My life is one of striking contrast - while I'm constantly reading about/looking at/thinking of all sorts of piercings and tattoos, I have relatively nothing actually done to myself. I guess the main reason is that while all piercings amaze me, it's more of a 'kid in a candy store' kind of situation - sure you want them all, but your parents (or in my case, myself) force you to pick just the ones you love.
At A Glance Author fire eyes Contact fire eyes@bme.anon When A week ago Artist rev ryan Studio the hole look Location anchorage, ak That being said, the idea of hood piercings always fascinated me. I was a very shy and bland person for a very long time, until a series of strange events in my life pushed me to be more outgoing. I needed something that would help me overcome my self-consciousness and shyness, something that would help me feel better about myself, something that would reaffirm my independence - and (at least in my mind) a hood piercing was a great way of getting hitting off all of those. Plus, it would be my first serious piercing (since I never took my navel and various ear projects too seriously). Of course, even when I decided upon doing it, I was too self-conscious to go through with it! I figured that if I was lucky, I'd force myself to do it in the next 10 years (smirk). To anyone reading this and feeling the same unease about getting it done - this experience is especially for you, since that was my situation as well!
I was on vacation half-way across the country, in Alaska, when I suddenly decided that what better souvenir could I get from my great trip than a vertical hood piercing. Besides, I would never see the piercer or the place again in my life! I talked to my alaskan friends to get some suggestions on which place was the best and we decided on the Hole Look, which had just recently opened. We (me and a friend, who came along for moral support and to make sure I did not chicken out) pulled up to the place and went inside. There were these great plastic models of different commonly pierced body parts inside the display, each with a ring inserted in the appropriate place - let me tell you, the one of the vagina, with that gorgeous curved barbell with the jeweled balls convinced me that I really wanted to do this! I filled out all the forms, submitted ID, paid ($30 for the piercing, amazingly). I decided to do vertical, and to put in a captive ball ring. I heard that those give less stimulation, and I wanted to work my way up to that. Then it was time to wait.
When my turn came, I followed the apprentice into one of the incredibly clean, doctor's office-looking rooms. She set up all of the tools on the tray, making sure that it was all pre-package and super clean. The piercer, Ryan, came in and I had to take off my pants and panties - probably the worst part of it all!!! I did it quickly and sat up on the table, feet in the stirrups. He cleaned me up and set about measuring and marking. His apprentice and I joked about how embarrassing this was. I would have died of embarrassment if it wasn't for the general feeling of professionalism in the room. I assured myself that they must have done many of these and I was just the next one on a long list! When Ryan was done with the preliminaries, he briefly explained what he was going to do - he showed me the receiving tube, and told me when to breathe. I lay down and folded my hands on my stomach, expecting the worst. The receiving tube jammed up against me was already unpleasant, and the needle was next. He let me relax a bit before positioning the needle and telling me to inhale and exhale. I always screw up the breathing for all my piercings, so this one was no exception. There was the pressure of the receiving tube and of his hands, and then the sting of the needle. I whimpered and cursed loudly, almost simultaneously. Pain generally doesn't phase me, it was mainly the fact that it was pain down there, in the one place where sticking a needle just makes me shiver. Ryan gave me a second to collect myself before going forward - no matter how wussy and self-conscious I felt, I must say that his attitude towards me and the procedure was great and reassured me a lot. I relaxed again and he said he was going to put the ring in. That hurt more than the actual piercing - it felt like someone pinching me really hard, and I couldn't help but jerk. Of course, that screwed him up, and he didn't get it in. I apologized, and tried to calm down. The more I struggled t he longer this would take. The second time was easy, and he got it in just fine, put the ball in, and wiped away some blood. He told me that everything was just fine, and I apologized once more for being difficult while getting dressed. The apprentice told me about the aftercare, and it was all done!
I was warned by friends that I would be waddling around that day after it was done, but amazingly, I didn't. After taking a few steps and seeing that there was no pain or irritation at all, I went back to the front of the shop walking perfectly normally. My friend asked if I had chickened out, and when I told her that I got it done and it was all over, she was happy that I could walk so well, as well as proud of me for actually doing it! Over the course of that day, I discovered all the things that it hurt me to do (like jumping, skipping, and certain positions of sitting) and I adjusted to not doing them for the next few days. I bled a little for the next two days, but it was barely anything. For a few hours after being done, the piercing would just randomly start stinging or hurting out of the blue, but that phase passed rather quickly. The next day there was no pain at all, and by the fourth day it practically felt healed (though I know better than to stop doing aftercare ). I assume it will continue to heal well. It feels so great (though I haven't had sex with it yet, don't want to irritate it), and looks even better. Once its safe (in a month or two) I want to change the ring for a barbell, either curved or straight, to see which feeling I prefer.
If you're considering getting a vertical hood, go for it. Not only is it really pleasurable and looks very pretty, but it just makes me feel good! The experience was full of embarrassment, but, looking back on it, it gave me a lot more self-confidence. I was in there naked on the table with my legs spread open, and nothing happened! No one laughed, no one commented. Even better, I'm still alive, with a beautiful ring to show for it. It completely boosted my confidence. As for the pain - it did get pretty bad, but it was very very brief, and certain shots I've gotten at the dentist's have been worse. Good luck to anyone considering getting their hood pierced! I'm already thinking of other genital piercings I'd want!