At A Glance
Author	Draven
IAM	SadisticSarah
When	Three months ago
Artist	Me
Studio	My.. room?
Location	Central Ohio

Ok, I would've written this sooner but my brothers computer crashed, thus deleting this experience which I had saved in a word document.

About five months ago I began to venture further into the piercing world. I had already pierced my ears myself four times and had several other successful piercings on my ears. Let it be known that those holes I pierced myself are now missing in action due to complications. However, I still had them in when I decided to pierce my hand web.

I talked it over with a fellow piercing addict at school and she said it would be a fun idea given good circumstances. Well I did not exactly do as I should have.

About a month after deciding I wanted it pierced I gathered up some peroxide, q-tips, paper towels and a couple sewing needles. What follows me heading to my room with all this is nothing short of ignorance and should not be attempted by anyone.

I cleaned my hand off with the peroxide, the left hand since I was right handed. I figured this would be as easy as pie, right? I never used my left hand in everyday life anyways.

I cleaned off the needle, most likely an 18g one, and marked my skin with a Sharpie marker. I felt the skin around it and the positioning felt wrong so I re-did it, closer to the edge, but not dangerously so.

I decided to go through the bottom first, exit hole being on top. I began to push and instantly realized what I was in for. The hand web, or rather the hand in itself has so many nerve endings that it hurts ridiculously to stab it. Alas, I moved on.

It began hurting my finger to push on the end of the needle. I tried holding it with my index finger and thumb but that failed as well. With the needle only into the first layer of skin (keep in mind, there are seven), I positioned my hand parallel to the floor and stood the needle upright.

My hand was already beginning to ache, twenty minutes into fiddling with it, and it was hard to open my hand completely. I used the pressure of the floor for leverage on the needle. Pushing my hand down, I eventually started to be able to feel the pointy end of the needle on the top of my hand web.

I took some handy dandy vitamin e lotion and lubed up the needle and my hand web, then pushed the needle the rest of the way through. I was so happy, another hole usually does that. I had that familiar sense of confidence and that "yes, I did it" feel.

I quickly realized the the 16g CBR I planned to put it in wasn't going to slide through as I had expected. I went to my closet and got out some old studs. I chose a silver one, butterfly backed and nickel-laced. They had bothered my ear so I wasn't sure what they'd do to my hand.

It slid in easily enough, I struggled with the butterfly back, and then went to show it off to my dad. His only response was "stupid". He supports everything I do, as long as I'm not harming myself in the process. I had to clean up quickly and it was hard enough hiding it from my mom the rest of the night.

I opted to go to bed without a shower and felt better once in bed and lying down. The throbbing pain never went away, even after taking a few Tylenol. I woke up from my half-hearted sleep around two in the morning and went into the bathroom. Once my eyes were focused I could see that my hand was swollen a little around the piercing and that it still hurt to stretch my web out.

I decided to wash my hands, take it out, and throw away the stud. The taking it out part was done with my teeth and my right hand, for those interested. It didn't want to come out willingly either.
I headed back to my room, sad, tired, and disappointed. I rubbed some Bactracin on either hole where my piercing was and went back to sleep, still throbbing.

The next morning I awoke and my hand was incredibly sore. I could feel a dime sized swollen bit inside my web and I wasn't surprised. It was swollen all day and it hurt as though it were still pierced. Even putting my hair up was overly difficult.

I showed my friend my success and my failure, all in one, and just lived with it. The swelling went down in a few days and the lump shrank visibly and internally within a week or two.

To this day I can still feel a tiny lump inside my hand, a scar that I can't see, but I know is there. Maybe I'll try again someday, or maybe not. I'm mostly unpredictable and I just never realized how much I need my left hand.

I'll admit what I did was stupid and dangerous. I recovered with no long term damage with the exception of that scar and the memory. It was fun while it lasted, a whole seven hours. I suppose better then than never.

Please... save yourself the trouble: Go to a professional and get it done. It's not worth the hassle to do it yourself. Just realize how much you use the hand you want pierced. Really pay attention it it for a day and you'll see.