Let me start off by saying that my opinion on body mod have gone back and forth over the years. Early in high school I wanted to destroy metal detectors with the amount of stainless steel I wanted in my body, along with the mural that was to be my back. As I grew a little older I decided to stay away from piercings and tattoos, going for a "DNA Only" lifestyle. Recently I realized how lame that really was and how much I wanted to experience new things. I figured a piercing was the new thing I needed to try.
At A Glance Author The Mookster Contact The Mookster@bme.anon When A month ago Artist Maia (spelling?) Studio Third Eye Location Brooklyn, NY I had been talking with a friend of mine about the various piercings that I could get, what was good to start with, what guage to go for, etc. She already had a few piercings (tongue, bellybutton, ears) and was going to get her nipples done sooner or later. I thought to myself "Hmm, I have to hide this from my parents, the nipple would be the perfect choice for my first piercing. They'd never know!" My parents are quite conservative, and would nag or ridicule me, and quite honestly, I really don't want to hear their BS. So I was set on getting at least one nipple pierced, if not both.
A few weeks later I came home from college for my Feb. break with my mind racing about what was to come. I had done plenty of research (On BMEZine, Tribalectic, and various other websites) and knew fully well what I was going to put myself through.
The night after I got home my friend and I went to The Third Eye in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn. It was a very nicely laid out piercing parlor. It was very clean, seemed very professional and the staff was friendly. There were a number of private sections in the back closed off by curtains. Maia was the woman who came out from the back and brought us into a private booth with what looked like a dentist's chair, a surgical cart, a sink, full length mirror, and a few drawers of jewlery. She had a number of years experience, and tried her best to make us comfortable. I must admit though, I was never so nervous before. I was literally shaking!
My friend decided I was to go first. I had decided to get only my left nipple pierced (due to lack of funding for the right one, but that will be done later on). My nipples are rather small, so I ended up with a 16 guage captive bead ring as my choice of jewlery. Maia marked where the needle would go in and out and asked me to take a look and see if it was satisfactory. She then had me sit down and proceeded to clamp the hell out of my nipple. I was thinking the pain of the clamp was bad enough, the needle must be a lot worse. I chose to bite down on my wallet to avoid crushing my own teeth against each other and she pushed the needle through. I had never felt pain like that before, and I screamed like there was no tomorrow. But the pain subsided quickly, only to be replaced by the rush of adrenaline I had read and heard so much about. It was a rush indeed (in fact, the first words out of my mouth were "Holy sh*t what a rush!"). Once the needle was through and the ring was p ut in I started to bleed a little, but it wasnt much at all.
My friend then made me look like a total wimp by not making a sound for her first nipple, and then squeaking a little when the second was done. Afterwards we were fed candy and water (she said the sugar would help the shakes I was still experiencing), paid and were sent on our way.
I must admit, reactions from friends' parents can be quite humorous. Looks of shock, disgust, suprise, a laugh here or there. Some people are just too uptight about things (even the more liberally minded parents I know).
I was pretty sore for about 2 weeks afterward. I had trouble putting a shirt on or taking it off without wincing at the pain. It was nothing a little ibuprofen couldn't take care of though (or other, more herbal remedies).
Its now a month later and the healing process is going very well. I clean it twice daily with bactine. My other nipple is feeling lonely though, and after a few other piercings, I'll get that one done too. Eventually I'll post a picture when I get one scanned. I have since gotten 3 ear piercings, am planning on eyebrow, labret, and tongue (which is my next endeavour). Everybody was right...they ARE addicting.
More to come.
Sincerely,
The Mookster