I got my septum pierced about two months ago, not planning to stretch it. I had it pierced at a 12 gauge and told the piercer that I probably wouldn't stretch, but I may change my mind in the future. Even if I was dead set on stretching at the time, I couldn't say so because my mom was there and she would have freaked out, so I of course gave the only answer that would benefit both of us, "maybe". But as time went by, I became really tired of the small size and began admiring those with large gauge septum piercings. I never really saw too many before I was pierced, but after seeing people with 0 gauge septums, I knew that I had to get that big. So, after it was almost fully healed from the initial piercing, about a month later, I decided to go ahead and do the first stretch.
At A Glance Author Alex Contact astephens1989@yahoo.com When A month ago Artist Autumn Studio Warlocks Location Raleigh, NC I was really nervous about stretching it because the only stretches I'd ever done before were my lobes, and they were fairly painful. I knew that the septum stretch would have to be a lot worse because it's a way more sensitive area. I get angry when someone bumps me in the nose, much less stick a fucking taper through my septum to make the hole bigger.
But I got over my fear and decided to go down to my usual spot, Warlocks. The piercer's name is Autumn and she does an excellent job every time I go to her. She's extremely friendly and very knowledgeable, not to mention the place is always very very clean.
When I got there I started talking to her about the stretch. She asked me how big I wanted to end up getting it. I told her I wanted to go at least to a 0 gauge, unless my septum started to droop before I got to that point. She said that I shouldn't have a problem because of the anatomy of my nose.
I told her I wanted to stretch 2 gauges to save a stretch in the future and asked her how much more painful this would be than doing a normal stretch. She said it was going to be bad either way, but it would be a little worse going 2 gauges. I thought about it and decided to do it.
I picked out an 8 gauge cbb and went back to sit in the big black chair. She leaned me back and sat behind me. First she took out the 12 gauge cbb I had in and cleaned out my nose (I still find this to be the most bothersome part of a septum piercing/stretch). She got the taper out and put the end up to the hole. She told me to take a deep breath in, and let it out. She had me do this three times and then began to insert the taper. Now, I was expecting it to be fairly quick like my lobes, but I was wrong. Where my lobes took about 3 seconds a piece, this took at least 15 seconds. I also thought I knew what kind of pain I was going to experience because I also skipped gauges on my lobe stretches, but again I was wrong. I'm not going to lie, it was a lot more painful than getting it pierced. I would much rather have it pierced again than stretch it again.
Anyway, after the taper was all the way through, she put the cbb in and I paid her. We talked for about 15 minutes about other piercings I wanted to get and about an apprenticeship. She told me to make sure I keep cleaning it regularly and I left.
The whole week following the stretch was the worse part of the whole experience. It was so sore and I kept tapping it in my sleep, making my eyes water every time. Finally, after 8 or 9 days, the soreness went away and I was back to normal.
To anyone looking to stretch their septum, here's a little advice. Unless you're planning to go to a large gauge, which would require multiple stretches, go one gauge at a time. However, I cannot say that I do not recommend it. If you are indeed pierced at a small gauge like myself, and wish to reach a very large gauge, I'd say it's almost worth the pain. In fact, in a few days I'm going to go and stretch mine again and I plan on going from an 8 gauge to a 4 gauge. All I can say is really think about it before making your decision. And if you're in the area, you should definitely consider Warlocks, it's a great place that genuinely cares for their customers.