My very first piercing experience (other than my lobes) happened when I was an un-educated, ill-prepared 16 year old. Nipple piercings became a popular trend at my high school and my best friend and I at the time thought that we should get some ourselves. I don't think I did any research on the procedure itself, or on the location I regret to say. The piercer did it free hand and it turned out rather crooked but I loved it none the less, I now had a little secret that no one knew about. Of course I became lazy about the after-care and after about a year it was still not fully healed and often was painful. Because of the crooked placement and poor after-care it sadly started to reject. I had to retire it which was a very sad day.
At A Glance Author Erin Contact Erin@bme.anon When Three months ago Artist Wednesday Studio Steel Templre Location Burnaby, BC About a year later I was still missing it terribly. It had made me feel confident about my body and I liked that it was something that not everyone could see. A close friend of mine had recently gotten hers done and had raved about this piercing studio and a piercer named wednesday. I had always just gone to a local shop mostly because it was close and the prices were affordable. However, if I was to do this piercing again I wanted it done correctly and with someone who I felt more comfortable with.
This time I read dozens of stories on BME so I was more prepared for what to expect from a quality studio and a proffesional piercer. I decided that I would make the trek out to the place by myself; this was to be my first piercing down without a friend or my boyfriend. The studio itself was only a bus and skytrain ride away. It was fairly busy when I arrived and had to wait for a bit. It gave me a chance to look through some of the portfolios and check the place out. It was very clean with flash on the walls and overall had a very good vibe. The guy at the front desk was a little unfriendly but I was too excited/nervous to care.
The piercer Wednesday was super friendly and made me feel really comfortable. Because she is a girl she made me feel less self-conscious about having to take off my top because I am a rather modest person and like my clothes to remain on my body :) The piercing room was very clean and you could see all the tools in the sealed packages which was comforting. She compared a couple of different barbells to find the best size, one that would allow for some swelling but not be too long. I laid down on the dentist like chair and she proceeded to get the clamps out. The clamps themselves were not that bad at all, just unusual because I don't have my nipples clamped by cold tong things too often. At this point I started to get really nervous but I am a trooper and my want for the piercing exceeded the fear of pain. It's funny that we get so scared about how much it will hurt because the pain is often over so quickly and in a few hours time we won't really remember what it felt like.
Wednesday told me to take a few deep breaths and then she pierced. This was definetly a lot more painful the second time around. I should mention that I was having the same nipple re-pierced. This time the needle had to pass through the scar tissue which probably accounts for the higher pain. I chose to re-do my right nipple because I like my left boob more and I wanted something pretty on my right boob, may sound silly but it seemed logical enough to me. After she went through the after-care and I got my sucker for being such a brave girl and I was on my way.
What I have noticed about nipple piercings is that they hurt for about 5 minutes then the pain goes away completely, I was tempted a couple of times to check if it was still there but somehow though that may be a bit inappropriate on the bus! I would recommond wearing and old bra because you may bleed a bit right after.
After-care involved sea salt soaks once a day and then rinsing with non-fragranced antibacterial soap. It has been about 3/4 months since I got it done and I still have crusties once in awhile but other than that it is going great. My boyfriend loves how it looks and it feels a lot more sensitive (In a good way) when it is touched or licked. More than anything I think this piercing is a great self-confidence booster, I highly recommend it.