Nipple piercings rock!

At A Glance Author Jade Contact Jade@bme.anon Artist Aaron, I think Studio Tribal Ways Location Boston, MA (Mass Ave)

So, I decided that I needed a body piercing. I got my ears pierced at age 18, and that was my only piercing experience, when I decided at age 20 that I wanted nipple rings. I did lots of reading on the web (not BME, because I for some reason did not run into it then) and picked Tribal Ways to get it done. Everyone had glowing reviews, their website inspired trust, and the fact that a registered nurse owned it made me kinda happy.

I called and made an appointment way in advance, having no idea how such things worked. On the appointed Wednesday, I wore a loose tank top and no bra. I didn't think I'd want to put freshly poked nipples into a restrictive casing. I took the T in, walked down Mass Ave, and found the place. It was interesting inside... I'm not sure what i was expecting, but the main area was pretty comfy and casual. I forked over my $100 (!!!) and recieved detailed aftercare instructions in writing and out loud from Aaron (I think that was his name... it's been a while) my piercer. I definately think going over aftercare BEFORE I was shaking and post-piercing was a very good thing.

I went into the piercing room, into the curtained off area. I took off my shirt, and the girl who was assisting washed my nipples with cotton balls in various solutions (ooh, that tickles!). Then Aaron came in, looked at my nipples, marked the center and where the holes would go on each side. I was totally unselfconscious about being topless, which was kind of odd, but he was professional without being distant. Anyway, I sat, then there were clamps. Apparently, I was supposed to feel them... did I mention that part of the reason I was getting pierced was very not-sensitive nipples? I felt nothing.

Well, until the needle. I felt that. A lot! I forgot that I was supposed to wait till Aaron said to breathe out, and exhaled really fast. It was like I could feel the needle go through every millimeter of flesh. A neat trick, when the clamp made my nipples really narrow anyway. Plus, there was this nasty twinge in the muscles/tissue at the bottom of my breast, like sympathy pain or something. The ring (a larger one, since apparently my nipples are too wide to accept the smaller ones, they would curve too much) didn't hurt going in. Then the other nipple... not as much pain, since by then I wasn't quite right in the head.

I got the sweats, at least partly because it was quite warm inside the curtains. Felt kind of faint. Aaron and the assistant were wonderful, making funny small talk for my dizzy pained self. After maybe 10 minutes I felt brave enough to try to get up. I didn't fall. Looked in the mirror, loved it. Then I put on my shirt. Wow, whole new worlds of pain! For the next week, the sensation of my shirt rubbing on my nipples would be nearly unbearably painful. So would bending over (the rings move slightly with gravity) and knocking them in any fashion, like with seatbelts.

Aftercare... a necessary evil. I had to soak twice a day in warm salt water. I used two coffee cups and held them on over my breasts. I also showered twice a day to clean them out. Noone really wants a buildup of that lovely yellow discharge around their nipples anyway. Last I swabbed them with Betadine, which was the specific brand reccommended by Tribal Ways- they said no ointments or alcohol, they were bad for my piercing. That was supposed to be for three months. I was religious about it for a month, did it once a day for another month, then every couple of days for the last one. I did skip a few days once or twice, and I felt the effects- you do NOT want an infected nipple, trust me here. If it starts getting red, take better care of it!

Six months later, after 3 months of tons and tons of aftercare involving massive amounts of salt water in coffe cups, I am a happy camper. There is still a tiny amount of whitish discharge that I keep meaning to ask about, but they are all healed up otherwise. My nipples are amazingly sensitive. My friends, of course, freaked out at the thought. None of them have body piercings. But I love being the center of attention, and heads will whip around when I wear a tight top, since you can see the outline of the rings.

If you want your nipples pierced, I say go somewhere reputable, fork over the cash, and take care of the piercings. It hurts like mad, but it's worth the pain.