I'd always loved piercings but never got anything more adventurous than lobe piercings before (5 in total!) mainly due to the fact that my parents were dead against them. But now I was away at uni, and after all this is a pretty easy piercing to hide! I first thought about getting my nipple done in October 2001, but decided to leave it for a few months to see if I still really wanted it done, and what style to get (I think this is a good idea with any piercing – I won't let myself get things done on impulse!).
At A Glance Author Petrina Contact Petrina@bme.anon When A year ago Artist ??? Studio Pierced Up Location Bristol, England, UK I had a pretty bad time over Christmas with relationship problems, so when I got back to uni in January 2002 I thought, to hell with it, I still want my nipple done, and thought it'd be a good confidence booster and to celebrate my new found independence. I went down to Pierced Up as I'd walked past there a lot and liked the look of it, and knew other people who'd got pierced there and liked it. I went in on a Saturday, and they were fully booked up for that day, so I made an appointment for 11am the next day.
I went out clubbing that night, and I'd been told not to drink any alcohol for 8 hours before getting pierced. Fortunately I took my last sip as I was leaving the club at 3am – leaving me exactly 8 hours!
Waking up around 10 on Sunday morning with a sore head, I got the bus down into town and made my way to the studio. I was anticipating it was going to hurt like hell, and quite glad of my numbed hung-over state! When I got in, I chatted with the guy who was going to be piercing me and confirmed I was going to get a horizontal piercing through my left nipple, and which jewellery – a plain silver barbell. I dallied with the idea of getting my ear cartilage done at the same time (a piercing I'd always wanted) but wasn't sure, and the piercer said well I could always come back another time. I'm glad he said this rather than encouraging me to get it so he'd get paid more!
We went into the piercing room and sat on the bed, and he told me to take off my top and pull down the left side of my bra, so as to retain some modesty! I lay down and he used a cold wipe to make my nipple erect, and then cleaned the area thoroughly. He marked up where the piercing was going to go and asked me to have a look at it, both with a handheld mirror and the mirror on the wall to check it was where I wanted it. I watched him lay out all the piercing equipment, making sure it was all in new sterile packets. Then came the piercing!
I was expecting it to be very painful, and had psyched myself up for it. He put the clamp on, which was a weird sensation but not painful like I'd heard some people say. Then came a strong sharp sensation, and a second, and the needle was through. It was surprisingly not painful as such, just a strong sensation! I'd felt two pushes as the needle hadn't gone all the way through first time, which he was profusely apologetic for, but I didn't mind at all because the whole thing was much less painful then I'd expected! He fitted me with the barbell we'd picked out before whilst measuring my nipple, 1.6mm gauge (that's 14g in US!) and 20mm long (it was longer than I'd expected, but he said that that was the right size for my nipple – I do have quite large nipples!).
It did bleed a bit but stopped quickly, and he made sure it wasn't bleeding and gave it another clean before I left. I was given some antibacterial antiseptic wash to clean it with, and lots of advice about salt soaks etc. He left a little bit of gauze over it in my bra just to protect it and in case it bled again. I was extremely pleased and on quite a high as I left the shop! However, I decided that the reason it hadn't hurt was just due to endorphins and the excesses of the previous night, so on the way home I headed to Boots and stocked up on painkillers, gauze & cotton wool in anticipation of a bleeding messy painful healing time.
But it was not to be! I've had no problem from my nipple at all, and it's been over a year now. At first it did feel a bit tight for a few weeks, but it's never been painful, unless it gets knocked hard directly – that can be a bit tear inducing! Sometimes I still get a little bit of lymph around it, but its no problem. I love how it looks, and it definitely makes it much more sensitive in a very good way!
Its true what they say, piercing IS addictive, I'm now planning on getting a vertical piercing in my right nipple, to complement this one :), as well as a bit of an ear project!
My advice is, if you want your nipple done and you're sure, go for it! In my experience it really was surprisingly little pain, compared to horror stories I'd read. It's definitely a fun piercing to have, and at the end of the day, it's an area that will heal up very well if it doesn't go to plan. Happy piercing!