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An Afternoon For Pain
Ben made me do it. Well, he didn't. I just told my Mum that.
14 March 2001: I got my labret pierced by Hamish at Fleshwound in Wellington. A labret piercing is in the crease of your chin under your lip. This piercing is made popular by many wankers and posers, and I am both a wanker and a poser, so I deemed this type of piercing suitable for my "look".
For some reason or another, I have always wanted my labret pierced. Well, for the last few years anyway. I'd been into Fleshwound a couple of times and enquired, but I was far too much of a wuss to get it done. Also, I was planning on kissing in the three weeks following my enquiring, so it was not really an option. Finally, I had enough guts and could deal with the prospect of no kissing. More to the point, Ben wanted to get pierced and thought I should get done too. Oh, the peer pressure.
Before: one beautiful, young woman
I finished work and met Ben at Fleshwound. Ben had already completed some forms and was just waiting for me to arrive. I filled in, and signed, the forms without actually reading what I was signing. I was nervous. I hadn't been pierced in 3 years, and I couldn't quite remember the pain. I remember it hurting a bit, not too much, but I do remember being very nervous then also.
14 March 2001, 6.05pm: My stomach is somewhere between my throat and my heart and seems to be tensed into a small, small ball.
Ben and I took a seat in the "operating theatre". I voted to go first, because I didn't want to see Ben with a huge needle hanging out of his face and then get mine done. And I couldn't just not look. In fact, I had to look intently and take photos, but that was to come later. Hamish instructed me to take a seat in the chair. He fiddles around with a tray and some clamps and needles and things that I wasn't really paying attention to. All I could think about was how much the next five minutes were going to hurt. He draws a dot on my chin. I say okay. He gets a clamp and clamps my lip. He gets what appears to be the biggest needle I've ever seen* and proceeds to combine the giant needle with my poor, tender, sweet lower lip.
"Breathe in, now out, breathe in, needle placed on lip, breathe out, breathe in, needle pushed a tiny bit into lip, breathe out, breath in..."
Hamish pushed the needle all the way through and I closed my eyes tightly with the short, sharp pain. It was over quickly. He then deftly inserts the jewellery and I'm done. I'm done! Except I'm a wuss, remember. Endorphins rushed through my body and I started to feel a little woozy. I stepped up from the chair and lounged on the sofa. I felt a little bit better after a few minutes - just as long as I didn't think about the hunk of metal through my lip.
After: one beautiful, young woman with labret piercing
I am going to have to grow used to my new piercing and the discomfort that comes with it, but I like it. Yes, I do. * When I got my navel pierced, I did not look at the needle at all. I am a big wuss, remember.
Update: 17 March 2001 - My lip swelled so much that the jewellery became too small for my lip, causing a small crater on the front under the ball and a rather large crater of raw, red flesh underneath the disc. Yellow ooze and blood caused me to go into Fleshwound and get it checked. Hamish changed my jewellery from a 7mm post to a 10mm post. It feels much better now, and eating and talking will once again be something I can do. My word of advice to anyone getting pierced is if you think something is wrong, go in and get it checked out. There is nothing wrong with being a little persistant. |
