Well, I decided since I just turned 18 this past Sunday that I would get my inner conch pierced. It is a piercing that I have wanted for a while now, but I usually have to have a meaning that I put with the piercing before I get it. I always hold deep meaning to body modification, most of them marking off special points in my life, such as the stretching of my ear lobes during the course of senior year in high school as a sort of rite of passage, representing the transition from being in school, childhood, to moving away from home the first time, adulthood, and off to college (1500 miles away).That is why I decided to get it done today, to represent my actually becoming a legal adult (I say legal, because I believe someone can be an adult before they turn 18 years old through maturity).
At A Glance Author John D. Contact JMDHOCKEY11@aol.com IAM TribalJMD When It just happened Artist eve*valerie*eve Studio Body Piercing Unlimited Location Fairbanks, AK
I always loved the way that inner conch piercings looked, especially the larger gauge ones. I already have 3/4" lobes and a 4 gauge outer conch, so I wanted to have another larger gauge piercing to go with my others. I originally wanted to have it pierced at a 4 gauge, dermal punched, but the shop didn't have to punches, and the only way they could do it was if they used a 4 gauge needle or a smaller one and taper it. Since those were my options for 4 gauge, I figured I would be fine with having it pierced at a 10 gauge. Plus she also told me that the larger the needle the more blood that is lost, and I personally wouldn't really want to go through what a 4 gauge needle would feel like going through cartilage.
I already knew the piercer through IAM, eve*valerie*eve, so I instant messaged her ahead of time to get a price quote on it. I went up to Body Piercing Unlimited, which I have heard nothing but good reports about (including my own experience), and met Valerie and filled out the proper paperwork and went in the back to prepare for the procedure. I also had a friend of mine go in for a 2 hour tattoo session on his arm, and he was also very happy with how everything went. I was happy to see that proper health procedure was definitely taken seriously there. First, she put on a pair of gloves after washing her hands, and she marked off a spot where the possible piercing would be. Then, she asked me if I liked that spot, or if I wanted to have it in another spot. I just asked if she could make it about 1 mm below where she had put the original mark. While she was doing this, she was describing the proper care practices that I should perform during the healing process.
Second, she cleaned the entire area with antibacterial soap and then told me to lie down on my back with my head to the side. Then she told me that she would be lining up the needle with a receiving tube in the back. I felt that she had the needle in place, because she had it pointing in the spot, kind of digging into the first layer of skin. Next, she told me to breath in through my nose, and then breath out of my mouth, and when I breathed out of my mouth, the needle was pushed through. It honestly didn't hurt as bad as I thought it would, the only thing I really felt was when the needle was going just over the bevel and the jewelry insertion. I had this nice large 10 gauge captive bead ring put in it, and I am really happy with the placement of it.
It was definitely an enjoyable piercing experience, nice and clean, just how I like it. It was also very cool meeting someone that I met through IAM; she is an incredibly nice person. Body Piercing Unlimited is definitely a good, clean, professional shop, and I would recommend it to anyone who lives in, or is traveling to the Fairbanks, AK region.
As for future plans, I think I will end up stretching it to at least a 4 gauge, but I never know where I am going to stop. I said that I would stop at 0 gauge on my lobes! HA! Now their at 3/4". And for other piercings, I can't really be sure on that one either, I might do some other ear work, next, I am considering an orbital on my right ear, but I can be sure that I will get tattoos in the future. I know that I would want some traditional tribal designs, mainly because of my interest in all cultures and my studies in anthropology.