My friends and I went to the Alley in Chicago to see our favorite piercer Scott Jania. One of my friends wanted her second eyebrow piercing and I wanted a second bellybutton piercing. But when Scott examined my stomach, he told me there wasn't enough skin for it to work but was there anything else I would like to do? I looked to my friends, who looked back in horror, smiled and said, "I would like my inner labia pierced."
At A Glance Author xbruisedlilyx When It just happened Artist Scott Jania Studio Progressive Piercing Location Chicago, IL I had wanted to have my inner labia pierced since the previous March. One night, my boyfriend at the time told me he thought my inner labia were abnormally large and I should look into labia reduction surgery. Being impressionable because I believed I was in love, I immediately began to look into the procedure. I stared at the before and after pictures which to me said wrong and right. I looked wrong and freakish. Because I felt so hideous, my libido disappeared. I didn't want to have sex because I didn't want the other person to see how horrible my labia looked. I was ashamed of my body. I spent a month feeling disgusting before a thought occurred to me. Why spend money to make my body look like someone else? Why not make it look more like mine? That's when I got the idea for piercing. I spent months looking at pictures of inner labia piercing, reading experiences and healing information. The more I thought about it, the more I knew it was what I wanted.
In the studio, Scott showed me the jewelry. He would be using ¼ inch, 10 gauge bars because thinner jewelry had a higher risk of tearing and rings were more likely to snag on clothing and underwear than bars. As the jewelry was being sterilized, I was getting nervous. One of my friends agreed to come in and hold my hand, the other was still trying not to completely lose it at the very thought of what I was doing. I consistently go to Scott's studio because everything is sterilized but he also creates a very safe atmosphere. I've seen a number of my friends strip in his studio for piercings but dropping my pants and lying legs spread on the table was a little embarrassing. Scott was incredibly professional. He talked me through every step of the process from cleaning to marking to when he was changing his gloves. It helped me to relax always knowing what he was doing.
My labia were thin so Scott decided to use a septum clamp to make sure the needle was guided all the way through. I'm not going to lie - those clamps hurt. But the worst was still to come. Scott talked to me as he lined up the needle, told me to take a deep breath and on my natural exhale...oh dear god. That is without a doubt the most painful piercing experience I have ever had. Scott used a guide to put the jewelry in and I whimpered. I was now having serious second thoughts about my pain tolerance. As I lay there thinking about standing up and running away pants-less, the endorphins kicked in. I reminded myself why I wanted this and we were all set for number two. In all honesty the second one hurt even more. I didn't whimper, I howled. I howled so loud my friend outside door heard.
As I lay back feeling my entire body shaking, Scott handed me a mirror and showed me my new prize. It was beautiful and I knew the second I saw it that all the pain was worth it. Scott is the only piercer I ever would have trusted with this and as he talked me through the prep, the pain and the aftercare I knew why. He never blushed away from my questions and answered everything honestly and knowledgably. Scott did everything a piercer should, not just doing a phenomenal job on my piercings but he also helped me through what was a very difficult and very personal piercing experience for me
That was yesterday. Last night and today I haven't had any problems sitting or standing or dancing even. It occasionally stings a little to go to the bathroom but I bring a lukewarm cup of water with me and pour as I go, which takes care of that problem. I wear loose pants and underwear to prevent rubbing and irritate it. Even after 24 hours I'm not in any serious pain other than the occasional twinge. Since it is a blood-rich area it will take 4-6 weeks to heal, meaning no sex for 4-6 weeks but I can live with that. Just looking at my shiny new jewelry makes all the pain worth it because I feel beautiful and brave.
Besides, Scott told me my labia are not abnormally large. He said he'd seen clients with ones much bigger.