Before today, I had eight piercings – three in each of my ear lobes, one in my left nipple, and one in my bellybutton. I love these piercings, but it had been about a year since I had my last one done, and a few weeks ago I started craving something new. I also wanted something different, something unusual that not many others would have. Something interesting and fairly individual.
At A Glance Author anonymous Contact anonymous@bme.anon When It just happened Artist Tim Studio Absolution Location Christchurch, New Zealand Today I got three vertical surface piercings in my abdomen, underneath my appendix scar.
I made my appointment at Absolution in Christchurch a fortnight ago, and talked to one of the piercers there about surface piercings and the risk of rejection. I realise that surface piercings can be particularly fickle, and while some can stay in for years, others reject relatively quickly. I was told that the outer of the three piercings was quite likely to reject, while the other two should be alright. I thought about this for a while, and decided that I could always get one or more of the piercings redone if need be.
To be perfectly honest, if all three piercings eventually reject and I have to take them out, I hope that they'll scar quite notably. I'm very attached to all of my piercings (not just in a literal sense) and I think if I have three little scars on either side of my existing appendix scar, I'll quite like the way that will look and I won't feel too much of a sense of loss if I have to remove the piercings. But that's something I'll deal with a little later, if need be.
The piercings themselves went brilliantly. I was greeted at Absolution by Tim, who was not the piercer that I was expecting to be there. I'd been pierced before by Quille, another piercer at Absolution, as have a number of my friends. I was a little apprehensive about these piercings done by someone I didn't know a lot about... but that apprehension soon vanished after I saw how professional Tim was and was put at ease by his friendly, chatty manner.
Tim marked the spots for the piercings on my abdomen, and I took a seat while he bent the surface bars into the right shape. I think about six pairs of gloves went into the bin during that process. Absolution is a fantastic body modification studio that I would have no trouble recommending to anyone. Soon enough, the jewelry was ready to go, and Tim remarked the spots for the piercings to make sure that they were just right. As he was doing this, he glanced up at me and asked me if I was nervous. I replied that yes, I was a little... to which he responded with a cheeky grin and "me too".
I lay down on the table, feeling that surge of adrenaline that I've had just before all of my piercings. It's a wonderful feeling. I relaxed and started breathing deeply. Tim asked if I had any preference as to which side he should start the piercings on. I told him that whatever was easiest for him was fine.
He started with the outer most piercing, got the needle into place and told me to take a deep breath in, then breathe out. The needle slid through and the pain was minimal. As usual, it was the "last little pinch" before putting in the jewelry that hurt the most. I looked down during this piercing and saw the needle sitting there in my abdomen before Tim put the jewelry in. Weird, but very cool.
Same procedure with the second piercing. This one hurt the most out of all three. I was watching my flatmate's face as this piercing was done, hoping to see him turn a little pale or something. He doesn't like piercings very much, and his reaction to some more extreme piercings (such as a friend's genital piercing) can be quite entertaining. Unfortunately for me, he took these ones very well, and didn't freak out. He was the same person that came along as support crew last year when I had my nipple done. I missed his face during that, but apparently it was quite a sight.
One more piercing to go, and it wasn't as painful as the second one despite it apparently being quite fiddly. All done very quickly, a minimal amount of blood that came from the first piercing, and very little pain afterwards. A quick look in the mirror before I was patched up, the three piercings looked great. I was very pleased. Aftercare instructions, payment made, and a big thankyou to Tim who I was very impressed with.
It's now been about nine hours since I had the piercings done. I've removed the patches and done my first saltwash. The pain died down completely a couple of hours after the actual piercings, and the only pain I've had since has been from dabbing them with tissues during the saltwash. They're now slightly swollen and a little red, but they look absolutely great.
I'm very, very happy with these three piercings. It'll take a little time to heal and see how my body reacts to them, but I have a couple of very professional, friendly and helpful piercers to go to with any concerns or questions. I guess the next hurdle will be to make sure that the clothes I wear over the next week or aren't too tight over the piercings. A practical difficulty that I'm quite willing to deal with.
I've had my appendix scar since I was seven, when my appendix was removed after I was taken to hospital with stomach pains. I didn't have appendicitis, but the appendix was removed anyway. I still remember the healing process and how the scar looked during the first couple of years after the operation. I've always liked the scar, but now it looks gorgeous, and I feel more like the scar is truly my own.
Two rows, each with three little balls, making a total of six. Three actual piercings. Seven marks on my flesh (including the original scar) in total. Two, three, six, seven. Some very nice numbers to go with some very pleasing exterior decorating.