I had been looking at photos of piercings on the net, off and on, for a long time but I never could seem to summon up the nerve to do it. In fact, I had been so reluctant to have ANY piercing done that I still had a diamond ear stud I had received as a Christmas present from my wife in 2001 that didn't have a hole to go in.
At A Glance Author Davej Contact Davej@bme.anon When Three months ago Artist Lauren Studio Accent Tattoo Location Glouster Point, Virginia Well, one day in July 2003, out of the blue, while driving to the mall I decided to get my ear pierced. I went to a strip shopping center that had an earring place and ended up getting both my ears done using an ear gun. (I couldn't remember which ear I was supposed to put the stud in so I had both done to cover all the bases!) As it turned out, the pain from that experience wasn't all that bad, so I started to think again about getting a REAL piercing - and of course one of the first places I went to was the BME site.
I have to admit, I had always been intrigued by the idea of getting a genital piercing of some sort. I wasn't sure which one I was going to go for, so I went to the Male Genital page on BME to do some more research, and as soon as I saw the opening picture - a Prince Albert along with two scrotal piercings - I decided at once that THIS was what I was going to get.
While I had heard about Prince Albert piercings, I didn't know what the scrotal rings were called, so I went through all the different sections until I found that they were hafadas. I read a number of experience reports, read up on the potential risks, and before long I found that I had decided to really do it this time. I was going to dive right in and get a PA!
Since I knew absolutely nothing about where I could get a piercing like this in my area (Tidewater Virginia), I started an internet search and came up with several places with possibilities. I found out what most people into the scene already know - that body piercers often work at tattoo studios. Now, my town of Hampton is so conservative that until very recently it had a law prohibiting tattoo studios. I was looking for a place with a lot of experience, so that led me to look outside of Hampton. I noticed that several studios had websites, so I checked them out. When I looked at Accent Tattoo's site, I liked what I saw. Their tattoo art was exceptional, so I felt that their piercing work would be, too. On a Friday, I sent an e-mail to Lauren, who does the piercing at Accent Tattoo, to see if she did "below the belt" piercings, and anxiously awaited a reply. I quickly received a reply stating that yes, she did, and I sent back a reply asking about her hours. After another e xchange of e-mails, I was set to go for the next Thursday morning.
I could hardly wait - I think I felt like a kid waiting for Christmas. I was FINALLY going to do it. I was so up that I probably didn't get more than a couple hours sleep the night before. Thursday morning it was pouring rain like the end of the world. Accent Tattoo is in Glouster Point, Virginia - about 20 miles from my house - and on a good day it takes about a half hour to drive there, but that day it took more like an hour. All the way I was thinking, I can't believe I'm really going to get a PA! I finally got there and dashed inside in the middle of a cloudburst, and asked for Lauren. The person at the counter said that she was delayed by the rain and would be there in a bit, so I browsed at the tattoo art on display and waited. It turned out that the young lady at the counter was an apprentice piercer. She asked me if I was the one getting a PA, and when I said yes, she had me fill out the paperwork.
About 15 minutes later Lauren got there and then talked to me about the procedure. She asked if I had any questions, and then we discussed jewelery type and size for the initial piercing. I had wanted to go with a circular barbell at first, but Lauren recommended a captive bead ring for a starter. We talked about sizes and settled on a 5/8 inch ring. Lauren said that she did most initial PA's at 10 gauge, but I wanted to get my initial piercing at something heavier, so we decided on an 8 gauge. She then went to set up, as I waited expectantly. I was thinking, "It's actually going to happen!"
Lauren was ready, and I went back to the piercing room. I had a seat and "dropped my drawers". Lauren marked the site for the piercing, then cleaned it with betadine. She said that while some piercers used a 2 gauge receiving tube, she would use a slightly smaller 4 gauge tube to reduce the discomfort. I took deep breaths as the receiving tube went in. I felt a bit of burning at first, but it wasn't all that unpleasant. Lauren said that she was ready and asked if I was. I said "As ready as I'm going to be" and closed my eyes. She asked me to take deep breaths and told me, "Now." I felt a sharp pain with a burning quality that quickly peaked and was over. Oh, yes it hurt, but it wasn't the worst pain I've felt. Lauren said, "Now for the jewelery - it won't hurt as much." A couple of seconds and it was done. I opened my eyes and looked down. There it was - I had my PA!
I also had two hafadas done that day,too, but "that is another story."
Lauren had me sit for a bit to make sure that I was okay. I pulled my jeans back up, and then we talked about aftercare. She gave me a written sheet of aftercare instructions so that I wouldn't forget, and I was done.
Throughout the entire procedure, Lauren took great care to maintain clean technique. I work in health care, so that's something I took note of.
Everything has healed very nicely, and I've been back to gauge up my PA, as well as to have additional piercings. I have to admit that Lauren warned me - this piercing thing can be addictive! I thank Lauren and Accent Tattoo for a great experience!