Nirvana in my Nipple
At A Glance Author bloodthorn Contact bloodthorn@bme.anon When Two years ago Artist Fornax Studio the Foundry Location U.S.
I've read lots of stories about people's piercing experiences, but mine was relatively uneventful. It was the preparation and aftermath that was the true experience.
I went to the Foundry with a friend who had multiple piercings, because I finally got to the point where I was "ready". I'd wanted a piercing for a while, but I wasn't sure what ... and then there were the concerns about the "social" implications (I had a job at a fairly upscale business and had hopes of upward mobility). Well, I got beyond my cultural programming thanks to my friend Shaun and decided on a nipple. Well, I guess I wasn't really over the cultural programming, because my choice was based on its ability to be hidden. Anyway, I was a little nervous when I got there, but not much. More than nerves was the adrenalin rush I was having. I was pretty psyched about the prospect of having a ring in my nipple. I guess it was more a matter of self expression for myself, not for anyone else, so I didn't care that it wouldn't be in an obvious place to identify me with other pierced individuals. I came to realize the spirituality of the procedure because of all the soul searching I had done prior to going to the Foundry. Once there, the minor anxiety I was feeling didn't disturb the peace of my decision.
I filled out the appropriate forms, swore that I wasn't under the influence of drugs or alcohol, showed ID to prove I was old enough, and was escorted into one of the piercing rooms. My nipple was cleaned by a piercer who must have changed glove five times during the procedure, and after some breathing exercises, a fourteen gauge needle was pushed (with much ease) through my left nipple. I experienced no pain or discomfort, so when Fornax (the piercer) asked me if I was OK and ready for the other nipple, I quickly responded with a resounding "Hell, yeah!"
Well, my right nipple got cleaned off, and we got ready for the next piercing. Fornax must have felt something was wrong, because he asked me two more times if I was ready, adding "Are you sure?" the second time. I assured him everything was OK. Again, a fourteen gauge needle went through my nipple like a hot knife through butter. I'm sure there must have been a huge smile on my face, because I was feeling extemely elated, and although I was feeling very
much in touch with myself, I was experience a bit of detachment from the rest of the world. In fact, my mind was so far removed from the piercing parlor that I didn't even notice the cleaning up procedures.
I remember the piercer telling me that he was done, and as I went to get up, I heard my friend Shaun ask me if everything was alright. I seemed like he was calling to me from across the universe with a distant resonance. I assured him I was just fine ... at about the same time as I fell back into the chair. The feelings were more exquisite than any drug experience I'd ever had.
Fornax came over and also asked me if I was OK. I told him I was doing exceptionally well ... just a little light headed. Then he asked me what I'd eaten that day. Oops. Nobody told me I was supposed to eat. I hadn't eaten since dinner the night before, and I'd been out partying most of the night. He gave me a couple sugar cubes to chomp on (No, they weren't laced with anything) and some orange juice to drink, and within a few minutes my brains, or at least a portion of them, returned to my head. I left the Foundry under my own steam.
By then it was about 10:00, so I convinced Shaun that we needed to go out and party. We went to this club that's generally a mind altering experience anytime you go. The lights, the sounds; everything is geared to give the clubgoer the ultimate experience. But for me, those things weren't necessary. I was having my own experience. I was both elated and relaxed, tactile and numb, detached and immersed. Needless to say, I neither indulged in alcohol nor party favors that night. I was having my own experience. Timothy Leary would have been proud, because I think I evolved emotionally that night. The piercing deeply impacted my
psyche. I was able to explore areas of my mind that had to that point been "the forbidden zone." I reconsidered attitudes, life goals, values, and just about every facet of who I was. And it was easy, because I was in my own safe, little world. Yes, I was in a club, but I was pretty much oblivious to people and sounds. Basically nothing there was getting "in" that night; I was having my own private party in my head.
To make a long story short: As a result of the mental state I acquired during the piercing process, I abandoned my cultural hangups (You know, that stuff the cram down our throats when we're kids) and changed my life. I decided to go to graduate school in biochemistry. Does that mean I joined the "Establishment"? Absolutely not, because I also have five other piercings ... and some are even in places where people can see them. I am self-confident and proactive. My life is moving forward more successfully than ever before, and I feel it is all because of the choices I made during my post-piercing altered state. The needle went in, and I achieved
Nirvana.