February of this year marked the arrival of my first facial piercing- my nostril, which, in no time, became my favourite acquisition. I adored it, as did everyone except my grandmother, who soon got used to it. I had been pierced with a screw with a small clear stone on top, but after two months I decided that this stone was too large, and decided to replace it with a smaller one.
At A Glance Author Miseria Contact Miseria@bme.anon When Three months ago Artist Pieta Studio Punktured at Off Ya Tree Location Adelaide, South Australia
I was surprised to find that buying a new nostril screw was more difficult than anticipated- all I could find were nose "bones" (which I tried and hated), or studs with "dog-leg" style bends. These bends were not as sharp as the screw, but I ended up settling for a small silver one anyway. I kept it for three months, with no problems. It never came loose or had any trouble.
Until early one Saturday morning. I woke up, inexplicably, at two o'clock in the morning, and instinctively touched the side of my nose. I realised, in horror, that my beloved stud was no longer there. I leapt out of bed and proceeded to tear my bedroom upside down looking for it, to no avail. Panicking slightly, I grabbed a spare stud from my dresser and tried to reinsert it. It got halfway through my nose, and refused to go any further. The jewellery could only have been missing for an hour and a half at most, but the inner part of the piercing had completely closed over. Sadly, I came to the conclusion that my favourite piercing was gone- but I would get it back.
Wary of causing excess trauma to the area, I waited two weeks before the repiercing. I excitedly dragged my brother, who I was taking shopping that day, into Punktured, my piercing studio of choice. I spoke to Kate, who was working behind the counter, and asked if I would be able to be pierced with my own jewellery some time soon. She replied that I could, charged me twenty dollars for the procedure, and set up the jewellery and equipment to be sterilised.
After a short wait and a quick trip to a nearby coffee shop for the brother, I stepped into the piercing room and was greeted by Pieta. We chatted for a while about repiercing and the studio where I had been pierced previously before she marked the placement. A small scar was still visible from the earlier piercing, which made things easier- I had her move it forward slightly, and we were ready to go.
We dragged the bench from against the wall into the middle of the room, so that Pieta could stand over me properly ("I'm a bit pedantic about the way that I pierce" ... Not that I mind), and I lay down. She placed the receiving tube in my nose, and asked if I was ready. I nodded and closed my eyes- the last thing I saw was the needle in her hand hovering over my face. Knowing the usual routine, I exhaled, and felt the needle pierce the skin.
My previous nostril piercing had felt no more painful than an injection. I had anticipated this one, however, to be slightly more painful, and I was right. Due to the scar tissue in the area, the piercing hurt more and took longer- although the level of pain was not at all unbearable. And while the last one had been quick and effortless, this one seemed to require a lot more exertion on Pieta's part.
I kept my eyes closed tight as the piercing itself was done, and as the jewellery was inserted- also more uncomfortable and painful than previously. I could also feel my eyes watering as a reflex, though oddly enough not as much as last time.
"I knew I forgot something," Pieta said. "I always forget to give people tissues! I apologise- I don't try to be cruel. I'm just forgetful."
I laughed, as much as I could while trying not to move a lot of my face, and opened my eyes. She handed me a tissue, and after changing her gloves again, proceeded to clean the piercing. Again with the comparisons- my last nose piercing had not bled at all. This one, however, had different ideas. As Pieta cleaned the blood, she remarked that this had been one of the toughest piercings she had done, due to the scar tissue. It appears that my repiercing experience was perhaps a more painful one than others.
After a couple of minutes, I sat up and looked in the mirror, delighted with the results. It was pierced on a slightly different angle than before, which wasn't a bad thing at all. I was thrilled to have my favourite piercing back- I hadn't felt that I looked like me without it.
Having heard the aftercare speech several times before from Pieta and my earlier piercer, she simply handed me the required yellow aftercare sheet and asked what I had done with the piercing last time. I replied that I had used salt soaks and had been sold a bottle of Protat spray. She was satisfied, and after making sure that I had no other questions, said goodbye and made it clear that I should come back if any problems arose.
The area around the piercing was quite red for the next few hours, and felt slightly tight. I knew that this was normal and went on my happy way. After lunch, as my brother and I walked out of a shop, I looked down and noticed that the piercing looked darker. Walking cross-eyed to see it better, I asked him if it was bleeding again. He replied that it was, a little, so I headed into the toilets in Borders to have a look. I used a clean tissue to clean off some dried blood- much to the horror of a woman reapplying her lipstick in the mirror next to me.
"Oh no!" she exclaimed, reaching for her own tissues. "Do you have a blood nose?"
"No," I replied. "Just a bleeding nose. I just got it repierced."
"Oh," she responded. "Eww."
After helping the brother find some clothes to buy, we headed home on the train. Having heard his complaints that my before-bed salt soaks in the bathroom next to his room kept waking him up, I decided to save some time and make up my salt solution in bulk. I boiled a bottle of purified water and added a quarter of a teaspoon of salt for every 50mL, and keep it in the fridge, to be poured into a stylish eggcup with feet and microwaved before use.
After the first few days of a new piercing, I tend to grow lazy with aftercare. I kept up the twice-daily salt soaks for the first week and a half, and continued to wash it in the shower with Dettol liquid soap (New! For sensitive skin!) in the shower. But for the most part, I refrained from doing anything- especially touching. This method seems to work, and a couple of months later, I have had no problems whatsoever. It seems to be healing better this time around than it did earlier.
And so ends, for now, my happy tale of a love lost and regained. And like every good story, there is a moral...
When it comes to jewellery, don't rush, and don't settle for something less secure just for the aesthetic. A few more weeks wait to order in the product you want is far preferable to jamming a needle through a mass of scar tissue again. And doubtlessly less painful.