I have always been fascinated by body piercing, with the eyebrow and labret being the ones I think look the coolest. I've had my eyebrow pierced twice and it grew out the first time and I'm afraid it may grow out this time as well. I want to have something besides my ears pierced and although my eyebrow hasn't grown out yet, recently I had been thinking more seriously about getting the labret done.
At A Glance Author 224 Contact 224@bme.anon When It just happened Studio Andromeda Location New York City First I surfed the net to gather information about labret piercings, such as the risks, side effects, and aftercare instructions. The thing I read about that worried me the most was gum recession. I saw several people mention gum recession as an eventual serious problem with labret piercings. However, it was getting late in the day and I finally decided that I may as well just get it over with or I'd have to wait until next weekend.
A couple of my friends had recommended Andromeda to me, so I walked down to Saint Mark's and checked it out. I hadn't completely worked up the nerve yet though so I walked down Broadway for a bit, weighing my options, until I finally decided that I was definitely going to do this.
When I got back to Andromeda, I asked the guy behind the counter about gum recession. He laughed and told me that nicotine causes gum recession, not labret piercings. I was still a little skeptical, but I decided to get it done anyway, figuring I'll just keep an eye on my gums and if I notice anything bad starting to happen I'll just take the jewelry out.
I filled out the forms, and the guy gave me some very detailed aftercare instructions. Finally I went in to the piercing room. The guy who did my piercing was really nice, and the room was very clean. He gave me some listerine to swish around in my mouth while he set everything up. That stuff burned, but it was bearable. Then he asked me where I wanted the piercing, and I told him I wanted it pretty high, just below my lip. He marked my face and I checked it out and approved. So then came the actual piercing part. I was trying really hard not to laugh, but I finally got under control and relaxed my lip so he could put the clamp on. That really didn't hurt at all. The needle did hurt though! It hurt for about a second as it went through, and then again when he put the jewelry in. I'd say the pain was more than my eyebrow but less than getting my ears pierced with the gun. My piercer had a hard time getting the ball on the jewelry, and he had to fiddle with it for about a minu te, which hurt some more. He assured me that everything was alright though, he just couldn't get a grip on it. Finally he got the ball on, wiped the drool and blood off my face, and I was done.
As for the feeling, it is really weird at first. I had a hard time talking for the first few hours, just getting used to having this piece of metal in my mouth. I had to walk back the 7 blocks to my apartment and by the time I got back my lip was really hurting. I took some ibuprofen and lay down for a while and eventually it started to feel better. I burned my finger cooking dinner, so that took away some of the pain from my lip. Eating wasn't really a big deal, as long as I kept everything in small pieces. (The sandwich I ate for lunch today was quite difficult though - I used alot more napkins than usual!)Brushing my teeth is also hard as I have to be careful not to snag my toothbrush on the jewelry.
A day later, my lip is still pretty swollen, there is still some discomfort, and I'm not used to the feeling of the jewelry yet. I compare this to having braces though, I had various kinds of metal appliances (braces, retainer) in my mouth for 7 years, and although whenever something new was put in, it would feel weird at first, I eventually got used to it. I'm sure I'll get used to my labret and it definitely looks cooler than braces! The back of the jewelry does rub against my gums when I eat and laugh so I can see how it may cause my gums to recede. As I said earlier, I'll just pay close attention and take it out if I have to. The thing I'm worried about the most now though is how my parents will react, and the dentist who will be removing my wisdom teeth in a few months!