A part of my "get a new piercing" ritual entails more than a few visits to this website to look for stories and pictures, a simulation of the pain by pinching the area/body part, and the placing of fake jewelry to see how it would really look like on me. So yesterday I had 3 piercings done; yes, all on the same day. However, I'll focus on the vertical labret and write about the nipple piercings on another story.
At A Glance Author Miel Contact Miel@bme.anon When It just happened Artist Erin Studio Adrenaline Piercing and Tattoos Location Vancouver, BC
I've wanted to get my nipples pierced for quite some time now, but ever since I came across a picture of this girl who has a vertical labret –I was sold! It frames the lips beautifully (I think it's the most aesthetically pleasing piercing you could get on the face). After a few days on wrestling about it in my mind: "Nipples? Or Vertical Labret?", I decided to get both. I mean it would be an injustice to myself to be deprived of holes that I rightfully deserve (I had just finished 5 finals!!!!).
I wasn't sure where I would get my piercings, but I had two prospects. The first place my friend and I went to was Adrenaline on Granville, Vancouver. It's fairly new; only a few months old so I wasn't sure if they were just as good as other Vancouver's piercing staples (Sacred Heart, First, Next, Anatomic), but I did my research so I made up my mind: if Adrenaline made me feel iffy at all, I would head on out to another place.
So off we go to Adrenaline..it was really busy inside. The clerks were walking around talking to everyone until finally, we were approached by a guy named Adam. He asked me what I wanted, I asked him what the prices were and before I could even process everything he was like, "Ok cool, let's write this up." Of course I was hesitant, I mean I didn't even get to check the other place out and he had barely given me enough time to calculate the prices in my head. So I asked him to give me a second. He showed me the jewelry and I asked him what gauge he'd use for my vertical labret. He showed me a 16g barbell...and I started to get really excited. So after thinking about it for a bit, I decided to go for it. I saw a few people walking out of the room looking happy and whatnot, so I decided to just get it all over with.
The wait was about 5-10 minutes; I was approached by another piercer who asked me whether I was more comfortable with a guy or a girl. One of my friends had her lip done by the girl so I told him that I'd prefer it if she was the one who will be doing the procedures. I entered the room and was greeted by a really cool girl; her name was Erin. She could tell that I was really nervous but she was so friendly and down-to-earth that I felt at ease after a few minutes. The room looked really clean and sterile, the furniture was minimal. Just a counter, white walls, and a big black hospital chair/bed.
We spent a good 20 minutes marking my lips. Erin informed me that the vertical labret WILL eventually migrate and the longest she's had hers on was 6 months. She's had it done 4 times already because she loves it so much, but she said that it depends on a person's immune system. She showed me her vertical labret scars; it looked like the mark of an ear piercing and it wasn't that noticeable, so I wasn't worried. Every time she marked my lips she would change her gloves (which was about 8 times!), but I was really grateful. Erin told me to be really really picky because it's important that I approve of the positioning. After all she said "It IS your face and you won't hurt my feelings if you tell me to change it." I smiled different ways and made different faces to see if it was really centered. 20 minutes later, we finally decided on the positioning. She asked me to lie down on the bed and informed me that it would take a bit longer than the standard lip piercing because there's a lot more skin to be penetrated by the needle. She counted slowly: "1..2...take a deep breath.." and on the third count she pushed the needle in. She paused halfway through; this is where I start to feel the pain, and then she pushed it all the way. My eyes started to tear and I told her that it was one of the most painful piercings I've ever gotten. She quickly put the jewelry in (not painful at all) being careful not to drop the balls in my mouth, and I sat up and looked at the mirror. That's when I fell in love. I quickly forgot about the pain after seeing the two beautiful balls encompassing my bottom lip. It was perfect! It was straight, little to no bleeding around the lips, it looked EXACTLY how I wanted it to look like: straight, not too bulky, and the top ball to sit a just a tad further back so I can create a 'labret-like' illusion if I wanted to.
She knew I've had other piercings so she reviewed the after-care instructions quickly. Anti-bacterial soap, wash my hands every time I handle the piercing, sea-salt soaks at least twice a day, non-alcoholic mouthwash, check the barbell once a day to see if it's on tight, and no intense friction around the mouth for at least 6-8 weeks.
I came outside and everyone was really nice and supportive, they all looked at the vertical labret and complimented me. I paid my fees, and dropped a $40 tip on Erin's jar. I think it's safe to say that she's my favourite piercer. She's so nice, she accommodates exactly what you want, and most of all, she's got the skills! I definitely recommend Adrenaline for your piercing needs and I will for sure go back if the itching for another piercing comes back.
My vertical labret is exactly 2 days old now. I've had no bleeding at all, no swelling, no bruising, and it hasn't really given me much trouble when it comes to eating or drinking. However, my lips have gotten quite chapped so I just use a cotton swab, dip it in some Vaseline and dab around the piercing. My routine goes as follows (this is twice a day, in the morning and at night). However, I suggest doing research(what works for me might not work for everyone :))
a) Brush my teeth
b) Use anti-bacterial soap (dial works fine), lather it up and gently wash around the holes.
c) Non-alcoholic mouthwash (I'm currently using Amosan powder by Oral b, but biotene would work well).
d) Sea-Salt soak (3-10 minutes)
e) Vitamin C Supplements (nutrients are good when you're healing!)
I also use rinse my mouth out after every meal, and I basically just leave it alone. If you have any swelling of some sort, I suggest using some Ibuprofen and sleeping with you head elevated higher than your heart (bring on the pillows!).
For those of you considering this piercing, I definitely encourage you to go for it! I've lots of people come up to me and ask about it and it's hands-down my favourite piercing. The pain (on the scale of 1-10, with 1 being nothing and 10 being extreme pain), I would rate it at about 7. I've never had anything more painful, besides getting injected with anesthetics on the roof of my mouth at the dentists' but it's definitely bearable. Not to mention, totally worth it!
Thanks for reading everyone!