When we as humans were created, we were done so using a general template. Most of us have a face, a head, a torso and the other limbs necessary for us to function in everyday life. By looking at mankind and keeping this un-deniable fact in mind, we come to realize that this so called existence (in it's physical form) is rather bland and regular.
At A Glance Author Graham Contact gnanke@shaw.ca When It just happened Artist Dee Studio Bee Cool Location Calgary Alberta Canada Every once and a while there exists the will to change, to modify yourself, be it emotionally or physically. When I decided to get my first piercing, it wasn't an act of anger, it wasn't in protest of the conformist rule that we seem to live under. It was an act of self expression, a conscious step into a world where I wasn't part of the template... I wasn't like everyone else... there was something else that made me special (not saying that this is it but it's definitely something that people notice).
As for the experience, there was nothing to complain about. I got the piercing done at a place in Calgary called Bee Cool. They have been around for along time (making the jewelery for a very long time). The store was kept clean and the lobby had images of all the work that they had done with display cases showing off the very beautiful pieces of body adornment that one could choose. Price and tip were taken care before the piercing (I guess tipping after the procedure would be a bad idea as the sensation felt after the piercing was nothing that would really inspire me to give a tip (but not terrible)).
The woman that helped me take this step (Dee) was very kind and gentle. She made sure that all of my concerns and hesitations were addressed before doing anything. The conditions were of the utmost in sanitary. The needle was removed from a sealed package, the jewelery was placed into an autoclave right in front of me and the gloves that she wore were changed 4 times during the procedure, once after the iodine wash, once after the clamp was placed on my nipple, after the needle was through and she changed them one last time after adjusting the jewelery (to finish the last clean up of the piercing).
I was asked to remove my shirt and to stand next to a wall. Dee then sanitized my nipple (the left one) with an iodine wipe and then with another clear fluid (may have been rubbing alcohol). She took a pen out of a sealed container and made the marks. She asked me if they looked good to me and after viewing the marks in a full height mirror I agreed that they looked good enough to shove a metal spike through.
I sat in a chair much like a dentist chair, the entire thing was on hydraulics and I was placed into a position that felt as if I was floating, i was very comfortable. I could see my heart beating though my chest (the skin underneath my sternum was actually moving) Dee told me to relax, this didn't do much, until I felt her touch. There was something about the way she handled my skin and the way her latex clad hands felt that was just mesmerizing, all my concerns and fears seem to dissipate very rapidly and I was placed into a state of no longer hesitation, but anticipation!
She placed a clamp over my erect nipple and secured it with a rubber band. The clamp felt painful but nothing more than a tittie twister that so many of my friends feel is the appropriate greeting... god help them if they decide to do it with my pierced nipple!
The actual piercing was an experience within itself. Upon realizing that the needle was through my skin, things got really bright and a loud sound, almost like air rushing past a cave, was heard in my ears. The felt response of the needle piercing through my virgin nipple was not one of pain nor pleasure, but something in the middle. It's impossible to put into words but rest assured it was bearable. I looked down and saw the needle through the clamp and the sight was nothing short of strange. I felt weird, my eyes were telling my mind that my nipple should be screaming in pain but the fact of the matter was it just felt like a dull poke. When she placed the jewelery (a 14ga. hoop with a single ball at the bottom) into the nipple I felt it. Once again it did hurt but it wasn't anything that could be considered OH MY GOD I'M GOING TO DIE pain.
Will I get another piercing, YES! will it be at the same place by the same artist? YES!
This act was one of the most gratifying experiences I have ever had. It seems as though there is another world out there for me to explore... and explore I will.