My tongue is my first piercing, besides my ears that is. Let's call it my entrance into the body modification world, because now I am hooked. When I had my ears done, I honestly cried. Yes, I am a big baby and can not take an ounce of pain. I do have two tattoos, and one was utterly painless. I did however compare the pain of having my lower back tattooed to the pain of giving birth to a breech baby! I did it, though. I figured if I could go through that then maybe getting my tongue pierced wouldn't be so bad. I have always wanted my tongue done. I waited about six years because I am a big bad chicken. It is a nice, discreet piercing. You can still be professional and have your tongue pierced. I work in a professional atmosphere so it seemed like a good choice. I did a good amount of research in general on tongue piercing risks, FAQ's, how it is done, and aftercare instructions.
At A Glance Author Jenn Contact prnseshawk@aol.com When A month ago Artist Kevin Studio Infinte Body Piercing Location Philly, PA I read about what you should look for in a studio. I saw many recommendations for Infinite Body Piercing in Philadelphia here on your website. Let me tell you Infinite is the epitome of what a piercing studio should be. I swear the place was so clean I could have licked food off of the floor. I went in, spoke with the counter woman (I'm sorry that I don't remember her name) and we decided on jewelry. I picked a 10 gauge piercing at her recommendation because apparently there is less scar tissue. This is a good size for smokers, chatty talkers (me), and those who chew gum. It made me even more nervous to be getting a larger size then expected but I didn't turn back. I was told to go get something in my stomach before they could pierce me. When I came back I was introduced to Kevin, my piercer, and was told I was his last piercing at this studio - he was leaving to travel. I am sure he will be missed as he made my experience very comfortable. He instructed me to rins e with mouthwash for a good minute. After this Kevin, my friend C and I all went into the piercing room. Again this room was more sterile then a hospital. I was even more nervous now but Kevin talked me through it. My tongue was marked, and I agreed. Now for the forceps - I remembered from reading posts on here I heard that this was the most painful part. Well thank the lord, I thought to myself because it wasn't painful at all. The he instructed me to take deep breaths and then on an exhale he slid the needle through my tongue and all of a sudden I was pierced. The jewelry was in and I never felt a thing! C watched the whole time and I think she had more pain then I did. I had such a rush of adrenaline after that. We then discussed aftercare and this is when the bombshell was dropped - No oral activity for 6 weeks!!! Now I knew that I was going to have to abstain, but I figured more on two weeks not six. Oh well. Then to make me feel better, Kevin told me that while I can perform any oral activity, it can be performed one me! So that's kind of cool. I just won't be able to return the favor.
I had a bit (okay ALOT) of swelling the next day and it lasted for about a week. As long as I took Advil I didn't have much pain. I did over rinse with mouthwash the first week and my tongue was a bit raw. I have since switched to warm sea saltwater and my tongue is back to normal. I didn't quite follow a liquid diet; I was on a soft noodle diet of sorts. Ah, Ramen noodles - cheap and easy to swallow! I did go to a barbecue the second day after and tried to eat a burger and some potato salad. It took me the better part of two hours to completely finish it. I would say the first week is the hardest because of the swelling. You also have to relearn how to move your tongue about. It also takes some adjusting to relearn how to talk without a lisp. I sounded pretty funny in work for the first week. It has now been almost three weeks and I feel great and have had no problems whatsoever.
I would highly recommend anyone considering getting body mods done in Philadelphia to check out Infinite Body, on 4th Street. The piercers and counter people there actually have some pretty cool piercings/stretchings. I can't wait to go back for more!