I have a PA since january this year (2,4mm x 19mm diameter). To my surprise it really didn’t hurt much (i guess most men expect piercing such a delicate bodypart will hurt like hell, and so did i 😉 ) and it healed up pretty quickly, especially when taking good care of it by using the product the piercer provided me, and not touching the piercing the first weeks (at least not without washing your hands first etc).
PS I bought some more of the product the piercer recommended, and still use it to clean my jewel. Rather cheap stuff and it feels great afterwards.
In june - after 5 months - i had my first upgrade (from 10G to 8G). I waited long enough to be sure it was healed properly and it felt loose enough (although the piercer said i could do an upgrade after 8 weeks already, but you have to listen to your body). I had the upsizing done at the same piercingstore, by the same piercer. That moment when the thicker ring was placed felt much more painful than the original piercing job itself. He pushed the new jewel in rather quickly and somewhat brutal, and i was out of the shop again in like 5 minutes… It gave an uncomfortable feeling for 10-14 days and some wound fluid. Perhaps because it was too soon for me, or because the guy was too rough pushing it through. Luckily i persevered and with good aftercare (again that same product), it healed fine.
Someone with a PA gave me the advice that i’d better buy some tapers, some special pliers and a light numbing gel and do the upgrade to a thicker gauge myself, when taking enough time after having a relaxing warm bath. I was kind of afraid the first time to take out the PA (afraid of the idea that the hole might close very quickly and i would lose the PA), so i wanted to have it done by a professional, but i think that wasn’t the best option… In july i changed the PA from 19mm to 22mm diameter myself and that went okay, so not afraid anymore to take the PA out or put another one in. I’ll perform the next upgrade to a 6G myself later this year and see if that goes better 😉
For me there is only one slight problem. It seems that I have a rather big glans, and 19mm diameter is kinda tight when i have an erection, so i searched for a 22mm, bought it and have put it in. Feels much better now! Unfortunately 22mm diameter seems more difficult to find, and when they sell it, you don’t have much choice in models or colors. I already purchased my next upgrades (22mm x 4mm and 22mm x 5mm) but i regret not finding more choice in jewelry. Any suggestions or websites that offer a larger variety? PM me 🙂