When I was little I saw a girl around six years old or so, I was at the store with my mom and I saw a girl talking on a cell phone. Usually I would just pass her by and think nothing of it, but something about her intrigued me. As I watched her blabbing away at her friend on the phone, I could see metal in her mouth. I have never seen this before. As I watched further I could see a silver barbell in her tongue. I was fascinated with this idea.
At A Glance Author Amanda When Three months ago Artist Kraiger Studio The Tattoo Shop Location Tucson, AZ >From that day forward, I wanted a tongue piercing. At first my mom totally shot down the idea, making me think that it was never going to happen. I moved on and got other piercings, but was never content.
It came up again when I was around 13. I wanted it quite badly and my mom still refused. She argued that girls only get them to give better head and that I didn't need that on my reputation. She also said they forced people to talk funny and that they looked horrible. It was looking like it wasn't going to happen.
I argued with her some more about it and she said she didn't want me jumping to any conclusions about anything and getting something I regret. She said I needed to be older and to think about it more. I asked her if I could get it done at 16 then if I still wanted it. She reluctantly said yes but told me that she hoped that by then I would realize how dumb it is and how bad it looks.
A few more months went by of me bothering her non stop about it saying that it has been awhile and I still want it. She kept telling me to wait and I told her should couldn't say that forever. She asked me why I was so anxious and I told her that I didn't want everyone else to get one as they get older and me to be a follower. She still refused.
Then one day I brought it up to my dad. He didn't like it at first but he could see that I really wanted it and after a week or so I had persuaded him. He talked to my mom and finally convinced her it would be ok. I was blissful. I was finally allowed to get it done.
So I called some of the shops in town but all of them told me that you had to be 16 even with parental consent because of some dumb law here in Arizona saying that it is like child abuse to pierce someone with a needle or some bs like that. I was heartbroken. I thought that my chance was gone because I knew if I didn't act quickly my mom would change her mind again.
Later I was talking to my friend and she told me about this place called the tattoo shop where the guy would do it if you were only 14. She had gotten hers done there and was very happy with her's. I told my mom and dad about it and they agreed to take me.
When we got there, my dad was already there. He had gotten there early to kind of check the place out and just get a feel for it overall. My mom said she didn't like it, but my dad and I just figured it was her being weird and that she would say that about any shop like this just because of how they are inside.
I had read on bme about tongue piercings for hours at a time so I had a general idea in my mind of what to expect. He looked at my tongue a bit before we went back and said he would be able to pierce it. We filled out the paper work and went to the back room. My mom refused to go but my dad followed like an anxious little puppy.
We went into the little room and I sat on the little bed/chair thing. I put a pair of gloves on and began to tell me the procedure as he set everything up. I was expecting to use mouthwash but I didn't. He put gloves on and dried my tongue off and put the clamps on. He had shown me the needle in the package still, but the jewelry wasn't in a package, it just sat loose on the tray. He pulled my tongue forward, but it isn't quite long enough and since my mouth is so small he had to pierce it at an angle so I wouldn't feel any discomfort when I was just relaxing my mouth.
He told me to relax and that it wouldn't hurt a big. He clamped my tongue and picked up and opened the needle. The clamps hurt pretty badly and it caused me to want to pull my tongue in. I tried really hard and didn't though. He told me to take a deep breath in and then out and the needle went right through. I didn't even feel it. He told me I was done and that now all he had to do was insert my jewelry and I would be done. I thought to myself wow that was easy. He put in the barbell and gave me instructions on how to clean. Twice a day every day for two weeks I had to swish with the brown mouthwash. He said it should be healed in two to four weeks.
I thanked him, paid, and left. I got into the car and pulled down the visor and flipped up the mirror to get a good look at my new addition. I loved it. It didn't bleed or swell, which was awesome. I sat in the car the whole way home playing with it in my mouth, clicking it on my teeth. I not only had a cool new piercing, but a new toy to play with when I was bored. I could not be happier.
It healed up in about three weeks and was totally painless in about 5 and a half or so. I have changed it many times and invested a good deal in new pieces for it. I don't regret getting it one bit. It made it kind of difficult to talk, and I did not want anyone to be able to tell I had one by the way I talked. You kind of have to learn to talk all over again because if you remain talking the way you did before, you sound like you have a lisp.
Overall, I love my piercing and would tell anyone who was considering it do get it done. I am not, however, satisfied with the shop I went to. I learned that odds are if a shop will pierce you when you are underage, they are not the most reputable shop in town. The place wasn't bad, but it also was NOT the best place either. If you are going somewhere, make sure you find a good shop that you feel 100% comfortable with.