The thought of having a slightly different piercing has always interested me. Ever since I can remember I have generally been interested in them. They completely fascinate me, as does the pain that comes with them!
At A Glance Author Danielle When A week ago Artist John Studio Ink&Stuff Location Surrey I'm not one for pain, I do admit. The thought of inflicting pain on myself makes me feel sick, yet I knew I would have to overcome this to be able to modify myself. I have had a few previous piercings, 9 in each ear and also my nose, but the thought of a tragus piercing conjured up images of extreme pain in my mind.
I had been investigating the tragus piercing for a good couple of years, since I was 13 at least. I spent many hours searching BME, and various other piercing sites, reading stories and gazing admiringly at pictures.
A couple of months ago, I breached the idea with my mum, since I am not old enough to have the piercing done on my own. Thankfully for me, my mum is quite laid back with body modification. ( I had my navel pierced when I was thirteen). I described to her the piercing which I wanted, showing her pictures and letting her read a variety of personal stories. She wasn't overly thrilled with the idea, but she definitely didn't object to it! The only deal was, my dad had to approve the piercing too!
One down, one to go.
I tried to tell my dad about the piercing a couple of times, and he just laughed it off after my awful experience with a nose piercing. However, I was not about to give in! It took a hell of a lot of nagging...Constant nagging. Eventually though, he sat down with me and had a look at pictures and stories on BME. (Commenting a few times about how informative the site is!). He took his time over his decision, his sweet time I must add! Then about a week ago, he agreed that I could have it done. Downside? He refused to take me! Now all I had to do was find someone who would.
Two down, still one to go!
I struggled for another week trying to find someone who was free, or someone who was willing to take me. Then my uncle agreed!
Two days later, I walked up to the tattoo and piercing studio which both me and my dad use frequently. I was nervous as hell, shaking and feeling sick to my stomach. As soon as I walked in I was slightly more relaxed. The studio is amazing. It's only small, but is freakishly clean! There is always someone cleaning, disinfecting, and tidying the piercing room.
John, the piercer, came out and greeted me in his usual way. There was a slight queue forming for tattoos, so I was taken straight back into the piercing room. He asked me what I wanted, and winced when I replied with tragus. He told me that its one of the more painful piercings, but he would have it over and done with in no time at all.
I selected my jewelry, then closed my eyes. I'm certainly not one to see the needle! (However, my uncle did, and said that everything was packaged and sterilized, and John changed his gloves a number of times during the piercing process.)
He told me that he was going to start, and asked if I wanted him to count down or just do it. I asked him to count down, as I felt a little more comfy knowing when the pain would be coming.
The piercing itself was really not that painful. I did hear the dreaded crunch of the cartilage, which almost made me gag! Once the needle was in, he changed his gloves and then swapped the needle for my chosen jewelry. This surprisingly didn't hurt at all, my ear felt a little numb. He cleaned me up, as it did bleed a little, and then let me sit for a few minutes as I was feeling surprisingly light headed!
John was amazing, he was constantly reassuring me, and gave me many handy tips about the cleaning process and how to sleep on it. (Needless to say, I tipped him generously as I always do!)
My healing process so far is good. I have had a couple of crusties but that's about it. There is rather a lot of swelling though, which has spread down onto my cheek. But I'm not too worried about that. I clean my ear just with warm salt water, just using some tissue paper. I have found that q-tips aggravate my ear!
This experience overall has been a really positive one. My next piercing will be an industrial, then my nipple and my tongue once I have left home. I would also like to have my lip pierced, and many more in my ears!