I have wanted a Prince Albert ever since I first heard about it—probably when I was around 17. This was out of the question at the time, as I come from a very conservative family—they would have reacted very strongly to any piercing, let alone one through my penis.
At A Glance Author AngryFish Contact AngryFish@bme.anon When It just happened Artist Andy Studio Bethesda Tattoo Company Location Bethesda, Maryland I thought about getting the piercing every now and then. I could forget about it for a while, but the thought of getting it always came back and stayed for a while when it did come back. This year, I decided to research it, thinking that if I didn't really want it I could forget it again and if I did really want it, I would go through with it.
I researched for two or three weeks before I decided I wanted it. The most annoying aspects of my research were:
1. I couldn't find many pictures of PA's with the gauge of the piercing labeled.
2. Aftercare directions often contradicted each other. I read somewhere that "the piercing shouldn't be cleaned or touched at all, just kept dry." This, however, is NOT what I'm doing and I don't suggest not cleaning your piercing.
I decided that there was only so much research I could do without actually talking to a piercer. I researched the studios in my area. My biggest frustrations looking up studios were:
1. Studios in my area weren't listed by the Association of Professional Piercers.
2. I really had to dig to find any information about the quality of the studio. I found some Yelp reviews for a couple, but some weren't reviewed on Yelp at all.
The things that turned me on to Bethesda Tattoo Co. were that they got positive reviews, that Andy (the piercer) had 7 years of experience, and that the pictures I saw of their studio showed that they had a beautiful facility. But I think the thing that really sold me was that I found an article in the Washington Post about him.
I emailed Bethesda Tattoo Co. and didn't get a reply in a couple days (I later found out that they were pretty busy, so I don't hold that against them) so I decided to visit. I was very impressed with their space. It almost reminded me of a small doctor's office with tattoo sketches on the wall. Nothing like the cramped tile floor one or two room places that I had been in before. I talked to a few people there who helped me with a few questions, and was told that Andy wasn't in.
I called Andy later in the week and determined a time that he would be in (piercings are walk-in only). And, after waiting a few days, I went in to get my piercing.
I walked in, said hello, filled out some paperwork, paid, and waited for Andy. He was out, but returned in a few minutes. He said hello to me briefly (I had to be somewhere in half an hour) and went back to prepare.
The room where I was pierced was small, but clean and bright. He had me lie on a padded exam table, handed me a mirror, and told me what he was going to do. He was going to mark where he was going to pierce, put the receiving tube, have me take a deep breath and during my exhale he would pierce me, then put the jewelry in, clean me up, bandage me, and send me out. He warned me that there would be a significant amount of blood and that the receiving tube would be the most uncomfortable part. Being on day 2, I agree.
I didn't watch most of the time. I watched him prepare his tools and laid back after I saw him putting Vaseline on the receiving tube. The receiving tube is one of the more intimidating pieces of metal I've seen in a while. It was cold and larger than anything I've had that far up my urethra (I've never had anything up my urethra). It was uncomfortable but I could understand why urethral sounding is pleasurable for some—it is very sensitive and I could feel shots of sensation up my back and down my legs. Still, it was uncomfortable and I was making little grunts and breathing shallow. Eventually he wiggled the receiving tube far enough down to pierce and told me to take a deep breath. I took a deep breath and felt a strong pinching sensation—I am not afraid of needles and very used to how they feel (I've had countless mouth problems and blood drawn) and I could tell when the needle slid through. Getting a shot of Novocain in the gums is more unpleasant than the actual piercing.
At this point he turned around to get the jewelry and I propped myself up to look. I saw a large gauge needle with a cork on top of it going through my penis. Probably one of the more interesting things I've seen in my life. Andy caught me as I laid back down and cracked a joke about how that probably wasn't the part I wanted to see.
He put the jewelry in—this wasn't very uncomfortable. It only started to bleed after he had been moving the jewelry around (getting the bead in). It seemed as though the jewelry had blocked the blood for a second, but now it came. It was a steady drip—probably a teaspoon in total. He bandaged me up—admitted that he wasn't very good at wrapping (I don't blame him—I've never wrapped a bleeding penis in bandages). Regardless, his bandaging kept the blood from getting on my underwear (I wore black boxer briefs just in case).
Soon after I got back, I took a shower and pissed there (because I had read that this was more comfortable than not going in the shower). There was a significant amount of blood. I would guess there was around a tablespoon during my whole shower. I cleaned it and bandaged it after. Andy told me I could keep a bandage on it for the day and maybe the first night if I really wanted, but that I should let it breathe after that.
I kept a bandage on it and tissues under the bandage for the rest of the day. That night I kept the bandage off and wore two pairs of underwear. I had gotten a jock strap for free and wore that under my boxers. This morning there was some spotting, but not an overwhelming amount.
Currently, the most uncomfortable thing is when the jewelry gets stuck or pushed in my underwear. And erections—I've had only one and I'm trying to keep these minimal. Obviously, the jewelry moves when I get hard and it pushes on the wound, so it's not exactly pleasant.
So, from here on out I'm going to keep cleaning and doing my salt baths (2 a day each) and I hope that my piercing heals as beautifully as it was placed. I'm also taking Vitamin C and Zinc because this is supposed to help healing.
I have a 10 gauge PA and I like the size. I would prefer a bent barbell, but BTC didn't have any in stock, so I got a 10g captive bead ring and I will replace it with a bent barbell once I've healed.