Almost 2 months ago I decided to get my right tragus pierced. It had been a month since my navel piercing, and I was pretty much itching to get another one, but I didn't want to go for something huge like my face or anything, and I had always liked the look of tragus piercings. I decided to get this one professionally done, as opposed to my navel which was done by my cousin. So my friend and I went in one day, but the piercer wasn't there that day, they told us that she was only in four days a week, and that we should come back later that week. So that Thursday afternoon the both of us went in, and she was there.
At A Glance Author Kris Contact Kris@bme.anon When A month ago Artist Joanna(?) Studio Transcend Location Branford, CT My friend was getting her lip pierced, and for some ungodly reason I decided that she should go first even though I was a little nervous. Her piercing went rather smoothly, but she just HAD to turn and look at me with that 14 gauge needle sticking out of her face. I got a little bit MORE nervous after that, but I was pretty amused at the same time.
Finally the piercer, Joanna I believe her name was, but I'm not so sure, told me to sit in the seat after she wiped it down. She put on gloves and set to work unwrapping packages of the sterile 16 gauge needle and CBR. My friend told me I could hold her hand, so I did, while the piercer positioned the clamps. She told me to breathe deep, in and out. As I breathed out she stuck the needle through. I was expecting it to feel like the needle was meeting some resistance, but it went through pretty smoothly. And I didn't hear the crunchy cartilage sound that some people describe. But it HURT. A lot. I cried out and squirmed, but my friend said that I didn't squeeze her hand at all. It was really uncomfortable when the piercer put in the CBR, and once she was done it started to sting, and pretty much didn't stop for the rest of the night.
Once it was done she handed me a mirror to look at it, and I immediately fell in love and knew it was worth the pain. She told me not to sleep on it for a few weeks, to try to flip it up when I slept, and to clean it daily. I was still cleaning my navel daily, so it was just another step added to the routine, and I purposely had her pierce the side I don't usually sleep on. So aftercare was fairly easy. For the first 2 or 3 days it hurt a lot whenever I smiled or did anything else that made the muscles up by my tragus move a lot, and for the first week it hurt too much to spin the CBR when I was cleaning it. Ever since it stopped hurting, though, it's been a breeze. At this point, it's usually a little crusty, and that's about it. I just bought the prettiest little titanium ring for it, because my body tends to respond better to titanium than steel.
I don't really have any complaints about the whole thing. I really liked the piercer. However, she didn't show me the placement before she pierced it; she just marked it and stabbed it. Furthermore, she also didn't tell me that she pierced it at a 16 gauge. It was fairly easy for me to figure out by comparing it to my friend's 18 gauge tragus, but it seems to me that that's the kind of thing you'd inform someone about. It most likely slipped her mind, though, so I'm not going to hold it against her. I've since gone back to her to get my tongue done, and she did a good job with it (experience coming soon, haha). And though she didn't ask me about placement, she did ask my friend who was getting her lip done, so I'll probably continue to go to her for my piercings, even in my face once I get there. Which probably won't be for a while, sadly, since I work at Starbucks and they don't allow facial piercings. Though I do wish that Transcend would carry more of a selection of titanium jewelry, for the initial piercing and in general.
All in all, I would get it pierced again in a heartbeat. However, it WAS my most painful piercing so far, out of 2 in each lobe, my navel, and my tongue. I was thinking about getting my left one done, but I think it might like it better one-sided. I still haven't figured out all of what I'm going to do with my ears, there's too many options, haha.