At A Glance
Author	melissa
Contact	melissa@bme.anon
When	Two years ago
Location	brighton, uk

I've always loved piercings and body modifications in general (before this, I'd had quite a few in my ears, tongue, eyebrow, navel) and wanted something a bit different – but as I worked at a hugely conservative public library, where the eyebrow piercing was banned and the tongue was definitely a secret from the manager, I couldn't go for the lip piercing I'd love – so, I took a look through the bme photos to see what was out there. I also wanted something a little out of the ordinary – I knew a few 'cool' people at school who'd got navel and ear piercings to be 'cool and daring' – to impress people. I didn't want to be like them, I wanted to be alternative in my own way, and get piercings etc for myself, not for a crowd

My boyfriend at the time had a pretty crappy nipple piercing – he'd got it drunk in a slightly dodgy tattoo shop nearby, and it wasn't quite straight... but I liked the idea of it, and the fact that it would be such a secret piercing – something that I could enjoy, but that only people I shared it with would know about too. And I definitely wanted both done – I like symmetry, and I had also been told that if you got them done at different times they might spiral out at different angles, which would be interesting... but not something I wanted for mine. And why vertical? It just appealed, it's slightly different.

So, one weekend after a few weeks of saving and research, I plucked up the courage, headed down to the coast and found myself in a piercing parlour in Brighton, chatting to the guy behind the desk and admiring the huge range of body jewellery around – it turned out they had a free hour (I'd got there quite early!), so after flashing my id and talking about what I wanted, a female piercer came down to collect me - soon, I was being led upstairs, relaxing on a chair and chatting about barbell sizes – surreal, I've never been topless in front of a complete stranger and been so relaxed about it! But she definitely put me at ease

She got everything ready – sterile gloves, cleaning things up, showing me everything like the autoclave (which was all reassuring!), and took her time to draw exactly where the piercings were to go through. Me and my boyfriend had a look, with the use of mirrors, and decided it was perfect! Within minutes, the clamps were on, and the needle was going down through the first one – the pain was crazy, like nothing else I've ever felt – it's so weird having a needle go through there. Then he fed the bar through, did it up, and got ready for the next one. Slightly more painful now that I knew what to expect, but as soon as they were done, I knew I'd make a great choice – I could feel both of them, not in a painful way, just knowing they were there – it was really erotic. And there was a massive adrenaline rush – I felt brilliant, I couldn't stop smiling! And neither could my boyfriend – I think he was more freaked out that I was, but he thought they were great

And that was it – a healthcare sheet and instructions later, and I was back out in the sunshine with a massive smile on my face - there's something hugely satisfying about getting a piercing! And knowing that under my top I had metal bars through my nipples, and they felt great. The adrenaline wore off, but I still love them – and so do most people who've seen them!

Just for the record though... bra-less tops are fun to wear, if it's even slightly breezy I have an interesting 3-nipple effect through tops, as the barbells can be seen flanking the nipples, it's a different look certainly! and they definitely make their presence know walking outside in the cold in winter, I can feel them sticking out, and every millimetre of the bar going through – a definite reminder that metal conducts heat!

So another brilliant piercing experience, with hardly any problems at all – they took a while to fully heal, and the first time one fell out it was so so painful to put back in! but now, they occasionally get a bit crusty, but nothing that a quick clean doesn't fix. And definitely left me, as always, wanting more! Now that I've left the library, maybe it's finally time for the long-awaited lip ring to finally take its place, as well as maybe a couple of tattoos... if I start saving now, maybe it can be a Christmas present to myself! Roll on the festival season!