At A Glance
Author	Hilary
Contact	Hilary@bme.anon
IAM	mousie
When	A week ago
Artist	Lance Gremillion
Studio	Amillion
Location	Austin, TX

INTRODUCTION:

Let me begin by saying that I have been into piercing for quite some time. For about 8 years now, I have repeatedly had needles put through my body. Some of the piercings have lasted, others have not. I started young, a freshman in high school, by convincing my parents to allow me multiple earlobe and ear cartilage piercings. Once I headed off to college, lovely city of Austin, I began to grow more interested in non-ear piercings. I stretched my lobes up to 6ga the first semester in college, got my first nipple piercing at midnight, the very second I turned 18, and soon to follow were other piercings (facial, body), and eventually my first genital piercing. Now, a few years later, I have one remaining facial piercing and less than half of my earrings due to becoming employed as a white-collar professional. Now, my piercings must remain hidden. Since I had run out of places to pierce (both nipples are now done, navel was taken care of, and even a vertical hood down un der), I finally decided to go for one of my most wanted, and most feared, piercings, paired inner labia.

THE RESEARCH:

Being a long-time fan of BME, that was the first place I turned to. I looked at the pictures to determine where I would prefer the placement and what kind of jewelry, and I read the numerous experiences to help prepare for the procedure itself and what to expect afterwards. I then contacted a long-time friend who has performed work on me since I first came to Austin who has now opened his own shop. I have always been very impressed with his shop, Amillion Tattoos and Body Piercings. It is a very clean shop with friendly employees. So, I made an appointment for 5:30 pm on May 23, 2002, and tried to get a good night of rest.

THE EVE OF THE PIERCINGS:

All day at work, I was anticipating my release from the office to head on up to the shop. It still did not seem like I was about to have 2 needles put through such a sensitive place. I think that making an appointment with the shop helped me out; it would have been much harder to chicken out. At 5pm, I left the office and ran home (well, not really ran, but I walked rather quickly). I changed into some comfy clothes (baggy pants) and packed my purse with my check card, cell phone, cigarettes, and a feminine hygiene product in case I bled afterwards. I hopped in my car and drove up to the shop.

My arrival was greeted with the always-friendly employees asking if I needed assistance, in which I replied that I had an appointment for a piercing. Lance then greeted me and we began to discuss what gauge and diameter jewelry I wanted. I knew that I wanted to start off with 10ga CBRs, but due to my anatomy (large outer labia, very small inner), I was reluctant to name a diameter. We then went into the piecing room so that he could take a look and see what would best suit my body. I dropped, then hopped, up onto the table and let him have a look. He decided on ½ inch diameter so that I would still have a little bit of *dangle* on the rings, but they would not get caught up when I sit and walk. We also discussed where I would like the placement. I knew that I wanted them as deep, or as close to the body, as possible since I am a *Gauge Queen,* and I knew that they would eventually be stretched up to a much larger gauge. This would provide for plenty of tissue to be a vailable for stretching later on. Lance also decided that he would pierce them at a slight angle so that the rings would lie comfortably between the outer labia. He chose the 2 rings he would be using, and placed all the items he would need for the procedure into the autoclave. While my tools, gloves, jewelry, and other necessities were being sterilized, I took a smoke break to try to calm my nerves while Lance performed a piercing on another client. I then did the necessary paperwork (photocopy of ID, answering all the normal questions, signing the release form). My cost was then added up and the check card was scanned. Yet another signature. By then Lance had finished with the previous client, and I entered the room.

Lance then set up for the procedure. On went a facemask and protective glasses. He washed his hands and put on the first pair of gloves. He then opened the tray fresh from the autoclave and showed me the test strip that said everything was sterilized. On went the second pair of gloves that came out of the autoclave. He set out all the tools, jewelry, and needles. Off with the gloves, on with new gloves. I again dropped, then hopped, onto the table. I was given the option of using the stirrups equipped on the table for my feet, but declined as they remind me too much of the OB/GYNs office. He then cleaned the area to be pierced, and marked the entrance and exit holes with a toothpick and violet. It took a while to get the marks just right, as every time I would move just a little, the outer labia would smudge the marks. During the marking, I also noticed that my feet were starting to slip off the table, and I was worried that I might slip during the actual piercing itself. Lance had me extend the stirrups out from the table so I could use those to anchor my feet. A small digression here, but even though I felt a little uncomfortable with the idea of using the stirrups, I would definitely recommend it. Just being able to have something holding your feet up relieves a lot of the pressure on your legs and it is easier to relax your muscles.

