New Piercing!
Mar. 29th, 2003 10:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
annuinSo I am now the proud owner of a brand new piercing, an industrial.
To those not in the know, an industrial is essentially 2 cartilage piercings connected with a barbell, they can be placed in many places in the ear (sometimes not even in the ear), most often in the top 'rim', which is also where I have mine.
After initially wanting a different piercer to do it I had to make a change of plan as the piercer is on hiatus until he finds new shop space to rent out, so I went to a shop he recommended, one of two on my short list. Cherie and I both wanted the same piercing... sounds lame, but it was actually pure coincidence that we were talking about piercings and mentioned that we both wanted that specific one... so we decided to go together. Strength and courage in numbers I guess.
We had planned on going in the afternoon after some fabric shopping in the fashion district (new corset fabric, yay! ), and it would have been around 5.30 by the time we got there as the shop is in the lower East Side.
Discussed the jewelry, filled out the paperwork, showed the id, paid for the procedure, and went into the piercing space with the piercer. Cherie went in with me, as she was going to be next and she wanted to see what it was like... Kit waited in the front area (only allowed 1 person in with you).
My piercer Cara and I discussed placement, and weighed the options and the individual shape etc. of each ear and which had the more suitable anatomy. I had originally wanted left, but right apparantly was a better choice... so it was right. She did also double check if I really wanted this piercing, as it's one of the more/most painful to get done, stays painful for quite some time, is painful and a hassle to clean and takes several months up to a year to heal. As I'd wanted this piercing for ages, and had vigourously done my research before hand none of this was news to me, and I was still ready to go through with it.
She selected the appropriate length jewelry and sanitised it and left it on a clean gauze pad soaking in the antiseptic spray while doing the rest of the prep (cleaning ear, marking, getting stuff ready, clamps etc.).
"Are you ready?"
'As ready as I'll ever be'...
Clamp, needle, receiving tube, repeat for second hole, put in jewelry, clean off. Apparantly she nicked my ear doing one of the holes, and it started to bleed profusely, and I could feel it trickling warmly down my neck and into my hair. I don't think this was the most reassuring thing Cherie could have seen, but anyway.
The $64 million dollar question... did it hurt? Oh Yes, even though pain is relative to each person.
The clamps are mildly uncomfortable, the needles going through hurt, though I found the whole shebang with the receiving tubes and jewelry fidgeting to be a lot worse... that also takes a lot longer, and longer still when you're doing it for two piercings at the same time.
It wasn't as bad as I had braced myself for (I had braced myself for nigh on excrutiating though ;)), and it was a different kind of pain than I had expected, more of a dull pain rather than a sharp pain, if that makes any sense. Followed mainly with it just feeling very hot and kind of achy/throbbing. The procedure lasted a lot longer than I expected though, a few minutes at least.
After me went Cherie, she had Kit in the room instead of me. So I got to sit and throb in the shop.
We then both got our aftercare together, a brief run through of what to do and what not to do, and a sheet about sea salt soaks from the shop and a general aftercare brochure from the APP (Association of Professional Piercers).
She then told us both that we were very brave, to which I responded that she probably said that to everyone... to which she responded that she didn't, because this is a painful and complicated piercing both in receiving and cleaning/healing and that if you know all that going in and still decide to do it, takes some bravery.
Ah, ego stroking, so nice
Pictures of a 3.5 hour old industrial:
1
2
The blue stripes/dots are from the placement markings. There's some yellow on the top of my ear from the iodine I believe, and some dried blood trapped behind the bar in the second picture. I haven't yet cleaned it since I got it, so this is 'as-is'.
To those not in the know, an industrial is essentially 2 cartilage piercings connected with a barbell, they can be placed in many places in the ear (sometimes not even in the ear), most often in the top 'rim', which is also where I have mine.
After initially wanting a different piercer to do it I had to make a change of plan as the piercer is on hiatus until he finds new shop space to rent out, so I went to a shop he recommended, one of two on my short list. Cherie and I both wanted the same piercing... sounds lame, but it was actually pure coincidence that we were talking about piercings and mentioned that we both wanted that specific one... so we decided to go together. Strength and courage in numbers I guess.
We had planned on going in the afternoon after some fabric shopping in the fashion district (new corset fabric, yay! ), and it would have been around 5.30 by the time we got there as the shop is in the lower East Side.
