Being only 16 years of age with very conservative parents has had the tendency to restrict me from getting the piercings I want. So far I've managed three holes in each ear with my first holes at a 6 gauge. I got my third holes don't about 3-4 months ago at a piercing and tattoo studio here in Tallahassee, Florida.
At A Glance Author egamixrorrim Contact egamixrorrim@yahoo.com When Three months ago Studio Bink Tatoo and Piercing Location Tallahassee Going into the studio I wasn't much hyped up because piercing my ears isn't my exact dream of expressing myself through body modification. On the other hand, I was overly excited because my parents were finally giving me some slack.
I don't remember the artists' name that did my piercing but I do remember him being very nice to me and did all he could to reassure my parents that an ear piercing is nothing compared to some of the piercings he had done such as hood piercings, surface piercings, and eyelids. He greeted us warmly with tea offerings and some comfy looking couches. He gave us a bunch of forms to fill out just to take precautions. The usual insurance and "just in case" stuff. Then he took us all into the piercing room in which he showed us around and the different kinds of instruments he uses. We sat in the room while he scrubbed up and made sure everything was where it should be.
That's when the adrenaline kicked in. Piercings have a tendency to do that. I always get so excited because it not only means that I am one step closer to completing all of my wanted piercings but it also means I have something to show off to all the kids at my High School with no piercings at all.
Before the artist did anything to my ears he explained all of the necessary precautions to me and my parents. This was more like a recap just to make sure I knew how to take care of and clean my soon to be piercing.
The man asked me to take out all of my jewelry and tie my hair back so that it wouldn't get in the way of anything. He sat me down in a chair and used his surgical pen to place dots on my ears. He handed me a mirror and waited for my approval as well as my parents. Everything was copasetic. I chose to have surgical steel jewelry used because that seemed to heal the nicest with my other piercings.
The needle he used was about the size of a 16 gauge earring that was hollowed out in the core. He explained to me that it was like that so that any drainage was easy and rejection of the new piercing was most likely to not even occur at all.
Everything was all set and he told me to take a deep breath but that wasn't necessary for me. Piercing my ears was more like tiny little pin prick and an actual needle going through my ear. Honestly, I think my parents needed to be breathing more than I did.
Soon enough, the jewelry was placed in my new piercings and I felt overjoyed already. The artist handed me a mirror for approval and I just smiled and nodded. Everything was great. My ears weren't even sore at all and surprisingly enough my parents seemed to like it too.
After cleaning everything up and washing his hands again, the artist handed me my little bag of goodies and jewelry. He explained how to clean and take care of my new piercing again and reminded me that because the piercings were closer to my cartilage that there might be chances of rejection. Then he explained how to try and avoid having that happen.
My parents and I left about an hour after first coming in. On the way home we stopped and picked up cotton balls to clean my ears with. Taking care of an ear piercing is pretty easy. Clean it a few times a day with the solution they give you, don't pull on it, rotate it every so often, and other than that just leave it alone. The healing isn't something you can really speed up. You just have to take car of it.
Healing process was normal. They were a little tender to the touch but not unbearable. There were occasional "crusties" but I continued to clean them and everything was great. I had to sleep on my back the first night but that wasn't a big deal to me. After that I didn't even notice any discomfort at all.
About 3 months later I still have all 6 of my piercing and none of them have rejected or gotten a severe infection. I wish I could remember the artist name to thank him for his hospitality and kindness towards me and my parents. He did an excellent job.
Although I am still 16 I am looking forward to other piercings that I will hopefully obtain soon enough. I would like to pierce my eyebrow, labret, nose, my ears again, and I want to get a surface piercing on my nape. I look forward to sharing all of my future experiences and I hope that anyone who is planning on getting their ears pierced does not go to Claire's or some local store in the mall. Definitely go to an actually studio and get it done by a professional. I promise you won't regret it.