Ah, my lovely tragus piercing... My inspiration was this beautiful girl in my sociology class that had the most lovely ear project I have ever seen. I started talking to her, and fell in love even more with her piercings: her bright, graceful personality only accentuated her steel. A week later, the image of her tragus piercing was still etched in my mind, and I thought about it almost obsessively.
At A Glance Author DLo Contact dlopez@iwu.edu When Six months ago Artist Self-done The piercing is very beautiful in its simplicity. In fact, I found it surprising that it was (is) not a more popular, "conventional" piercing. It has a rare elegance, but at the same time, an edginess that is very alluring. I needed my tragus pierced.
At the time, I was 18 and employed, so it was not an age or money factor that made me decide to pierce my own tragus. I can admit now that time was an issue: I -really- needed it pierced right then and there... 'then' being 15 minutes before my master class, and 'there' in my dorm room. I was as hygienic as possible under those circumstances, and after some struggling, I had the jewelry in. The pain was not significant, especially considering the fact that I had done it myself. Perhaps the endorphins kicked in early. Getting the jewelry in was another story, however, and while it took maybe two minutes to pierce my flesh, it took about ten for me to locate the exit hole. Because of this difficulty, I was going to be late for my class.
I ran into class out of breath, but only two minutes late. Still, everyone was already in place and all attention turned to me. Our professor was really lenient about time and I knew he would not be upset with me for being late, so he began, jokingly "Finally, Diana has decided to jo- OH MY GOD ARE YOU OKAY?" He was looking at my tragus, which was not particularly swollen or red, especially considering the trauma it received when I could not find the hole, but did have some metal sticking through it. At first, I thought he was joking and just poking fun at my new modification. After all, he gave me hell for a long time after I got my tongue pierced. However, it became clear that he was seriously concerned that I had accidentally fallen on steel and stabbed my ear. I explained that no, I had purposely pierced it.
Of course, everyone in the class heard story, and there was general disapproval. No, they were not worried about the fact that I had just pierced my own ear under shady circumstances, but rather the fact that I had gotten another 'alternative' piercing. One girl in the class even hinted that many boys would be uninterested in me and how many more would be intimidated. The boys in the class just said it was "gross." I took all of these comments and politely answered back. And all of this over a pierced tragus!
Ignorance and bigotry stories aside, my piercing healed well but slowly. I know that luck had a lot to do with it: my method and the conditions surrounding this event were not the best. However, I like to think another reason I had no complications is because I know my body very well, and I am a healthy person. I guess I am a self-piercer, half of my piercings being self-done.Wistful thinking, perhaps, but this is not my only self-piercing that has gone so smoothly, and while I would definitely not advice it, I have been lucky and blessed with many good experiences.*
It took about three months for the soreness and swelling to completely go away, probably due to the fact that my placement was not on the sweet spot and the fact that during my struggles with putting the jewelry in place, it had slid around different layers of cartilage. It was a very tolerable healing process, and I had to be extremely absent-minded in order to hit the tragus or get it caught in anything. I did salt soaks twice a day and spun the jewelry while allowing water to gently fall on it when showering.
I do not regret piercing my tragus myself. While it is my only self-piercing that is not perfectly perpendicular to the plane of my skin, it is still quite aesthetically pleasing. I have an immense feeling of accomplishment and pride in knowing that it was my very own hands that added to the beauty of my ears. I have had two work-study jobs since then and neither of my employers have had a problem with this piercing. Also, as an end note, it is probably one of my piercings that receives the most praise from professors, even though I seldom wear anything attention-grabbing in that area. I definitely recommend tragus piercings to males and females alike. It's beautiful and still unique, and a wonderful addition to any ear project.
*I do NOT advice piercing yourself. Professionals have better equipment and it's a much safer, hygienic environment.