At A Glance Author Lunah Contact Lunah@bme.anon IAM Lunah When A month ago Artist Sean Phillips Studio Beyond Body Piercing Location Arlington, VA When I was 12 years old and living in Naples, Italy, I saw my first person with a nostril piercing. I was immediately intrigued, and asked my mom if I could get it done. As most parents would, she said no. So a nostril piercing was something I always longed for, but by the time I was old enough to get it done without parental consent, I wasn't in a good place at all -- bad relationship. And by the time I was in a better place, I had a corporate job and wasn't sure that facial piercings would go over well at all. Little did I know that I would be able to get away with it there after all.
Fast-forward nearly six years. I'm now 30 years old, and I had been in a paramedic study program for two years. I still really wanted a nostril piercing; however, facial piercings were forbidden in a lot of sites where I did my clinicals. I pondered getting it done when I finished, as a graduation gift to myself. I like to mark really special occasions with various body mods.
Then the country went to Code Orange alert status, and the county where I had been doing my paramedic internship decided that students must be a threat to security, and the ride-along program was suspended indefinitely.
Aha! In a glass-half-full moment, I realized this was a good time to get my nostril pierced ... I couldn't ride the medic unit anyway, so I'd have time to let it heal. The next part was to convince my husband, who really doesn't like facial piercings, that a nostril piercing would look good on me. He always tells me it's my body, of course, and that I'm free to do what I want to it. But did I want to get a piercing that would make my spouse look at me and say "Ewww"? Not really.
But I had a plan. I went to the mall and bought myself a little clip-on nose ring. I wore it around for a couple of days, and by the end of the weekend, my husband barely even noticed it, and it didn't bother him a bit.. And as I was hoping to have a nostril screw in the piercing anyway, I knew that the screw would be almost unnoticeable by comparison. I was all set! My biggest decision was left or right? After fiddling with my webcam and taking lots of pictures with the clip-on, I finally decided I'd prefer to have the left nostril pierced.
I already had a piercer in mind. I had met Sean Phillips, owner of Arlington, VA-based Beyond Body Piercing while at a BME Bowl-a-rama in Silver Spring. A few days after the BME event, I sent him an IM and asked a few questions about my potential piercing -- namely, to confirm that a nostril screw could be used during the healing period. I still have the same corporate job, and I didn't think a CBR would go over well. I figured I could get away with a nostril screw.
Sure enough, Sean confirmed that a nostril screw would definitely be a viable jewelry option. He said I was welcome to come over to his shop and check out the jewelry he had in stock, and I knew that once I got there, I'd want to go ahead and get it done. After wearing that silly little clip-on ring for a few days, my nose just didn't feel right naked! I have a somewhat long and pointy nose, and it's really not my favorite feature at all. Heh. As with all parts of me that I don't like, I like them better if they're modded. So I was really eager to make the nostril piercing real and permanent.
So I told Sean I'd come by the evening of March 11, after work, and get it done. The entire day at work I was so excited, I could barely contain myself. I wore my little clip-on ring around the office. My coworkers thought I was nuts, but that's hardly different from any other day.
I set out at 5:30 pm from work and drove 30 minutes over to Arlington and find Sean's place of business. There were a couple of people hanging out at the shop, one of which I recognized from the BME event. I liked the shop's atmosphere -- especially the low ceilings, which made it feel even more comfortable for a shorty like me! :)
Sean showed me the various nostril screws he had available, and I chose a stainless steel one with a ball on the end. We then proceeded to his piercing room. I wasn't nervous at all; I knew my pain tolerance is fairly high, and I was confident in Sean's abilities to make this a good experience.
All his equipment was clean and sterile, and I could tell that Sean was using good technique (after two years of paramedic studies, I certainly know the difference!). He marked my nose with a Sharpie and showed me the placement in a mirror. I agreed with the spot, and we were ready.
After changing gloves again and cleaning the site, he did it -- one small pinch, and it was done. Honestly I had been expecting more pain, especially after reading some experiences on BME in which people said that it was their most painful piercing. But with a deep breath in and a deep breath out, the needle was in and through, followed by my nostril screw. I had also expected my eyes to water involuntarily, but that didn't happen either. I couldn't believe it was really done!
It bled for a bit, and Sean cleaned it up for me. He had me wait for a little while to make sure it was okay, and I purchased some Provon soap and paid for the piercing while I waited. When it was apparent that the bleeding had stopped, I left the shop and headed home, feeling like my nose was finally complete.
My husband barely even notices the piercing, and he really does like it now. And the corporate job didn't say anything about it; I should have known they wouldn't, especially because we don't have a policy forbidding visible body modifications, and I have visible tattoos already.
I took very good care of my nostril piercing; I was meticulous with the aftercare, doing the sea-salt soaks and cleaning with Provon when necessary. Now, nearly nine weeks later, I have a very happy piercing.
The best part is this: I finally got permission to finish my paramedic internship in the county where I live, and they're so laid-back out here (it's a rural area) and in need of good EMS personnel that I can wear my nostril screw while on duty and they don't mind a bit. The only comment I had was from Junior, one of our deputy chiefs: "Looks like you put your earring in the wrong place." Me: "Yeah, I tripped and fell and it went into my nose. It was tragic." Heh!