This past Christmas, my parents gave me a pretty decent sum of money for a gift, and so I decided - pretty much on a whim I had one morning - to get my nipples pierced.
At A Glance Author anonymous Contact anonymous@bme.anon When Three months ago Artist Steve Studio Barbella Piercing Location Fountain Valley CA I took a friend along who was getting double labrets, and we decided that I should go first.
I have had my tongue (very little pain), belly button (easy as pie), and eyebrow (ouchy) pierced already but once I walked into the shop I was more nervous than I'd ever been for any other. I had previously sworn that I'd never get my nipples pierced (too scared) but this particular morning, they seemed the logical step.
Steve was very professional and kind, explaining everything that would happen. I got to look at all the jewelry and the different sizes of piercing needles. At first it was really fun to shop around, but once I made my decision, reality hit me and I started to tingle. The anticipation was exciting, pleasurable, and truthfully, pretty scary.
In my nervousness, I started asking a lot of stupid questions, fidgeting, and jabbering away to try and calm myself. Suddenly I felt like a little girl who'd gotten in over her head. I sensed that I might have annoyed Steve a bit - but he was always very professional and polite.
With my best friend watching, (in a curtained room for privacy), I undressed and waited as Steve got his equipment together, washed up, and measured and cleaned my nipples. My nipples are fairly large so the standard length barbell that he picked out wasn't long enough, and I needed a longer one. That was fine with me (actually I was somewhat proud!)
We decided to do the left nipple first... I had heard somewhere that nipple piercings hurt less if you start on your least-dominant side, and I'm right-handed. Maybe it's just a superstition, but I was really nervous and needed all the help I could.
Steve let me know it was time, and I closed my eyes tight and tried to breathe evenly. The clamp was uncomfortable and pinchy, and I wanted it off as soon as possible, so I knew I was at the point of no return. As soon as the needle went in, I gasped loudly and my eyes "bugged out", according to my friend. The adrenaline rush was unreal, and the piercing DID hurt quite a bit! Steve was quick though, and got the jewelry in very fast.
There wasn't much blood at all really, and aside from a lightheaded feeling, as soon as the jewelry was in, the worst of the discomfort was over.
At this point, I was gasping and shaking, even sweating a bit from the "high." Steve kindly asked if I wanted to stop there - I felt like such a wimp! But I wanted them to match, so I told him to go for it with the right one.
This time, I actually yelped - only a little bit, I didn't scream loud or anything - and then the jewelry was in and it was over.
I felt faint, like I was floating or just woke up from a confusing dream, and Steve brought me a little box of juice which revived me pretty quickly. Yes, they kept juice and water bottles in the store for customers. Very cool.
Then it was my best friend's turn to get his labret pierced, and of course, he didn't even flinch. He was like, "oh that didn't hurt at all, I didn't feel it" and I felt like such a wimp. But I think I'll do a labret next time just to see what it's like, now that I've seen it done.
As soon as my head cleared, I realized that my nipples didn't hurt any more! I got up and looked in the mirror, and fell in love!
These aren't just jewelry; they totally have changed the way that I look at my breasts. I love the way they look and feel. It's been about 3 months, and they are almost completely healed - I have had no problems with them, except I have to be careful what kind of soap I use. Once when they were relatively new, I washed with some weird hippie organic soap and they stung for like 3 hours afterwards!
I'm an exotic dancer and believe me, my audience loves the way these beautiful barbells look on stage!
Barbella piercing (barbellapiercing.com) was a great experience, and although right afterwards the pain made me a little piercing-shy, now that they are healed and I can enjoy them, I will certainly go back for more. And after it was all over, Steve assured me that my reaction was "pretty normal" and that it's okay to be nervous. What a nice guy.
These look awesome; I don't hesitate to praise this piercing and love to show them off. Ladies, if you have been thinking about getting your nipples pierced, learn more about it, and go for it. Just don't believe anyone who tells you that "nipple piercing doesn't hurt" - they do, but they're so worth it.