I had decided that as soon as I turned 18 I was going to get pierced, the only question was what. After talking with people who had been pierced and thinking long and hard about what I really wanted I came to the decision to get my nipples done. This was not only for looks mind you, I had never had much feeling in my nipples and didn't even know that was abnormal until a year ago. I had heard it could increase sensitivity, so figured I didn't have much to lose since I couldn't feel them much to begin with.
At A Glance Author StrangeKat Contact strangekat@gmail.com When Three months ago Artist Leo IV Studio Purple Scorpion Location MA I asked my friend David if he would take me, since he has awesome bedside manner if I felt bad afterwards and I would have someone to hold my hand. Of course he said yes and we decided that the weekend following my 18th birthday I would go stay with him near Salem and he would take me to Purple Scorpion, a well-known shop with a very good reputation.
So my birthday came and went, and the big weekend arrived. After settling in at David's and hanging out for a bit we headed over to the shop. The first thing I noticed was that the man at the counter was cleaning the glass case where they kept the jewelery, and the floors and walls were spotless. I knew this must be a good sign from what I've heard from other people, after all a piercing shop really should be as clean as your would expect a doctor's or dentist's office to be. I told him what I wanted, then he photocopied my ID and took my $100 dollars. I had to wait for about 15 minutes while a girl was getting her navel pierced, I took the fact that I didn't hear any screaming as a good sign.
After the girl left David and I were ushered into a back room with a dentist's type chair, it was as clean as the front room has been which put me at ease, and my piercer's attitude was very laid back. I was told to stand so he could mark me, and he had me check the marks in the mirror to make sure they were where I wanted them. Everything looked good so he had me sit down and put the chair back a bit. As he was cleaning the area with the surgical scrub and clamping my right nipple he told me exactly what he was doing and why, and talked to me about random things to keep me calm I think.
Deep breath in... and out.... then the needle was through the right nipple. Other than a little pressure I didn't feel anything at all, seriously not a thing. One more breath and the jewelery was in. After making sure I was ok he pierced the other one, only this time it hurt more... a lot more. The pain didn't last for long though, it was soon forgotten over the excitement of my first body piercings. I looked in the mirror, and other than a small amount of blood and soreness I loved them. David, however, had turned a strange shade of pea green by this point, I think he had mumbled something about not liking needles.
(To those who are interested, I was pierced with hoops, not barbells and I found them pretty much problem-free. See below for info on my aftercare. If you are very active I hear barbells may be more suitable, my boyfriend has his done with barbells and he says they are easy to clean as well.)
On the ride home I noticed the increased sensitivity right away, every bump was a strange mixture of pleasure and pain, neither of which I had ever felt in my nipples. Aftercare was simple, I washed them with dial soap twice a day in the shower, which I loved doing because of the newfound feeling in my nipples then used bactine after drying off. I've since heard that bactine isn't good for piercings but it didn't cause any problems for me personally. The worst thing that happened was if I spun the jewelery when I hadn't gotten all the crusties off, it would tear the inside of my nipple up and would usually hurt for days.
Now, 3 months later the sensitivity remains, fabric is my new best friend, but all the discomfort of the first few weeks is pretty much gone. If you're going to get this kind of piercing done I highly recommend Purple Scorpion as the place to go, but if that's not possible please do your research beforehand and get a reputable piercer to do them. And don't ever do them yourself, you'll only cause all sorts of problems for yourself, best to leave it to the pros.
If you need anymore information about my experience feel free to e-mail me, I would love to talk to anyone interested in getting theirs done as well.