I was successful in convincing my boyfriend Neil to take me to Stugis the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally so I could get my right nipple pierced. I don't know why it had to be at Sturgis, as there are places in town ( live in Rapid City, about 30 minutes away from Sturgis) that do piercings. My left one's been pierced for over five years (I did it myself, and I have to say it was not the best idea), and I've felt so uneven leaving the right one without a piercing. Anyhow, Neil HATES going to Sturgis during the rally. HATES it. HATES it. HATES it. Once we got there, he said that probably fifteen times.
At A Glance Author Sanguinista Contact Sanguinista@bme.anon When Six months ago Artist ? Studio ? Location South Dakota Anyhow, after passing a few places that did tattoos, we found a place that did both tattoos and piercings. I asked them if they did nipple piercings, which they did. At this point I was sweating and shaking horribly, remembering the horrible pain that accompanied my first nipple piercing. "Are you having both of them done?" asked the piercer.
"No, I did my left one by myself when I was 16. It was quite painful. That's why I'm so nervous."
"Yeah, that'll do it," said the piercer.
Had I been by myself, I might have chickened out, by I had made Neil come along, and he would be pissed if we'd driven to Sturgis for nothing. The piercer showed me the jewelry selection, but I was too nervous to be able to consider my options there. I decided that a plain captive bead ring would be just fine for the time being, and I could worry about getting something pretty once it healed. I filled out paperwork and all that good stuff and I was given the option to have it done right there (it was a giant room full of people getting tattoos) or to have it done in the back room.
I opted to go into the back-room because while I'm not shy about my body, I do have a who-gets-to-see-my-boobs policy. It's a privilege, dammit, a PRIVILEGE! They're spectacular! Anyway, you can see my boobs if you fall into one of the following categories: (a) You're Neil. (b) You're my doctor. (c) You're piercing my nipple. (d)You're paying to see my boobs. There are a few exceptions to those rules, but that pretty much covers the boob policy.
We go into the back-room, which looked like a cheap porn studio, with wood paneling on the walls. I take off my shirt and my bra (a neat thing was that he said my DIY piercing looked like it had been done by a professional) and sit down. The piercer marked a point of entry and a point of exit on my nipple, and asked me if I'm ready. At that point, I was probably as ready as I could possibly be, so I said yes. He told me to take a deep breath, and of course the needle going through my nipple hurt, but it wasn't nearly as bad as I had anticipated. It started as "ouch", and just when it got to "oh, my, that's a bit much," it was over. As the piercing put the bead of the ring into place, I said, "Wow, that was NOTHING compared to my other nipple," His reply? "Wow. I've been doing this for a long time, and no one's ever said that."
That, I'm proud of.
Here's the funny part. I obviously handled the pain pretty well. My body, however, doesn't very well handle the shock of having a hole poked in it. I passed out. Neil said I was out long enough for he and the piercer to have a conversation about the training the piercer had gone through. All while my boobs were hanging out, thank goodness I opted to have some privacy. I think another culprit in my passing out was that I hadn't eaten very much that day. Even if I had, my nerves probably would have made me puke it up. I just can't win. :P When I came to, I felt as though Neil and I were going to be stuck in that back room for several hours while I tried to recuperate. The piercer gave me a Mountain Dew, and I felt better very quickly. Neil tipped him $10, as I was too dazed to remember my own name. Thankfully, at that point, the confusion was only in my head, as we had a long walk back to the car. The walk back helped me get my mind back together, which was fortunate, as a good amount of ribbing was to be expected from Neil. "I was really surprised that the piercer didn't say anything about the size of your nipples. They're HUGE! I can't believe he wasn't like, "Oh my god, I don't think there's googleplex 0 gauge needle."
"Ha. Ha. Ha. You're so funny. But since my nipples are so gigantic, you can imagine that I handled the pain pretty well. It's a lot of nipple to go through."
"Yeah, sure. No, you did pretty well," he said. This coming from someone who's never had a piercing.
On the plus side, he took me out to dinner.
Embarrassment and mild ridicule aside, I'm happy I did it. I feel much more symmetrical.
I got my nipple pierced a little less than six months ago, and it's really healing nicely. Probably one of the best 'side effects' of me getting a piercing is how anal I am about following the recommended aftercare instructions. I clean the piercings meticulously, and I take better care of my body in general to aid the process. I eat better, I take care to get enough sleep so my body can rest.