About six months ago — and much to my mother’s horror when she reads this — I decided to get my nipples pierced. I was sitting in the car with my boyfriend debating whether or not to do it, and by “debating,” I mean me repeatedly asking, “Should I do it?” while he watched YouTube (he’s the strong, silent type). When we did finally go inside the piercing shop, I was shaking from anticipation.
I had always been curious about nipple piercings, but, like most sensible people, the thought of having a needle stabbed through my chikubis made me grab my breasts and gasp. In fact, while my piercer got her supplies ready, my hands were clasped over my breasts. Why? I don’t know. For whatever reason, someone mentions nipples being stabbed or ripped off, and everyone else starts gently fondling their booby hats, which is probably what many readers are doing right now.
I won’t go into the gory details because there aren’t any, but I will say that nipple piercings hurt. That’s a “duh” statement, but I’ve heard people say that they don’t. Maybe that’s true for the first nipple because of all the adrenaline pumping, but the second nipple piercing feels like a titty twister — except the nipple gets twisted off (okay, even I’m grasping my boobies after that line). But the few seconds of pain is definitely worth it.
Here’s what you need to know about getting your nipples pierced.
Find a Good Piercer and a Clean Shop
For any piercing, you should find a sanitary shop and a piercer who’s certified to pierce (their certification should be displayed somewhere in the store). If you walk into the shop and your initial reaction is, “I hope they don’t dismember my lifeless corpse in the back,” you should probably find a different store.
Before I went to get my piercings, I found a shop with good reviews, but then I also read these reviews to find out which piercer was the highest rated. I then went to the store when that particular piercer was working. The girl who pierced my nipples is now the only piercer who I’ll let pierce me or change my jewelry (she’s really awesome).
Maybe these statements are also “duh” statements, but a lot of people decide to get pierced on a whim or after drinking. For something as sensitive and intimate as your nipples, it’s better to find a reputable shop with a reputable piercer — not one who’s just interested in collecting your money with no regard for your safety. Chances are, that type of piercer will give you crooked piercings.
Better Than Navel or Ear Piercings
I know, I know. Navel rings and ear piercings are cool, but for older girls a naval ring or an ear full of earrings can seem juvenile, and most guys probably aren’t interested in piercing their belly buttons.
Sure, a naval piercing can be hidden, but only until you’re on a company retreat at a beach somewhere, and you’re stuck in a one-piece or a swimsuit cover because you’re afraid of how “unprofessional” your piercing will look to your boss and co-workers. But nipple piercings can be your fun, dirty secret — one your boss doesn’t have to know about unless you’re sleeping with him. (Don’t sleep with your boss. You’re better than that.)
The best thing about nipple piercings is that no one will know you have them unless you’re whipping out your tatas all over town, or writing about them in an article and horrifying your entire family. They’re one of the few piercings that can truly be hidden.
Unlike ear or belly button piercings, nipple piercings require minimal care, they are pretty resistant to infection and they don’t hurt after a day or two. If your nipples are sore after a few days, you’ve probably jostled the jewelry, so start wearing a sports bra or a tight-fitting bra. I know some of you are thinking, “A sports bra?!” but the tighter your bra is, the better it’s going to feel (the tighter your clothes, the less likely it is that the jewelry will get jostled). Whatever you do, do not go braless. Going braless will guarantee your jewelry gets pulled, and yes, your nipples will bleed if that happens.
To put in perspective how resistant nipple piercings are to infections, I’ll admit that I knocked my jewelry around a lot, wore the same bra for days in a row and I was bad about touching them (they get a little itchy). Still, I never had any problems with infection. Contrast this to both my navel and ear piercings, which, regardless of how much I cleaned them, were constantly infected and sore.
After six months, I gave up on the navel ring and removed it. The same thing occurred with my helix piercing and also with my upper lobe piercing (but I was eventually able to save the upper lobe one). My industrial piercing, which I’ve had for around four or five months, still needs to be cleaned three to five times a day, whereas my nipples only needed about a month of cleaning one to two times a day. They’re a really low maintenance piercing and therefore a good choice for the piercing newbie.
Have Confidence in Your Breasts
I’ll speak candidly and admit that part of my decision to pierce my nipples was based on how my breasts look. A common myth about nipple piercings is that they’ll make your nipples permanently erect. Sure, they’ll be erect for a few months, but then they’ll go back to normal.
That being said, having jewelry shoved through your nips will make them stand out more, so if you’re a girl with inverted nipples, very small breasts or large areolas, nipple piercings may actually enhance the appearance of your bosom.
And even if your breasts don’t actually look that different, you’ll still feel more confident about their appearance because nipple jewelry can distract your partner from the supposed “less desirable” parts of your breasts — although, most men might argue that any set of breasts is a good set of breasts unless those breasts are moobs.
A Titillating Experience for Both
Another reason to go for nipple piercings over ear or belly-button piercings is how titillating your partner(s) will find them. If you’re the type of girl who’s, well, prudent, your boyfriend or husband will likely find your body modification incredibly sexy. Bonus to the girls who stroke their guy’s ego by telling them that the piercing is just for them — a sexy little secret between the two of you.
Nipple piercings will greatly enhance the sensitivity of your nipples, so if you aren’t sensitive there to begin with, piercings will help. Similarly, if you really enjoy nipple play, piercings will only increase your pleasure. Many people think that if they pierce their nipples, they’ll lose all feeling, but that’s just a myth. The only way you’ll lose feeling in your nipples is if you cut them off (cue breast clutching and gasping).
The truth is that your nipples have a lot of nerves running through them and while the nerves do get severed during the piercing, they grow back. But when those nerve endings do grow back, wear a good, padded bra. Otherwise, it’ll feel like Satan himself is holding a lighter to the tips of your nipples.
