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How do you feel about body modification?

I'm on my phone, so I can't even begin to respond to everything here. I will say i'm thrilled with the response this thread has had. Let's keep it civil.

I think body modification in most forms is an art, and I respect it as such. I think my girlfriend has beautiful skin/body, and that's why it upsets me to think she wants to change it and ink over it.

To clarify some things: she has 6 ear rings, 4 of them are 14 gauge, and she has a pair of size 6 gauges, a standard lip piercing, and I think a 10 or 12 gauge belly button piercing. She's had parental consent for that, but isn't allowed to go larger gauges until she's 18. To be honest, there's a history of mental health problem s that she's being treated for, but I think her mom has the same anxiety and depression and deals with it by being in constant denial that something may be wrong. She's being treated (150 mg of Xanax) but I don't think it's an effective treatment and still causing problems. What i'm trying to get to is that she has anxiety that translates to weird things including very low self-esteem. I often wonder if some of the modification is a result of that low self-esteem, but she has a history of self mutilation that thankfully is over. I'm worried some of it is an extension of that.

For those of you with piercings, how addicting are they? She has size 6 gauges and swears they need to be bigger. It worries me that she almost seems compelled to do it, even if it is for aesthetic reasons.


Some of the things she's talked to me about

Scarring is one she's interested in and involves cutting or irritating the skin to get it to scar in a tattoo like manner. Interesting, but I hate the thought of her doing that to her skin. And the idea that a large, patterned mass of pink damaged flesh is more appealing to her than yourself.

A corset is nothing she would get permanently, but it's apparently fairly common for people to get a corset piercing done for a single photoshoot or public appearance or whatever. I just find it weird to want to pierce youself 40+ times and then remove the piercings... but since it doesn't even leave a scar if done right, it doesn't bother me. I actually think they look really good on certain body types.

Suspension involves being pierced and then inserting rings into your body and lifting you up from the rings. She wants to do it with meat hooks instead, and that thought literally makes me nauseous. She's shown me pictures, and the amount of blood on the ground is atrocious. The people who do it say they do it for the adrenaline rush of feeling like you're floating... what's wrong with the indoor skydiving areas where you can actually float? does the meathook make the experience?


Still wanna hear more opinions and not naysayers who come in and say "it looks stupid" and then leave.