Discussed the jewelry, filled out the paperwork, showed the id, paid for the procedure, and went into the piercing space with the piercer. Cherie went in with me, as she was going to be next and she wanted to see what it was like... Kit waited in the front area (only allowed 1 person in with you).
My piercer Cara and I discussed placement, and weighed the options and the individual shape etc. of each ear and which had the more suitable anatomy. I had originally wanted left, but right apparantly was a better choice... so it was right. She did also double check if I really wanted this piercing, as it's one of the more/most painful to get done, stays painful for quite some time, is painful and a hassle to clean and takes several months up to a year to heal. As I'd wanted this piercing for ages, and had vigourously done my research before hand none of this was news to me, and I was still ready to go through with it.
She selected the appropriate length jewelry and sanitised it and left it on a clean gauze pad soaking in the antiseptic spray while doing the rest of the prep (cleaning ear, marking, getting stuff ready, clamps etc.).
"Are you ready?"
'As ready as I'll ever be'...
Clamp, needle, receiving tube, repeat for second hole, put in jewelry, clean off. Apparantly she nicked my ear doing one of the holes, and it started to bleed profusely, and I could feel it trickling warmly down my neck and into my hair. I don't think this was the most reassuring thing Cherie could have seen, but anyway.
The $64 million dollar question... did it hurt? Oh Yes, even though pain is relative to each person.
The clamps are mildly uncomfortable, the needles going through hurt, though I found the whole shebang with the receiving tubes and jewelry fidgeting to be a lot worse... that also takes a lot longer, and longer still when you're doing it for two piercings at the same time.
It wasn't as bad as I had braced myself for (I had braced myself for nigh on excrutiating though ;)), and it was a different kind of pain than I had expected, more of a dull pain rather than a sharp pain, if that makes any sense. Followed mainly with it just feeling very hot and kind of achy/throbbing. The procedure lasted a lot longer than I expected though, a few minutes at least.
After me went Cherie, she had Kit in the room instead of me. So I got to sit and throb in the shop.
We then both got our aftercare together, a brief run through of what to do and what not to do, and a sheet about sea salt soaks from the shop and a general aftercare brochure from the APP (Association of Professional Piercers).
She then told us both that we were very brave, to which I responded that she probably said that to everyone... to which she responded that she didn't, because this is a painful and complicated piercing both in receiving and cleaning/healing and that if you know all that going in and still decide to do it, takes some bravery.
Ah, ego stroking, so nice
Pictures of a 3.5 hour old industrial:
1
2
The blue stripes/dots are from the placement markings. There's some yellow on the top of my ear from the iodine I believe, and some dried blood trapped behind the bar in the second picture. I haven't yet cleaned it since I got it, so this is 'as-is'.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2003-03-29 08:17 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-03-29 08:23 pm (UTC)We'll see how impressed I am when I go through the trials and tribulations of regular life with the addition of a piercing that is prone to get knocked about (I can already envision horrors with hairbrushes, clothing getting caught etc.) and needs a lot of TLC.
(no subject)
Date: 2003-03-30 05:09 am (UTC)Industrials have always tweaked my fancy, but are so not me. Looks fab on you though :D
it hurts
Date: 2004-10-02 03:50 pm (UTC)You ARE brave, I just got an industrial done a couple of weeks ago and is the aftercare is a pain...
But is worth it..
is good to know that you are really pleased with it..
I know some people who got it done as well and they didnt like it, etc...
good luck with it!!!
Re: it hurts
Date: 2004-10-03 12:21 am (UTC)Re: it hurts
Date: 2004-12-27 09:05 am (UTC)Re: it hurts
Date: 2004-12-27 09:18 am (UTC)The second hole is more painful to pierce than the first one, however I found that actually getting the jewelry in was probably the worst part of the whole thing. Ditto for when I had a pair of lobe piercings done at a later date too... the actual piercing part is over pretty quickly, but the futzing around to get the jewelry in and closed takes a lot longer, and having stuff moving around in a fresh piercing is generally unpleasant due to the extreme tenderness and sensitivity.
The healing part's also a bitch. Total healing time, until the point where I could actually sleep on that ear without it hurting or being tender to lie on, and no more crusties at all, 10 months.
But it's all still worth it, in 4 months it will have been 2 years since I had it done, and I still love it to bits.
If you haven't already been there, http://www.bmezine.com is also a great resource for piercing and other body modification pictures and information.