I originally went in to Body Manipulations on Monday, hoping to get a horizontal clit hood piercing. Christopher took me back to the piercing room, and I hopped up on the table. He told me before I took my pants off that it doesn't work on a lot of women due to their anatomy, but I still had high hopes. The guy I just started seeing was going to be gone for three weeks and I just got waxed a few days ago...perfect timing to get a piercing in my nether regions, right? But alas, it was not to be...Christopher said that while he could do it, it would most likely be pretty pinchy and not very comfortable, and he didn't think it was a good idea. So, disappointed but trusting his judgment, I hopped off the table and headed home.
At A Glance Author Monica Contact Monica@bme.anon When It just happened Artist Paul Stoll Studio Body Manipulations Location San Francisco, CA Over the next two days, I thought, and I thought, and I thought....
And I still really wanted a genital piercing of some sort. I already had a vertical clit hood piercing and a pair of rings on my inner labia. Part of my long-term piercing plan is to have three rings on each set of labia...three on the left inner, three on the left outer, three on the right inner, three on the right outer. So I thought I might as well get started on the outer labia now, and decided to go in first thing when the shop opened on Thursday morning.
I was super excited when I went to sleep on Wednesday night (having just decided on getting my outer labia pierced at about 5.00pm that day), and woke up with the familiar butterflies in my stomach. After going on bmezine.com and checking out a bunch of the outer labia piercing stories, I jumped in my car and drove into the city. They had just opened, and I saw Paul at the counter. He had seen me there on Monday, so I told him what I was after, waited a bit while he set up the room, and then followed him into the back.
I was totally nervous, but in a very gleeful way. After I hopped up on the table, Paul took his time checking out my anatomy and possible placement, and discussed the merits of curved barbells versus CBR's. I had decided to go with curved barbells, because I was more into the look of balls than of rings, when Paul said, "Well, actually...I did this one piercing on a woman a few years ago, that turned out really nice, and your anatomy is perfect for it: a vertical outer labia piercing. What do you think?" Apparently the very reason an HCH wouldn't have worked makes me perfect for a vertical outer labia piercing. Who knew? Sweet! Paul explained that the process is pretty similar to a surface piercing, as in the needle makes the initial entrance hole, then has to travel under the skin for awhile before making the exit hole. I was concerned about the pain factor, so I asked what it would be like compared to just a regular outer labia piercing. He said it's different: that I would feel the initial pinch when he pierced the skin; then the part where he was making the needle curve under the skin wouldn't be painful anymore, but would be weird because I'd be able to feel it moving under my skin; and then there would be a second pinch when the needle made its exit. He was totally excited about it, which of course made me all the more into it as well. So I said, "Sweet! Let's do it! Awesome!!" He asked if I wanted one or both, to which I replied, "Both of course...got to keep things symmetrical!"
So Paul went to get the curved barbells; when he came back, he had also brought a picture of the other vertical outer labia piercing he had done. It looked so frickin' amazing, it was great! I decided I wanted the placement of mine to be really symmetrical and vertical when I'm standing up (since I'm the one who's going to be seeing it the most, I figured it should be piercing in the way that looks the most pleasing to me). I lay back on the table with my feet in the stirrups, and he got ready to pierce.
I had no preference which one to do first, so he chose the left as he was standing on my right and said then he wouldn't be reaching over something he had just pierced. I took a deep breath and exhaled, took another deep breath and exhaled, and at the beginning of that exhale, he made the first pierce. Yowza! Sharp pain. Then the sharp pain went away, and just as he had predicted, I was in no pain but could feel the needle working its way under my skin. "Now I'm making the curve...and deep breath...and exhale...." And whoosh, he pushed the needle out. Another sharp pain, and then it was done.
By this time I was laughing like a maniac, and was in a full fit of giggles. I had been totally excited since I walked in the shop, but as the piercing grew closer and as it commenced, I was totally thrilled and happy. As soon as I really commit to a piercing, and decide I'm going to get it done, I get into this state of anticipatory tension, and really can't think of much else until I finally do it. Then after the fact, it's like this huge release, and I'm skipping down the street and feeling like I have euphoric bubbles in my bloodstream.
