The build-up
At A Glance Author Stacey Contact Stacey@bme.anon IAM Chrisshuni When A month ago Artist Jim Studio The Comedian Tattooist Location Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland, UK Im writing about my anti-tragus piercing, my 6th piercing that is not lobes or upper cartilege. Anyway, about a month ago I had an itch to get a piercing but I didn't know what I wanted to get done as I didn't have very much money and I had just had my lip pierced in the centre two weeks before.
It was on a wednesday and I was in Edinburgh with my boyfriend and my dad and we were looking around in the piercing shops when I spotted an anti-tragus piercing. I knew what it was as id seen plenty of pictures of them and read lots of stories about them on BMEZINE. I decided that I wanted it done, but I didn't have enough money, disappointed I walked out of the shop and went and got lunch with my boyfriend while my dad did his own thing
After lunch, we were looking around a shop, when I got a phone call from my mum, who was back at home and she asked if I wanted my anti-tragus pierced?. I said yes but wondered how she knew that. She said that my dad had phoned her and told her that I was raving on about it. (I must have been doing it without even noticing) My mum told me that if I was to get that pierced then I wouldn't get anything else for my birthday, (shed already bought me a Samsung D500 and a gold ring with diamonds in it =D ) I was so excited I nearly dropped my phone.
The Piercing
I met up with my dad again and me, my boyfriend and my dad all went to a piercer in Cockburn Street(pronounced Cohburn =D ) and waited for him to turn up.
As I waited I asked the other guy all about it, he didn't seem to know very much but that didn't bother me as he wasn't the one supposed to be piercing me!
I asked if he pierced with a hoop or bar as id had problems with a hoop I got my tragus pierced with, it swelled and got abcesses on it and they wouldn't go away. I suspect this may have been to do with the hoop as id had no trouble with my other piercings as they'd been done with bars, but others may disagree.
The guy at the desk said a hoop as it healed better, I asked about the possibility of a bar as im apprehensive about hoops and he said no. I immediately felt uneasy although I assumed piercer would know best. It came to half past one, thats when the piercer was supposed to be in. By the time it came to Two o'clock I had decided to leave. The way I looked at it, if he couldn't be bothered to turn up for work on time , whos to say he would have been bothered to clean everything properly, I wasn't prepared to take that chance. So I left and went home still feeling this nagging urge to have a needle poked through my flesh.
The Real Piercing
Once home I decided to go to my more local piercer, as I also trusted him more ( I didn't go there first as im a person who likes to be pierced on the spur of the moment and Edinburgh was closest, very dumb, I know)
I had something to eat and went down to the Comedian to see Jim. Once there, I asked him about the anti-tragus and he said that he could do it with a bar, I was so relieved. I was lead through to the back piercing room followed by my dad and boyfriend.
When I go to the Comedian I am always impressed by the cleanliness of their property but even more so by the piercing room.
In the piercing room, there is a reclined doctors chair thing with new paper already laid over it, and all the jewelery is in little sealed bags that have been sterilised beforehand.
As I sat on the chair I was handed the usual forms and asked to fill them in. As I did so I watched Jim wash his hands and put on new, clean disposable gloves. Once id finished filling out the form, he checked my ear for the size of bar he'd need. We decided on a 1.2 guage PFTE bar. Once Jim had gotten all of the jewelery out, the needle and cleaned my ear, he changed his gloves again and marked my ear up. Once he was happy with the placement he told me to jump off the table and go have a look and see if I was happy. I was so I jumped back on the table. This is the bit where i get nervous on all of my piercings as I know the needle is imminent. As it was my right anti-tragus I was getting pierced i had my boyfriend stand by my left side and I clutched his hand like it was the end of the world, sad and pathetic I know but I have a rather delicate disposition.
Jim told me that he would count to three and then he'd pierce me, I told him ok, but he didn't even get to one when I said just shove it through, 5 seconds later I shouted "NO COUNT ME IN" laughing he did so, 1...needle touching my skin, I held my breath , 2.... bracing myself for the pain, ... 3!! the sharpest pain I had ever felt! I let all my breath out at the one time in a big PAH! then a few choice words by me while he removed the needle and left the plastic tube in my ear. After what felt like 20 minutes ( about 5 seconds) Jim finally tried to put the jewelery in the plastic tube, but because it was a plastic bar he was using it was bendy so it wouldn't go straight into the tube, I could have cried as he pulled on the tube for what felt like eternity then finally, after what seemed like hours I felt a pressure as the tube was removed from my ear and the ball was put on the bottom of the bar. Thrilled it was finally over, I asked Jim if I could look but I was bleeding a tiny bit and he just had to clean that off first( hes a stickler for cleanliness) once he'd done that he said that I could look at it. As soon as I saw it I fell in love with it. I thanked him profusely and went out to pay. It only cost £20.
Aftercare
No crusties or dried blood that is worth reporting. Crusties totally cleared up after first 4 days.
Although its 4 weeks later, I still clean it after showers and in the morning and night using shop bought saline solution and then Savlon spray just to be safe as I don't want to have to retire it, I love it too much.
After the first week I could sleep on it with no pain what so ever. I think that the PFTE bar has contributed to the great healing. Also a fantastically clean piercer helped.
I would recommend The Comedian tattooist in Hopetoun street in Bathgate to anyone in the area as Jim is an excellent piercer and makes you fantastically at ease as he is funny but also professional which can be hard to find. I trust Jim so much that I am actually going back on the day of my birthday (2 may) so I can get my nipples pierced by him. I cant wait, 6 days to go.