Yes, tongues itch too

At A Glance Author Rose Contact Rose@bme.anon Artist Bink Studio Body Piercing by Bink Location Tallahassee, FL

Yes, tongues itch too

I would like to start this like everyone else does and say that I've wanted to get my tongue pierced forever, but it wouldn't be true. I only started toying with the idea after I had my navel pierced. It was so painless and I love it so much, I decided I wanted something else done as well. I debated for about a month between my eyebrow and my tongue, and my tongue won out. I like the fact that while they are not hidden, my piercings are really only readily viewable when I chose to share them with people. They are, well, they are mine, if that doesn't sound too dumb.

Anyway, back to the story. I called ahead to the same place I had my navel done, Body Piercing by Bink here in Tallahassee, and they had an opening half an hour from when I called. I told them I could make it, and the girl on the phone told me to bring a cup of ice water, so I got one and raced down there.

The studio is SO nice. It's bright with hard wood floors and a large sofa and television in the lobby area (they will factor in later). There are pictures of tattoo flash covering most of the walls (Body Piercing by Bink is in the same building as Advanced Tattoo Studio) so there is always something to look at while you wait. There were a few people waiting for Bink when I got there, but they had been walk-ins, so he went ahead and did mine first. The prep was textbook: everything was new, he explained as he went along, I swished with Listerine, he put the clamp on, and then told me to take a deep breath. I had expected it to feel, well, neat (for lack of a better word) like my navel piercing did, but it actually hurt. Don't get me wrong, I've felt worse, and after a few more weeks I probably won't remember it being painful at all, but ask me today and I'll tell you, it HURT. He was quick and efficient though, and it didn't take but a minute between the initial stick of the needle and him screwing on the ball of the bar.

He asked me how I was doing, and that's when the room started to get really fuzzy. I told him I didn't feel so good, and he laid the chair back (it's a really neat, yet hard to describe piece of furniture) and told me to lie down. He got a disposable ice pack (from where I couldn't tell you but all of the sudden there it was) and he put it on my head and then on my neck. He kept talking to me, reassuring me, and told me that it happens sometimes. We talked a little bit, chit chat and about what kind of jewelry I wanted for my navel after it finishes healing, but I was feeling guilty for keeping him when he had other customers. He didn't rush me at all, and was very nice, but I thought I could at least get off the table so I thanked him, got my cup of ice water and went over to the couch and watched TV until I thought I could drive.

I did have a few problems, mostly based on the shape of my mouth. I have a relatively small mouth, I guess, and an overbite, and so even with the smallest bar he was comfortable piercing with (because of swelling) it didn't quite fit in my mouth. I had to curl my tongue so the bar was at an angle to be able to comfortably close my mouth all the way without the ball rubbing on the roof and bottom of my mouth. Talking with it was just annoying. The bar would get caught (again, for lack of a better word) in my mouth and I sounded like a moron. It got a little depressing to speak to people who didn't know me. I had no idea how rude people can be to others with speech impediments. The other problem I had was that on about the third day, my tongue started to itch really badly. I wasn't sure if it was normal or not since I hadn't read any stories on BME about people experiencing this. I didn't think it was an allergic reaction, because if I were allergic to the surgical stainless steel I would have had problems with my navel as well. I asked Bink about it and he said that it was normal and it would go away, which, after about 2 days, it did.

On the sixth day I went in to see if he could change the bar. It was still a little red and swollen, but that's because of the size problem and wouldn't go away until we changed it anyway, so we went ahead. He took the old one out for me (and as much of an annoyance as it had been, I missed it for that short period of time) and put the new one in. It hurt for a half a second, but then slid in fine. I can't believe how much better this one feels. I can speak almost normally (English sh and th are still a little slushy sounding and Spanish rr is still nearly impossible) and it is SO much more comfortable. He told me I may want to go a little shorter, later, but right now I am as happy as I can be.