As a brief introduction to the players here... My only prior piercing experience was when I had my ear pierced with a gun about 10 years ago. It never completely healed, in part because of some psoriasis issues I have with my ears, so about 5 years ago I pulled out my earring and let it close up.
At A Glance Author g_e Contact g_e@bme.anon When It just happened Artist Sque3z Studio Anomaly Body Piercing Location Pasadena, CA The crew I hang with now is a bit more experienced... My friend James' first "piercing" was when he suspended by his knees a couple years back at Well Hung Suspension's first event. He has since done a vertical chest and is currently letting his Madison heal (also performed by Anomaly). I am basically considered extended family, so my experience with Anomaly was likely more casual than someone coming in off the street.
A few weeks ago, I went out to Anomaly with the intention of getting an apadravya. I hadn't called, and half-expected (hoped?) that they wouldn't have anything in stock to do the job. I walked in the store and into a giant room full of women. Not what I expected... It seemed that a big group of ladies had come down to get pierced together and show support...
My friend and designated post-piercing driver, James, caught the attention of Tyler who I was able to ask some quiet questions to. My major question was about gauge. I'd read the experiences here on bme and had some idea what I was in for, but no idea what size I wanted. I was told that the smallest size they'd recommend is a 10g. The phrase "cheese-slicer effect" was used. He showed me a 10g bar... I found a chance to politely excuse myself and directed James to take me somewhere that I could "drink until I forget how big that was".
Later that weekend, I got sick. Any thought of getting a piercing was out for a while.
So, Friday the 3rd rolled around. Events at work found me free, fed, and sober. With the Superbowl on Sunday, I knew I wasn't going to be very mobile this weekend. I called Sque3z and told him I'd like to come out to talk to him about an apa that evening. I then hopped in my car and at speeds reaching as high as 25mph, made my way to Pasadena.
Sque3z showed me the bar. It was 8g. He said he'll do as small as a 10g, or as big as a 6g. Recalling the cheese-slicer effect comment, I didn't argue. Sque3z warned me of the long healing time associated with the piercing, explaining that it wasn't to be undertaken lightly. After a while of him doing his part to talk me out of it; we agreed that "well, if I'm going to do it then lets just fucking do it!"
So, we picked out some jewelry from what he had and into the autoclave it went. I sat and tried not to think too much.
I saw Sque3z come out and start highlighting an aftercare pamphlet for me. Someone across the counter asked him something I couldn't hear and I read Sque3z's lips as he said the word "Apadravya."
The guy slowly looked over at me. I nodded. He nodded. I busted out in a big grin...
In the piercing room, now... All the shades have been pulled. Sque3z put on some music to keep the mood more relaxed... Alanis Morissette. Appropriate, right?
Sque3z had explained that he freehands the piercing with forceps to clamp and compress the area. The clamps were unpleasant; slightly painful. I started thinking "if this is what the clamp feels like, then the piercing must be... oh, my god."
I wanted to call it off. I wanted to apologize to Sque3z for wasting his time and asking him to handle my genitals... but I just kept breathing and told myself that if I wait just a few minutes more, that dilemma would be solved.
So, this is where my story goes on a different track than all the others I'd read about on BME...
The piercing itself was very fast and actually not that painful. It stung afterward and the jewelry being inserted was far from pleasant. Sque3z asked me how I was doing and I told him that I'd had a lot of things hurt a lot worse.
Now, I've read a lot of people say that there was only a drop or two of blood after the piercing... With me, that was NOT the case. I bled pretty freely for a while. Sque3z told me that I bled more than any of the apas he'd done. He went back for more gauze twice.
Now, the bleeding could have been more of an issue because it was an 8g piercing compared to the 14's, 12's and 10's I've read about. Sque3z also said that sometimes the needles aren't the exact size of the jewelry, which can leave some room for bleeding.
A short time later, with the bleeding under control and my piercing wrapped in gauze and a glove rubber banded to it, we all shook hands (after liberal use of that anti-bacterial gunk they have all over the place... I won't bother going into the numerous glove changes, the antibacterial swabs, the autoclave test strip, etc... that would be a whole story unto itself) and I went down the street to have a cup of coffee and sit my ass down for a while.
When I got home, I had to use the bathroom. Urination wasn't painful at all, but the blood was flowing again, which freaked me out a bit. I laid down in my bathtub and willed the piercing to stop.
I will say this... the lower piercing (the PA piercing) wasn't a problem at all. It was the top piercing through the glans that was causing all the mess.
I slept naked on a towel that I expected to toss out afterward, periodically dabbing at blood. When I finally did fall asleep the first time, I woke up hours later with a mess of blood. Back to the bathtub to clean up again... Second time I woke up the blood was noticeable but not really an issue...
By mid-day, the bleeding was well under control. The second night, I woke up with a single spot of blood on the gauze I'd wrapped myself in.
The second day I started to feel a little sore... Today is the third day and I just can't keep the ball ends of the jewelry from knocking into things every couple minutes... The lower piercing has become a problem as that ball compresses against my scrotum when I bend over or do other random things I wouldn't ordinarily give a second thought to. I wrapped myself in gauze and a glove to offer some protection at work.
So far, I haven't noticed any issues with split stream urination. I've tried not to think about sex/masturbation yet, since I want to let my piercing heal at least a week...
So far, I've only told one person; my friend James. We were having breakfast on Saturday morning and I slid the aftercare pamphlet over to him... on the back it read "apadravya" and "8g".
I find myself looking around at "tough guys" in stores and on the street and laughing to myself. You think you're tough? Buddy, I just had someone take an 8g core sample through the head of my dick and the only part of the experience that bothered me was having to clean up the blood afterward. ... Its been a bit of a confidence boost.
Anomaly was great. I have nothing but good things to say about Sque3z and Tyler. They were both informative and professional; they understood my concerns and went a long way to helping me feel comfortable... even with my pants down. They put a lot of effort into keeping everything sterile and I felt very comfortable with them. I would highly recommend the shop for anyone interested in getting a piercing. The price was a lot lower than I expected, but then I hadn't asked before the piercing... I figured, if anyone was going to keep me from getting it, it wasn't going to be the price!
I can't really recommend the piercing to anyone, but not because of any issues I had... it's just too big of a deal for it to be anyone's decision but your own.
My experience was very different than the experiences I read about elsewhere... So if you are going to consider this piercing, think about what is involved... You're driving a sharp metal object through an area with a lot of nerves and a lot of blood flow and that serves some very important purposes medically. It will bleed, it will hurt, and there are some serious risks you should consider. Do NOT take this piercing lightly. Do NOT wander down to the corner beauty supply shop and ask the girl behind the counter to whip out her piercing gun. :)