I met the man who was to become my husband (and then ex-husband!) in 1994. He was a friend of a friend, and had stretched lobes that I found intriguing. I was somewhat modded, with two tattoos, multiple earrings, and two nostril rings, but all my piercings had been done with a gun, and I had never seen holes stretched to 00 before. We began dating, and he introduced me to play piercing. I did several surface piercings, but it's always been about the jewelry to me, so play piercing was not something I stayed with.
At A Glance Author Traceracer-X Artist Ex-husband, hobbiest piercer Studio Home Location Chicago, IL As our relationship deepened, we reached a point where we wanted to make a commitment. My ex asked me if I would consider letting him pierce my genitals as a sign of that commitment. He first suggested a clit hood piercing, but I demurred, not wanting to risk my future orgasms should he make a mistake. We agreed upon an inner labia piercing, instead.
As I had no experience with needle piercings beyond our play piercings, I allowed him to choose the jewelry and the gauge. He had me wash my genitals with Betadine soap, and we repaired to the bedroom. He had set up his things while I was washing, so he asked me if I was ready, and I said "Go!"
I was only slightly nervous. He said some lovely things about his feelings for me, and despite the fact that I was naked, and he was professing his love for me, it was a completely non-sexual atmosphere. It was very moving and profound, however. He then showed me the ring, which was a 10 gauge surgical steel ring with a steel ball. It was lovely, and suited me perfectly. I had thought not to watch, as was my practice when getting blood drawn or a shot, but he asked me to, and I was pretty curious. I sat back against some pillows, heels planted on the futon, knees apart, and looked down. He placed the clamp on my inner labia on the left side, and asked me if I liked the placement. I did, so now it was time for the needle.
There was far less pain than I expected. I found the clamp more uncomfortable than the actual piercing. The little plug of flesh that came out surprised me, but did not hurt much at all. The ring was then inserted as the needle came out.
My ex had spread the ring a little too far, unfortunately. The bead would not snap in. He had to go get some needle-nose pliers to close it. That was my worst moment of the whole procedure. Having someone work near one's genitals with pliers is a bit scary! I probably moved or jumped, because he did slip a little with them, and I got jabbed a bit. But he got the ring sufficiently closed, snapped the bead in, and I was done.
Naturally (for me), I had to urinate immediately. "Oh no! How am I going to pee without getting it on the hole?" I asked. My ex told me not to worry about that, it would probably even help with the healing. It burned a little, but I poured some cool water over it, and it stopped. There was virtually no bleeding involved. I dabbed it a couple of times with toilet paper, and only saw a bit of blood the first dab!My ex gave me some Neosporin, and I applied that right away. For the next week, I washed the new piercing several times a day with mild soap and water, and applied Neosporin. I turned the ring every time I went to the bathroom, and it rarely stuck. I was not in the habit of wearing underwear, but at that time I did, since it was a cushy barrier between my new piercing and rougher clothing. I wore stockings a couple of times, and that was NOT comfortable while the piercing was still new. I ended up borrowing my ex's tighty-whities for most of the next two weeks. It healed in absolutely no time. I have had several more piercings done since, and by far, my labia piercing was the least painful, fastest-healing hole ever. It's not that I would recommend urine as a cleansing agent for piercings, but it sure seemed to work for that one on me! I waited several days before attempting sexual intercourse, and had no pain at all when I did.
Since my ex and I split, I threw away the ring he gave me as a symbol of my freedom. I kept the hole empty for a year to reclaim the piercing and my genitals for my own. When I felt psychically healed, I went and bought a ring with a hematite bead, and I wear it always now. I love my labia ring, and despite the acrimony that my relationship egendered later, I still cherish the memory of that piercing as a special moment in my life.