Paul then moved on to the next side and, with the same process, pierced my right outer labia as well. Much the same, except this time I knew what to expect and the exit pierce felt a bit more painful – I think it was because I knew the process was almost over. I let out a big breath and started giggling, and Paul said, "Wow, that was great – you had a huge smile on your face the entire time." Sweet! I was totally ecstatic, as was Paul – he was totally into it. He asked if he could take a picture, for their records, and I said, "Of course – anything I can do to further the education of others!" So he came back with the camera, took some pictures, and showed me what I looked like to the rest of the world – I loved it!! Super cool. Then when I got off the table and looked at myself in the mirror, I loved it even more. The placement was absolutely perfect, it matched right up with my VCH, and the balls were the same size, so it really looks perfectly symmetrical and even.
I was hardly bleeding at all so decided to forgo the panty liner, pulled on my (cotton, for better breathability) underwear and jeans, gave Paul a huge hug, paid, and bounced out the door before leaping wildly into the air, fist raised above my head, whooping my way down the sidewalk. Well, there were people around, so I didn't whoop my way down the entire sidewalk – just about ten yards, then I settled down into a fast walk with the most massive ear-to-ear grin I've ever displayed. I immediately called my friend Barbara – she's my coworker and piercing buddy, and I had told her my plans the day before. I'm not sure I made a whole lot of sense on her voicemail – I just remember being totally ecstatic and repeating, "Dude! It is so awesome! Dude! It is so freaking cool, you have no idea. Oh my God!" over and over.
"Awesome" was my mantra for the rest of the day. I seriously could not have wiped the grin off my face if I had tried, and kept going into paroxysms of glee, exclaiming, "Awesome, this is so freaking awesome, totally awesome, holy shit this is awesome!!" in a squeal a good two octaves higher than my normal voice. During the drive home, I frequently had to take both hands off the wheel and shake them in the air like I was at a religious revival: "Wow! Oh my god, wow! I don't believe this! Holy crap, this is awesome!!" I'd always been super excited after piercings, but this took it to a whole new level.
I did the first salt-water soak last night (as I'm writing this, it's Friday night, the day after I got the piercing). I had thought it was going to be more awkward to soak than it is – I just put some salt in a regular coffee mug, filled it to the brim with hot water, sat on the toilet with the mug positioned between my legs, handle-up to make it super easy to hold – leaned back a little, and I was totally comfortable. No worries. Then I stood in the bathtub and washed with Provon; it felt super weird as it was the first time I've felt my labia with four balls on them...definitely an oddity, but one I already enjoy. After a few rinses, done by refilling the mug with hot (warm) water and pouring it over my labia, I dried with a paper towel, put on clean cotton underwear and comfy sweats, and I was good to go!
Paul had said that it would actually be less sore after the fact than with a normal outer labia piercing, because there are no dangly bits to catch on things or twist, and so far I've found that to be true. And I absolutely love the look of it, though I definitely think of myself as modified down there, now! It actually feels really empowering – I don't know if it was Paul being so psyched about it, or just that I really committed, or what, but the anxieties I had had about getting the HCH (if I sleep with non-modified guys in the future, what will they think? Will they like it? Be turned off?) are totally gone, even though this definitely is more extreme, both in a visual and tactile sense, than an HCH. I just have this sense of being really confident in my body and secure in who I am, both in regards to my mods and in a more general sense.
I loved the actual piercing process – it felt like four piercings for the price of two, because I got not only the initial pierce, but also the delay and then the exit pierce. It created an even greater sense of anticipation and prolonged the euphoria-inducing procedure. I also find it more aesthetically pleasing than if I were to have rings there...though I do think rings would look great right below them. They'd complement my inner labia rings and balance out all the balls...something to look forward to! But these are quite enough for me right now; I'm still totally over the moon about them.
Love it, love it, love it!!!! I cannot say enough wonderful things about this piercing. If your anatomy supports it...go for it!!