*Sigh* I suppose I'm happy that I got the piercing, but then again, I'm kinda miffed.
At A Glance Author Sarah Contact Sarah@bme.anon When A week ago Artist Smitty Studio Big Brain Productions Location Omaha I had wanted a nose piercing since the beginning of my senior year in high school; I even went as far as to discuss it with my mom, as I was only 17 at the time. She seemed fine with it after she tried to pull the whole "You're not gonna be able to get a job!" line. But she didn't freak too much when I informed her a week before I got pierced that I was actually getting it done. Well now I'm a freshman in college, and two weeks I finally went through with my piercing.
My roommate Amanda and I went down to Big Brain, one of the best body mod places in Omaha. They're very well known, and I had read experiences from people on BME about Big Brain. I also had two friends get piercings there, so that was where I was set on going.
It was a Monday night and Amanda and I both had minimal homework to finish (homework in college? Who knew?), so we headed down to Big Brain in the Old Market. She wasn't going to get her piercing just yet, so she was just tagging along. This wasn't my first visit to Big Brain: one of my friends got her navel pierced there and my other friend got her conch pierced. I filled out all the paperwork and such at the desk before being called back to the "piercing room."
I sat down in the chair, which was pretty similar to a dentist's chair actually, and I was nervous. The environment is quite relaxed though: there's a huge fish tank outside the door, and they put on music when you come in. Before Smitty came in to pierce me, his apprentice, Colin came in. I was really jittery, so after he marked a dot on my nose, he was fitting the ring to my nose, and I jumped, thinking he was piercing it. He laughed and said that he wasn't the one who would be doing the piercing.
Smitty came it, talked to me for a minute as I laughed, trying to shake off my nervousness. He then put the clamps on my nose and shoved the needle through as Amanda stood in front of me, snapping pictures. This was a momentous occasion---my first piercing, aside from my ears, and it must be properly documented. It hurt, but then again, there was a sharp object being stabbed through my skin, but he was finished putting the CBR through just when I was expecting some more pain. He adjusted the CBR and screwed the ball on as I admired my piercing in the side mirror.
I went home, after paying the $35, and showed the rest of my roommates my mod. They all approved, except for my roommate's boyfriend, who said the ring looked funny, but screw him. And I carefully followed the aftercare instructions. Big Brain is very minimalist, so all I was told to do is wash it twice a day with antibacterial soap and I should be good to go.
That was two weeks ago. My nose was healing quiet nicely until about 5 days ago, and now it seems the dreaded bump is forming at the top of my piercing. Right now it looks similar to a pimple, but I dare not pop it. It doesn't hurt, yet. I'm not sure if I bumped the ring or not, because I've heard that bumping it could cause a keloid, which I'm assuming is what the bump is. I was washing it afew days ago, and it started to bleed. So, I went back to Big Brain to ask them if it looked ok, and they said it looked like it was healing alright for only being two weeks along. He also informed me not to put Neosporin on it, which I had done for a few days and it actually looked better with the Neosporin. But they know best, I'm assuming, so I quit with the ointments.
Hopefully the bump is just going through a phase and will eventually go away on its own. If not, I suppose I'll head back to Big Brain and ask them again about it. I guess I could try the sea salt soaks I've read so much about online, or perhaps attempt the tea tree oil. I've even read that olive oil works, but who knows. I guess it's all a matter of opinion.
I'm hoping that I won't have to take out my piercing, because I do like it. Even my parents don't mind it too much. Eventually I'm going to take out the ring and put a nose screw in instead, but for now, with the bump and all, I'll just keep the ring in.
Feel free to email me if you have any questions about my experience, or any advice on how to get rid of the bump!