December 17, 2012

Sexy piercings part 1: Nipples!

by Pandora'sBox

Usually when the phrase "pierced nipples" comes up, it inspires cringing and thoughts of intense pain, and then loss of sensation. Well, I'm here to say that's not necessarily true. Nipple barbells can be aesthetically pleasing when placed correctly by a skilled piercer and will heal nicely with proper after care. Getting my own nipples pierced was one of the best piercing decisions I've ever made, for both looks and my sex life.

Choosing jewelry

Now that you've gone through all the other stuff in choosing a piercer, you get to the fun part! (Well, the fun part aside from actually getting and having the piercing.)

The best quality jewelry will be available at the shop itself. Some shops actually do not allow you to bring in your own jewelry (this being because not all jewelry is high-quality enough to withstand sterilization in an autoclave.) The piercer I went to selected the jewelry for me because he held a special standard for initial piercings. (He used high-polish, internally-threaded surgical steel). Some shops stick to basic barbells for initial piercings, others have jewelry with clear or colored gems in them. The shops that don't allow you to use your own jewelry will have theirs stored in sterile packages.

The shops that do allow the use of your own jewelry will sometimes sterilize it for you, but only if it can withstand the heat of an autoclave. If a shop accepts your own jewelry and only soaks it in alcohol or wipes it down with some other cleaner, don't go to them. That's not actually getting the job done and there will still be bacteria on the jewelry.

Best materials for jewelry are implant-grade surgical steel, titanium, and some "bioplasts." Bioplast is a special kind of flexible plastic that is inert enough to be used in the body. (Acrylic is NOT a bioplast and should NEVER be used for an initial or healing piercing.) Gold is sometimes used, but if you are going to use gold in an initial piercing, use ONLY full 24 karat gold. Most "gold" jewelry is either mixed with another material, or only gold-plated and therefore not good for initial piercings.

Getting jewelry from chain stores like Claire's are cheap in both price and quality. (I have many, many reasons why you should never go to Claire's for a piercing, but that's a whole other blog.)

Getting it done!

Now that you have your piercer and your jewelry, you're ready to get pierced!

Most people are worried about pain or losing sensation. The pain is temporary. To me, it felt similar to a time when my nipples were REALLY cold and stood so strong at attention that it was painful, but no worse than that. (Nipple piercing is actually a little more painful for men because there is less slack in the tissue. Men are also not actually pierced through the true "nipple" but actually in the areola below the nipple.)

You should also not lose any sensation in the nipple after it is pierced if you have gone to a skilled piercer who knows what they are doing and handles the job well. Most people who have lost sensation in their nipples after getting pierced went to someone who did it wrong, because that's not something that should occur with a proper job.

A skilled piercer will not only make sure the job is done well, but will take time to make sure your barbells are placed evenly (that is, if you are getting both done. Most do. My piercer was very professional and took special care to make sure they were very evenly placed.)

If done well, the beads of each barbell will rest flush against the nipple on each side and accent the nipple in a very sexy way. It can enhance the look of the nipple, and therefore, of the overall breast. (Or pectoral, if you are a man.)

Aftercare and having fun...

Now that your nips are actually pierced, you should take special care to make sure they stay looking good and sexy!
Cleaning them with saline solution 2-3 times a day for the first few months helps maintain them. Believe it or not, plain, run-of-the-mill contact cleaning solution does the trick. Soak a cotton ball with it and dab off the crusties gently. Don't let anyone touch or put their mouth on it for the first three weeks. And always, always WASH YOUR HANDS before cleaning them.

DO NOT USE:
Peroxide
Rubbing alcohol
Vaseline
Bacitracin

Also, specialized "aftercare" products are not always reliable. H2Ocean is not advisable. (They say they are "natural" but the ingredients come from unnamed bodies of salt water and unfiltered. You would basically be putting dirty sea water in your piercing.)

It takes 9 months for these piercings to fully heal. Even if it looks like it is healed on the outside, the channel will still be healing on the inside.

Having fun...

If everything has gone smoothly, you should be able to enjoy your nipple piercings in many ways! Whether you got them for the sexual enjoyment in a relationship, or just for your own dirty little under-the-shirt secret (or not-so-secret *wink*) these are a fun and sexy piercing to enhance your body.

*For women who are breastfeeding, you can still get your nipples pierced and not have issues. This is a common concern. The nipple is made up of several small ducts, not a single large one, so you should not have any issues breastfeeding.