BME was right, it didn't hurt a bit!

At A Glance Author ~* erin *~ Contact slightlyxtwisted@aol.com Artist The chick with short brown hair (Jen?) Studio Village Street Wear Location Bellmore, NY

I'd wanted to get my tongue pierced for a few years, but the thing that got my mind hooked on the idea was watching my best friend get it done last year. Ever since then, I've begged and pleaded with my parents to let me get it done. Last weekend, they finally said "yes". I was so stoked! Sunday afternoon (7/9/00), my older sister and I headed to Village Street Wear. I was so excited that I was finally going to get pierced! Once we got to VSW, I walked up to the piercer and told her what I wanted done. She handed my sister a form to fill out, and I had to sign a statement saying that in the event of a medical emergency, I would go to the doctor, etc. The piercer took me to a back room, which was very clean looking, and told me to sit down. She saw that I have my eyebrow pierced and she said, "This won't hurt as much as that did. Tongue piercings are the least painful piercings." She handed me a cup of Listerine, and instructed me to rinse. After I did, she told me to stick out my tongue. She looked at the bottom of my tongue to check for vein placement and told me that there would be no problem piercing it. She put gloves on, opened the clamp and needle, both sterile, and put the clamp on my tongue. She checked one last time for the placement and told me to hold the clamp. Then, she took the clamp back from me and told me to breathe slowly and on the third exhale, she pushed the needle through. Talk about a rush!! She said "The worst part is over, now I have to put the barbell in." With one quick motion, she put the barbell in and screwed on the bottom ball. She smiled at me and said, "You're done! Take a look" and handed me a mirror. It looked so awesome!! She handed me my cup of Listerine and told me to rinse again, and then she told me more aftercare instructions. She handed me a bottle of Glyoxide, and a little bottle of antimicrobial dental rinse. Here are some do's and don'ts that she mentioned:

1. DO use Listerine or other antibacterial mouthwash after everything you eat, drink, and smoke.

2. DON'T be afraid to eat. Eat soft foods like pasta, mashed potatoes, and soup. However, don't eat anything too hot or spicy.

3. DON'T play with the new piercing too much for the first few days. Doing so can stretch the hole and make the piercing become agitated.

4. DO drink cold water, Slurpees, and have plenty of ice to keep in your mouth.

5. DON'T kiss or perform oral sex for at least 2 weeks.

6. DON'T put anything in your mouth (this includes fingers, pens, etc.)

7. DO get plenty of sleep. Your body needs time to heal, and it can't do so if you're tired or sick.

I tipped the piercer $10, and she gave me a card with the phone number on it in case I had any questions, and she told me that if there was anything wrong, to come in immediately. I paid (it was $30 for the piercing, and $25 for the barbell)and left. On the way home, my sister (along with her newly pierced belly-button) and I got Slurpees from 7-11. My tongue felt sooo cool!!

Sunday night, there was hardly any swelling or pain, and I even ate a whole plate of pasta (which took me about an hour to eat). Monday morning, my tongue was a LITTLE bit swollen, but nothing too extreme. I ate a bowl of minestrone soup and a potato pancake without any trouble, I just made sure that I rinsed as soon as I was done. It's now Tuesday afternoon, and this morning my tongue was swollen, and pus is starting to come out of the piercing (but that's normal!). It doesn't hurt and I ate a personal-pan pizza from Pizza Hut today. I've been chewing on ice and that REALLY helps with the soreness.

My only complaint is that there's a small dent where the ball rests on my tongue, but that'll go away. I can't wait to change the barbell (which is 7/8", the standard piercing size) to 5/8". I already got 2 tongue rings off of eBay for $12. I highly recommend looking on eBay for tongue rings, because you'll save SO much money. Just make sure they're surgical steel.

Well, that's it for my tongue-piercing experience. I hope that it was of some help to those of you who are contemplating getting your tongue pierced. Don't be worried about the pain, it's MINIMAL!