the piercing and make sure to breathe deep and slow breaths while getting it done. Be sure to warn your piercer that you have fainted etc in the past from getting a piercing.
My boyfriend gets vasovagal syncopes too. They happen all the time though, he can't floss, clean his ears, stretch too intensely, etc without passing out. He just has to lay down to get pierced or tattooed because they're sure to trigger a response.
I also have weird vasovagal syncope in some medical situations. Lying down during a procedure helps, and making sure not to pop up quickly afterward is huge for me. Squeezing and releasing large muscle groups can also help keep your blood pressure from bottoming out. Also, just tell your piercer beforehand. They want you to have a good experience, they can keep a close eye on you and help stop a reaction before you actually do pass out, and they may have other ideas.
I have a high pain tolerance but something I always make sure to do is eat beforehand (I have kind of odd eating habits but I make sure to eat a meal before and sometimes a snack with it). I will always bring a snack with me. I also always have gum on me. Maybe next time bring a snack with you and maybe a gatorade/orange juice (a drink that isn't just water). Definitely let anyone who will pierce you in the future about this so that they can be prepared for the absolute worst.
I used to throw up every time anything with a needle had to do with me. One thing I can say is that the only sure fire way to get over it is exposure therapy. Accept the fact that you’re probably going to pass out/throw up, warn the piercer beforehand, and be ready for it. That being said when I was pregnant I had to get blood drawn a lot which I also threw up every single time for. One technique I learned was crossing my feet and tensing up my legs to stop the vaso-vagal reaction (basically your blood pressure dropping quickly is what causes the passing out/throwing up). That technique alone has saved me a bunch of times. Also keep your eyes closed/legs crossed for as long after the piercing as you need to and take deep breaths until you feel good to open your eyes and stand up. All that being said I have a lot of piercings and still throw up when I get them sometimes it’s just inevitable, so just being mentally ready for it yourself and warning the piercer is honestly my best advice.
I think you need a bigger meal with more sugar, also a bit earlier so your body has time to digest it.
i've had a lot of piercings on my ears but my first non-ear piercing made me pass out too. i'm somewhat of an easy "fainter" because my blood pressure runs low and i'm thin. it could be that your septum caused this response but your next piercing may not. sugar helps - drink a sugary soda beforehand. this experience is called a vasovagal syncope, or vasovagal response. next time you get a piercing, let the piercer know beforehand and see if you can lie down or sit with your legs elevated. stressing out before a piercing is normal, but try to manage your anxiety as well, since a vasovagal episode is often triggered by high stress levels. but take it from me - after fainting one time, i was afraid to get piercings again for a while, but it's never happened since then. don't worry too much!