Well well well. I didn't think my first piercing would actually be two, but it happened earlier today, March 24th/2006. A couple friends and I went for lunch at this restaurant, Ding Dong, located right beside Schmatta where my experience happened. Instead of walking to the car, we started walking into Schmatta and before I had a chance to say anything, one of my friends says "Hi. This guy here wants his nipples pierced". So that was that. I filled out the form saying I was of age and I understood what I was doing. At the time I honestly thought "What ARE you doing?!".
At A Glance Author toast_chef Contact toast_chef@bme.anon When It just happened Artist Jason Studio Schmatta Location Saskatoon, SK Oh well, there was no turning back. The person at the jewelry counter told me how to take care of it afterwards, and I was told they would take 3-8 months to fully heal. I was told to soak them in some warm water with sea salt, and to carefully clean the area around the piercings with a Q-tip, twice a day. This has probably been mentioned time and time again, but if you fill up 2 shot glasses with your salt-water solution, put your nipples in it and press them to your chest, it works really well. You get them both clean at the same time, and it's really funny looking if you have a mirror.
I was nervous as hell when I walked into the room to get pierced. My legs were shaking and I was worried I was gonna chicken out or something. I was told I had to stand at first, and that freaked me out a bit. I thought "There is NO way I'm gonna be able to stand up and do this, my knees are gonna give out". It turned out I only had to stand while Jason marked the spot where the piercings would go with a surgical marker. This other girl was apprenticing so she got to watch and listen to some advice on how it's done correctly.
Next I was told to lie down on a bed, similar to one you'd find in a doctor's office. He put some stuff on a Q-tip and smeared it around my nipples. I'm pretty sure it's the same yellow stuff they put on your arm when you go to donate blood, to keep the area clean. I was then told "Take a deep breath and slowly let it out". All I have to say is, holy crap.
I kept telling myself "It's only gonna feel like the worst nipple twister ever". It pretty much was. My friends asked me after, "So which hurt more, the clamp or the needle?" and honestly, I don't know. It all went so fast, apparently I didn't feel either, I just felt the jewelry being forced through after. Honestly, that was the only part that made me super nervous during the piercing. On the first nipple, it felt like he'd gotten half-way through with the needle and had to force the rest through, which was the most painful part. I was told that it wasn't even the needle, it was the jewelry. During that part I heard a small 'pop' sound. After that he said "alright, I'm going to screw the ball onto the end now". I got barbells instead of rings, as you can tell.
Then the same thing happened with the right nipple, minus the popping sound, plus a little blood. It didn't bleed much, and I was told not to be alarmed if it starts again later. It did start to bleed a bit later but not much. It clotted and I cleaned it up after my shower later tonight. Just be as gentle as possible and all will be well...I hope. A lot of people ask "Did it hurt?" I'll admit, yeah it did. I flinched but I didn't like grip the bed for dear life or anything. Before you chicken out, assuming you're thinking of getting one, I'll tell you this: the piercing experience itself hurts a lot less than the 2-3 hours to follow. I walked out feeling great, but throughout the day they started to really ache and were super sensitive. That's to be expected though I guess.
So about a couple hours ago I cleaned them up in the shower, barely letting the water spray over them (because I was scared it'd hurt and they'd bleed), and then did the salt-water shot glass cleanup. It worked great, most of the clotted blood came off the barbell and providing it doesn't bleed before I clean them again, I'll try get them super clean next time. Overall it was a good experience, and I'm a chickensh*t when it comes to needles. I honestly thought it would be way worse, but it wasn't too bad. If I could go back and undo it, walk into the place myself, and consciously tell them myself "I'd like my nipples pierced", I'd definitely do it. The best part is it's shocked the people I've told, their reactions were priceless.
I've been told a few different things about keeping them clean. One friend said that after they're healed up a bit, go carefully, gently go around the area with rubbing alcohol. I'll see about that one, I don't think I will though, that sounds a little too painful. Another person said eventually I'll have to turn the barbell and push it back and forth a bit, so that the skin doesn't grow in too tight around it. This will happen when my nips aren't so sensitive, probably in a week or so I'll take a stab at it. Right now I'm being super paranoid about keeping them clean, keeping blood clots off the piercings at all times, making sure I don't play with them or bump them at all, and hoping they won't get infected. The only thing that I'm really nervous about is changing the barbells in a few months...I'm scared that once I take one out, I won't be able to put another one back in. I'll worry about that when it's time I guess.
I hope my experience has helped someone, maybe gave someone a tip or 2 if they've already got a nipple, or both, pierced. As of now, I have no complaints and am happy I took the chance when it came.