I am a college student who never thought that I would get a piercing. It isn't that I didn't like them, I found them intriguing and attractive, I just didn't think I was the type. Shortly after going away to college I met a friend who shared my interest in piercings. We started talking about the different types of piercings that we both found interesting, and ones that we would never get. Our common interest in putting holes in our bodies bonded us as friends.
At A Glance Author quietpierce22 When It just happened Eventually I expressed an interest in getting something pierced and my friend told me of a reputable place to go. To this point I've gotten five piercings and I have loved them all. Recently I started thinking about getting a more visible piercing- mainly my nostril. I have my tongue pierced but the majority of people that I come in contact with do not notice it. I thought for a really long time about getting my nose pierced. I tend to not rush into any piercing without first doing the proper research on healing time, and I often find myself reading other peoples' experiences. I even took some glitter paint and dabbed it on the side of my nose to see where the perfect placement for a piercing would be.
After all of the research and prep I finally picked a day to get my piercing. The place that I go to is great, but they are almost an hour away from where I live. I brought my friend along with me to share in my excitement of the new piercing. Unfortunately when we arrived at the shop we found that it was closed for the day. I was devastated. I had psyched myself up so much, the adrenaline was already flowing through my system and I was anticipating what it would feel like to have my nose ring.
I left that day feeling let down and pretty empty. But it only strengthened my resolve to get my nostril piercing. I discussed it with my mom, who did not support the idea, and mentioned it to a few of my friends. No one was really surprised by the idea, and it is so mainstreamed in the area where I live that I didn't think it would cause too many problems. I took a brief vacation, my friend took a vacation and finally we were able to pick a date to return to the shop.
I continued to look at pictures of nostril piercings online and liked the idea more and more. With the piercing date a week and a half away I was already preparing myself mentally for my visit to the shop. I had set the money aside for the piercing, and the proper after care products and I would be finished with some extra work that I was doing at my university. Then my friend suggested moving the date up a week. I panicked. I wasn't ready, I hadn't prepared and it wasn't like me to jump into a piercing but I was so excited by the idea of having it early.
I planned my entire weekend around the piercing. On the day that I went to the piercing shop I made sure to eat a light lunch that would keep me from fainting (believe it or not I am afraid of needles) and left enough time for a possible wait at the shop. It was a gorgeous day out and I knew that I was making the right decision by piercing my nostril.
When I got to the shop I said hello to the girl that works the counter. I've seen her numerous times in the past few months so we chatted about things that were going on in our lives. She gave me a look, smiled and asked what I was piercing today. I smiled and proudly stated that I wanted to pierce my nostril. She took me to the jewelry case and explained my options to me. I work with children and in the community quite often so I wanted something that was a little smaller and less noticeable. She was so helpful and directed me to the perfect jewelry for me.
Afterwards she went over the aftercare with me. My sixth piercing and she still took the time to make sure I knew exactly how to do everything right. She reminded me that there was always someone in the shop seven days a week and if I had any questions that I only had to call. I asked if my friend would be allowed in the piercing room and she agreed to let him come in with me and then she told the piercer that I was ready.
After about five minutes I was called into the room and instructed to sit on the chair. The woman that pierced my nostril has done two of my other piercings, so I am familiar with her work, and I felt comfortable with her piercing my nostril. She cleaned my nostril inside and out with cotton swabs and solution and then had my lie back in the chair. Above my head was a read mobile that she had bought from IKEA to help distract her customers that didn't want to watch the piercing take place. I have never watched any of my piercings (once again- afraid of needles) so I closed my eyes and listened to the sound of her voice.
She placed the receiver tube inside my nose which felt kind of weird and then she asked me to take a deep breath. As I let it out she slid the needle through my nostril and I was relieved at how little it hurt! It was just a little pinch and sting, no worse than the pain of waxing your eyebrows. It was a little uncomfortable to slide the jewelry through the pierce and the most pain came from her cleaning the pierce after it was all over.
All in all it was a great experience. The piercer and my friend both agree that the piercing looks great, and I am enjoying it. The only difficulty I am currently having with it is that because it is cartilage it is bleeding a bit. I was told that this is a normal occurrence and that the bleeding should go away within a few days or so. I love my nostril piercing and would recommend it to anyone who is thinking about doing it.