Infatuation is indeed an interesting word. It is the obsession, the passion, the love. But where does it begin?
At A Glance Author stellar When Two years ago Artist Bill Studio Pleasurable Body Piercings Location Hawthorne, New Jersey I shall tell you where my infatuation begins. In a chair, in the apron of Claire's, advertising myself to any passerby, interested in the latest shopping craze. Yes, they were there to see the eight-year-old cry as the piercing gun began their infatuation.
As simple as it begins, it grows. When I was sixteen years old, I made the decision to get my right anti-tragus pierced. Thankfully, I have two open-minded parents who are willing to accept my individuality. They agreed to let me get pierced, as long as I paid for it and promised to take well care of it.
My father took my sister and I to Pleasurable Body Piercings in Hawthorne, New Jersey, to get my anti-tragus and conch pierced. I decided to get them both done at once, simply because they are on different ears, and I had always wanted both. We filled out all the paper work, picked out jewelry, and waited our turn.
This was not my first time to Pleasurable. I had gotten my navel pierced there two years before. I have constantly made many visits over the past four years, and found it to be a reliable piercing studio. The conch on my left ear was going to be done first. It was quite simple; there was little pain and little bleeding. The needle had passed through my ear without me realizing it and I got to see the finished result: A beautiful conch. I loved it immediately, and thought that the anti-tragus was going to be the same.
I realized I was quite wrong to assume when the needle first passed through that tiny piece of skin. I recall some strange noise, almost like when you caress a piece of rubber. Like rubbing a balloon. I thought I was going to at least tear a little, but I am stronger than that. I gritted my teeth because I enjoyed the needle passing through my skin; please keep in mind, it's my favorite sensation, but the pain afterwards was something new. The captive ring that inserted was just as painful as the piercing itself. I thought that the ring they used was quite small, but as it has healed, I realize it is quite big. My ear bled somewhat profusely and I felt weak. The piercer asked if I was all right, and I said I was fine and was taught the proper cleaning procedures. I stared at my piercings the whole way home. They were red. The anti-tragus had a little dried blood around it and was a bit swollen.
The next two months were hell trying to sleep. I usually slept on my right side and found it very difficult to do so with a ring in the middle. I had to develop a way of shoving my hand under the smallest corner of my pillow in order to get a decent night's sleep. Over the next few weeks, it became apparent that that part of my ear was indeed (still) swollen. The anti-tragus was constantly bleeding and oozing, and had developed a nasty bump on the outside. Every time I touched the ring or the area around the anti-tragus, it hurt, like I was getting pierced all over again. And then there was the oozing and bleeding. I got hit in the side of the head during a soccer match, and that only made it worse. I was so tender on that part of my ear that I could barely have my hair touch it, and I thought I was going to give up.
Determined to keep this piercing, I washed it everyday with Provon soap, and discovered that applying aspirin in a toothpaste-like form will actually help it heal (at least for my neighbor and I it helped a lot.) I ground the aspirin with a mortar and pestle until it was a powder, added a drop of water, and mixed until it was a paste. I would then apply it to the anti-tragus, both inside and out, and apply a tiny bandage (I know this bad; It was the only way to keep the aspirin on my ear.)
It's taken two years, but I think it is actually healed. Knock on wood. I had a little trouble a couple weeks ago where it got hit and the inside bubbled up, but that has since cleared. The sensation is wild when you twist the ring for the first time when it is healed. I think it's a great piercing if you intend on keeping it clean and if you plan on keeping it for a long time. Hang in there; if it gets red or swollen, keep cleaning and applying whatever you feel necessary until it heals.