Well, the placement marks were finally done. Lance grabbed the needle. *Take a deep breath in through your mouth, out through your nose... deep breath in, and* HOLY *#*#*^()@&*!@#$*(#$%#$&*!!!! That is all that I can remember about my initial verbal reaction that was soon followed by, *Okay, we are NOT going to do the second one today!* The jewelry was then slid through while I cringed. I will not lie to the readers of BME, it hurt like nothing I have ever experienced before. I cannot even begin to describe the pain. Lance let me have a few minutes to recover. Finally, the pain faded to just a dull burning, nothing in comparison to the piercing itself. At this point, I decided that if I did not get the second one done immediately, it would never be done. Lance readied himself with the second needle and told me to relax my muscles; otherwise it would be horribly painful. I closed my eyes, and tried to relax as much as I could, but I knew what was coming now. Deep breath in, deep breath out, deep breath in, and @$#%@$#^%&#@$&@#@(#%@& again. The second one really did hurt more than the first, but from the experiences I have read here on BME, I was expecting it. Although, this one was over much more quickly. In went the jewelry, bead popped in. All done!! I took a few deep breaths and tried to get a glimpse of the new piercings in the mirror facing the table. Wow! All I saw was a bunch of metal. At this point, Lance was trying to clean up the blood from the piercings. Apparently, I bled quite a bit. As I got up off the table, he gave me a handful of gauze to clean up with a bit and another handful to go into my underwear. I took a look at the table, and the end I had been sitting on was covered with blood. Now, I have bled a drop or two during piercings before, but nothing like this. I hobbled out of the room once I was dressed and gave the employees a quick grin before heading off to the restroom to apply my *feminine hygiene product* to my underclothing. Once I saw the amount of blood on that table, I was ever so glad that I had brought something.

I then did the follow-up at the counter where Lance asked me if I needed the aftercare information. My response was, *Nah, sea salt soaks twice a day, no touching, no swimming, 3-6 months healing.. blah blah, blah blah.* It is nice to have a friend to do work on you. They know if you are knowledgeable enough to take care of fresh piercings. He then gave me a new bottle of Provon (anti-microbial soap) for the piercings and a bottle of Satin to try out on one of my stretched lobes that had been acting up recently.

I then hobbled outside to chitchat with the employees and visitors, then got into my car and drove home sitting on my tailbone.

LATER IN THE EVENING:

Before I went to bed, I noticed that there was quite a bit of blood still. I changed to a clean *feminine hygiene product* (I am sorry, but I just hate the word *pad*). And went on to bed. The pain had been fairly minimal, only hurting if I sat down wrong and twisted stuff around on accident.

DAY ONE:

It was Friday, but I had work. I was concerned that it would be difficult to work throughout the day. I just took a couple of ibuprofen and headed off to the office. I found that sitting half-cross legged with just one leg bent under in my chair was the most comfortable. I also decided halfway through the day to change to clean underwear because of a slight bit of blood. This proved to be a good idea, and I was more comfortable for the rest of the day. But, I still tried to stay standing as much as possible due to the discomfort. I had a bit of bleeding when I cleaned the piercings that night. Typically, I adhere to the *Leave it the Hell Alone* healing method. Although I have found that my body reacts positively to just one quick clean a day for the first week or two with some Provon. It seems to help ease the pain a bit; I do not understand why, though.

DAY TWO:

This eve I started to have the itchy healing thing going on. I have never had a piercing react this way, but these things are itching while they are healing! Now, a healing sunburn=itch, a healing cut=itch, but this was the first time that a piercing ever itched. Maybe it is just due to where it is. I continued with the same *LitHA* method that has proven itself so well on my body. I was pretty comfortable all day, no blood at all. I just had to watch the way I sat so nothing would get twisted.

DAY THREE:

I was out and about shopping this day. The only discomfort I felt was after urinating; there was some stinging while using the tissue on these extra-sensitive parts. Otherwise, I was fine throughout the day with the half-day changing of the underwear. No Provon tonight.

ONE WEEK LATER:

The new holes are healing up great! I only feel mild discomfort when dabbing the piercings with tissue after urinating. I am truly amazed at the job Lance did. I realize now that my miniscule inner labia were practically impossible to pierce. Although, that also means that my hopes of several pairs of inner labia just went down the drain. I am just happy that my anatomy was sufficient enough for at least one pair. I am still using the *LitHA* method. I have found over time that this really is the best way for my body to heal new piercings. However, with each person it is different. Most people do great with the salt soaks. Personally, I only use those in extreme cases of unhappy piercings. Every person has a different story. Typically, my body does a great job of healing itself. So far, so good.

CONSLUSION:

Would I recommend this piercing to others?
YES! The initial pain is worth the outcome.

Aftercare procedure?
I would definitely just do the sea salt soaks (do a search in the Question of the Day or Glossary of BME if you are not familiar with this) to those who are new to piercings. It works wonderfully for the vast majority of people. After several piercings, you may find that your body reacts better to some aftercare methods than others. This is just a trial and error experiment.

Words of advice:
- Definitely take a *feminine hygiene product* with you. This piercing seems to bleed more than others.
- Prepare yourself for some pain. This one will most likely hurt. It is not unbearable, but most assuredly you will feel it. And of course, if you are expecting a TON of pain, it will not hurt that badly! =)
- Have a good supply of sea salt or supplies for which ever aftercare method you use. Healing time on these babies is at least 3 to 6 months. Be prepared!!

Any questions or comments? Send me a message! Happy Piercing! =)

Hilary (iam: mousie)