So You Want to Pierce Your Nose?

It seems like the first question I am always asked is, "Did that hurt?" My response is usually, "No, not at all." Come on now, "Of course it did!!!!" Do people really think that having someone push a needle through the side of their nose would not hurt? Now that I have gotten past that silliness, it really does not hurt that badly, but it is a bit more than a pin prick. Does it continue to hurt? Not at all. Almost a year later and I forget that I am wearing a nose screw. I wear a very small and almost unnoticeable clear CZ. I do have metal allergies but have found that 316L surgical stainless steel causes no problems at all. I have also tried Bio-Flex acrylics and they are just as comfortable.

There are three main situations that you may run into with a nose piercing. The first is keeping the initial piercing from infecting. I highly recommend that any piercing be done by a professional. Even with a professional piercing you can experience an infection. I was told to only use a saline solution for cleansing the piecing and not to use hydrogen peroxide. After a few days my piercing developed a small slight infection. The saline solution did not clear it. Please note that I am not a medical professional and can not recommend peroxide but it cleared my infection immediately. The bottle states not to use on puncture wounds. In my opinion, my piercing was not a puncture wound but a through hole and not very thick. In a puncture wound the peroxide can force the infection deeper, in a through hole it forced it out. It is definitely recommended NOT to use alcohol as alcohol can dry and irritate a piercing.

The second obstacle with a nose piercing is changing or replacing the nose screw. Nose bones are a straight shaft but the more common screw has a hook. At first I found I could not get a new screw in without almost standing on my head in front of the mirror. I solved this very quickly by slightly widening the hook. I can now remove and replace my nose screw without even using a mirror. I have a somewhat larger and thicker nose, you may not run into the same problem.

The final situation you may run into with piercing your nose is simply the fact that you pierced your nose. I spent years admiring nose piercing. Small diamond or CZ's looked so elegant and beautiful. I was also worried about what people might think. People might think less of me or not like me. At the time I pierced my nose I was working for a rather uptight perhaps narrow-minded company, I did not deal with customers in aspect. It finally dawned on me that most of my co-workers did not like me anyway and never would as I did not fit their mold. As a belated 48^th birthday present to myself I pierced my nose.

Almost a year later I still love it. I no longer work for that particular company. Not because of the piercing and yet because of it. I realized that I did not belong in the situation I was in and had the courage to get away from it. It would be nice, someday, if people would be more accepting of those who are not exactly the same. In the meantime I have finally gotten the piercing I wanted and have a clear piece for hiding the piercing if I ever really need to. I also do my best to avoid that situation as the freedom to be who I am makes up a major part of who I am.