have more courage than I thought I did. Last Friday night (August 21, 1998) I had both of my nipples pierced.
I had been considering having it done for some time, and had done a lot of research and question asking of people who have had it done. My main concern was losing the ability to breast feed any future children I may have. I contacted the Le Leche League and their reply was "most likely not...just take out the jewelry so the baby won't swallow it by accident." That was very reassuring. BME also had good info about nipple piercing and breast feeding.

I spoke to a friend who had both nipples pierced about three years ago. "Was it worth it," was my other concern. His reply was an emphatic "yes!"

I am not too much of a wimp about pain. I have a couple of tattoos and that wasn't so bad. Most of the stories on BME reported a "moment of pain that was over before I had time to react." Okay, I can handle that.

I went with my husband (who got a PA! And he is a real baby about needles...I'm so proud of him!), and talked the owner of Bodymod in Riverside; Stacy. She was terrific. She let us ask as many questions as we liked, and answered them all.
She informed us of her training and sterilization methods (autoclave is the only way to go!). She showed us her huge inventory of jewelry, and recommended sizes.

We went home and thought about it overnight. My husband called me at work on Friday and asked if he should make an appointment for us. "Yes, please do."

We made sure to eat a little something before we went in. I brought both a snug-fitting tank top and a bra with me...I didn't know which I would feel more comfortable in afterwards.

The shop was pretty busy, but we filled out the paperwork and got on the schedule first. Stacy remembered that I had my eye on the stainless CBR with hematite beads, she recommended the 14g (one of the most common sizes, so finding lots of fun jewelry will be easy). All of Bodymod's display case jewelry is just that...display. All of the jewelry for use is autoclaved in it's own separate, sealed package, as is each single-use piercing kit.

Stacy set up the room: sterile jewelry, needles, clamps, Betadine, and LOTS of gloves. She must have changed gloves about 8 or 9 times. She went over the aftercare procedures first off, so I was still thinking straight, sort of. I was starting to get really nervous about the "hole" thing (pardon the stupid pun).

I striped off my T-shirt and she cleaned each nipple with Betadine, and marked the holes. I decided on going with a horizontal pierce, and they are centered beautifully. Next I hopped up on the table and lay down. My husband had already had his PA done. He had to go first 'cause if he had seen me get done he never would have gone through with it.
He held my hand and breathed with me. In through the nose, out through the mouth, slowly. I felt the clamp go on, that was nothing. Stacy was explaining every step and asking if I was okay. She gave herself away by pausing right before she pushed the needle through. WOW did that burn! The thing that shocked me the most was the sound! Kind of a meaty, crunchy sound. Really gross.

I felt my face flush and tears came to my eyes. "The jewelry is in. And one side is done." Whew! My husband asked if I was okay, I told him I was a little shaky. Time for number two.

The left side was somewhat easier than the right (I thought it might be). The procedure was repeated. This time the anticipation was the hard part. When the needle went through I was ready for it, but I squeezed my husband's hand so hard all the knuckles in my hand cracked! Stacy couldn't believe how loud they were. I didn't feel it and had to ask whose knuckles cracked.

There was no blood at all (still none three days later), and the burning pain was gone. It was mostly stinging, and I could feel my heart beat in each nipple. I opted for the bra, with tissue in each cup to keep any dyes or perfumes from laundry detergent from irritating the holes. That night I made the huge mistake of sleeping in a sports bra that was too tight. I woke at about 4:30 in horrible pain.
My poor nipples were smashed flat! I took off the offending bra and slept the rest of the night in a tank top. I have found they are most comfortable when I go topless around the house. Lots of air circulation will help them heal faster. That brings me to my aftercare routine: Before I do anything I wash my hands with anti-bacterial soap. I wash them in the shower with fragrance/dye free glycerin soap. Get the whole breast nice and soapy and carefully lift each ring up and down a few times to loosen them, then spin around all the way to the bead in one direction, wash the ring, spin the ring back around all the way to the bead in the opposite direction (wash the ring again), and then rotate the bead back to the center. Rinse well with clear water. Before I get out of the shower, I rinse again with generic saline solution. This helps balance the pH in your skin and promotes clean healing. I use store brand contact lens saline. At night I soak in soapy, warm water. ( a neat trick for this is using 3oz. Dixie cups! You can do it right over the sink, and don't have to get your whole body into the shower if your not of a mind to) I do the same rotation routine as in the shower. Take care to dry everything well also! Then on with a clean white tank top for bed. So far there has been no blood and very few "crusties". Stacy told me that antibacterial soaps and cleansers will dry things out too much, and may slow down the healing process by inhibiting the growth of new skin cells. "You aren't starting with an infection, so why treat them like you have one?" is her advice. "If an infection develops, deal with it appropriately at that time." I am very glad I got pierced. It is very sexy to know that I have this secret decoration, and I can't wait till they heal completely so I can share them with my husband. Respectfully submitted, August 24, 1998.