This is my little story about my lovely lil' nostril piercing. It's rather long, but thorough.
At A Glance Author Sherri Lynn Contact Sherri Lynn@bme.anon When It just happened Artist name unknown Studio Lasting Empressions Location Dothan, Alabama I've been wanting a nostril piercing for about five or six months now, ever since I saw one of my friends get hers pierced on a trip we took with our University's marching band. The five month wait was filled with questions such as "Do I really want to do this?" and "What if I don't like it once I have it done? What if it doesn't suit my face?" But the most pressing question on my mind was "What about my major in college? I'm training to be a music teacher... should I really do this?"
I answered those questions by doing research on this site, as well as on a few other sites. I found out that if I really didn't like it once I had it done, I could remove it and it would leave a very minimal scar; most people say it looks like a just slightly bigger pore. (Of course, this is assuming it was well taken care of until the removal.) And on answering the question on whether or not a truly wanted it, I decided that since the desire to have it done had lingered for five months, it was worth going for.
I am 21 years old, but every time I do something "objectionable", I make sure to mention it to my parents. My parents were always quite liberal, and my mother's saying was always "If I did it, I can't tell you no." When I had my navel pierced in 2004, my parents told me it was all up to me because I was 19 years old, after all! All they wanted was to make sure I truly wanted the modification and that I would take good care of it. Sadly, my mother passed away eight months ago, so the only parent I had to talk to on this particular piercing was my dad. Dad said the same thing: "As long as you KNOW you want it, go for it. I'll even take you." He also had concerns about my career choice and wondered if it would be appropriate for the field, but agreed that it IS my face and that I could always remove it or mask it with a retainer if any employer had a problem with it.
This morning when I woke up, I was already nervous because I knew it was finally going to get the nerve to get my first facial piercing. The piercing shop I always go to is two hours away from my house, so I had a pretty lengthy car ride with my dad and my brother to help calm my nerves.
"You can always change your mind," Dad said to me as I kept talking about how nervous I was. I was also slightly worried about the pain because I know that everyone tolerates everything differently. However, I have had my navel pierced twice, my helix done, and several holes in my ears.
"No, this should really be nothing!" I replied to my dad and reminded him of all of the previous piercings I'd experienced.
Once we reached our destination at the piercing shop, I stepped outside the car and took a few deep breaths. My dad and brother opted to stay in the car while I went inside.
I smiled as I saw the familiar sights from two years ago -- the same staff, the same layout, and still the same color schemes! Most importantly, I saw the same very clean (literally spotless) environment and recognized the "doctor's office clean" smell.
I was most excited to see the same woman who had done all of my non-ear piercings. She's an older woman -- a grandmother! I believe her name is Lou, but I never manage to ask her. (After all of the work she's done for me, I think I ought to know the name of the wonderful woman who does such great modifications!)
She immediately asked me what she could do for me with a smile on her face.
"I would like my nostril pierced," I replied. She asked me what side, and I told her my left. (This was to even out my ear piercings. I have two on the left and three on the right.) She smiled and told me to come fill out the paperwork. I got out my ID and showed it to her, and she copied the needed information from it. She had me fill out the rest of the form and sign it.
As soon as I was finished, she let me pick out my jewelry. I chose a small diamond stud. She took it and asked me to follow her into the back room.
Once there, she asked me to sit in the dentist's style chair and turned me so that I was facing the wall. She laughed as she spun me around and I asked about the pain. "Most people say this feels like plucking your eyebrows," she told me. I then reminded her of the navel piercings she had done for me, and she said, "Then this pain should be NOTHING for you to handle."
After we had me settled in my chair, she began cleansing the ring I had chosen and she informed me of the new procedures their piercing shop had begun. "We use everything disposable now, even the clamps. We've always thrown our needles away, but now every last thing we use to pierce and tattoo is immediately thrown away. The health department was very pleased! So know that the needles I am using on you were never used on anyone else." After putting her gloves on, she then showed me her packaged materials and took them out of the package in front of me.
The next thing was marking my nose in the desired spot. She had my scrunch up my nose like I was disgusted or angry, and she laughed at the face I made. She marked me and handed me a mirror. I told her that I thought it was perfect.
She did one thing that surprised me, which is one thing I never hear many people talk about: since we were using a nose screw, before she pierced me she gave me a lesson on how to take the ring out if I changed my mind and didn't like it. Then she taught me how to put it back in when the time comes to change it. She did this just to make sure I wouldn't hurt myself or damage the piercing when I handle the ring! I was very happy about that added little touch. After the explanation, she handed me a Kleenex and told me it was for my eye, because it would begin to water once she put the needle through.
She then had my close my eyes and she used a few q-tips to disinfect my nose. After that, she told me she was putting the clamp on my nose and that it was going to be what felt the weirdest out of the whole process.
"You're doing fine!" she told me as I kept my eyes closed. "Take a deep breath," she then said, and I knew it was coming.
I felt a very minimal sting and then my eye began to water, just as she said it would. I seriously expected worse. This felt more like an ant bite to me than an eyebrow pluck, but either way the pain was almost non-existent. I then felt a tube hit my lip, and she informed me she was putting the ring in. To me, having the ring put in felt worse than the needle. After a grand total of 15 seconds for the whole procedure, she said, "You're finished!"
She handed me a mirror and I was extremely pleased. It was simply beautiful and very flattering to my nose. I tipped her, and she said that all of the tips she receives are spent on her six grandchildren! I laughed and we had a small conversation about video game systems, and then after thanking her for the piercing and her kindness again, I was on my way.
I'm very glad I had it done. If you're worried about pain, I wouldn't sweat it. People do take things differently, but even with different pain tolerances, I don't think this would be an overly painful experience for anyone. If you want something enough, the pain should never be an issue. It literally lasts a second and if you go to a very experienced piercer (mine has more than 20 years -- she's been doing this since I was born!) it really makes a difference.
It's been a grand total of three hours since I've had my left nostril pierced, and I only feel pain when I flare my nostril. I don't even feel pain when I stretch or scrunch my face. I'm so glad I had it done, and I'm glad I trusted a very experienced piercer to do so!