Piercings have become one of my favorite forms of body modification in these past few years. I got my first piercing when I was fifteen in a rather un-admirable studio and have since then found a great studio, great piercer, and at eighteen have acquired twelve piercings all together. There are still more to come but I am digressing from this experience.
At A Glance Author Sean Contact trai1erprkjesus@hotmail.com When A week ago Artist Brian Studio Exotix Location Brick, NJ This is the story of me getting my venoms done. I never really found the traditional central tongue piercing mentally or aesthetically appealing. Although, I do not look down upon others who have them or have problems with others getting them I personally thought them to be far too popular and trendy. This idea was further developed because when people looked at me they were shocked to see that I did not have my tongue pierced as if it were almost a prerequisite to get any other modifications done. Although piercing my tongue did cross my mind from time-to-time, I never really thought I would have it done.
Fast forward three years after I got my first piercing and again thoughts of having my tongue pierced began floating in and out of my mind rather often. I knew I did not want a central tongue piercing but after scrolling through BME very many times I realized I had many more options. One, well actually two, piercings completely stood out from the rest. I loved the way they looked, their positioning, their name; basically everything about them. Although the idea of getting venoms was frequently on my mind the aftercare of such piercings would constantly stand in the way of me getting them.
I knew that tongue piercings would swell. I knew that tongue piercings have a tendency to distort a person's speech for a few days. And I also knew that tongue piercings limit a person's ability to eat for a short period of time. Because I work as a customer service representative, my speech needed to be clear and unaffected or else explaining things to customers would be almost impossible. On top of all this, I am a smoker (horrible habit) and knew that that would in the least, delay the healing process of my tongue. These factors all had their part in me delaying the piercing of my tongue.
Well one week I decided I really needed a piercing. I had not had a piercing since my nape (about four months) and stretching my ears just was not satisfying my cravings for new work. Turns out that that week I would also be book keeping at work both Friday and Saturday which meant that I would not need to talk to anyone at all for at least two days. I figured what great timing for the venoms that I decided I really wanted to have. I decided that Thursday night I would be getting my venoms and hopefully by Sunday the swelling and their effect on my speech would be minimal if not completely gone.
Thursday rolled around, I went to pick up my girlfriend, and off to Exotix we went. I have been going to Exotix for about two years now and I feel completely comfortable and at home there. I would never think of going anywhere else and really do not trust any other piercer in the area besides Brian to adorn my body. So my girlfriend and I made a little small talk with Brian and Jen (the girl who works the counter) and then Brian double checked that my tongue was suitable for the piercing. He decided I would be fine and I proceeded to fill out the necessary paper work (I really should know it by heart by now) while Brian set up for the piercing. After that was all done, Brian told me to come sit down in the chair and made me gargle with Listerine for about thirty seconds (this actually stung quite a bit).
After gargling it was time for marking. Turns out the veins running down the bottom of my tongue are rather large and that the piercings would have to be angled. The tops of the barbells are rather far apart whereas the bottoms of the barbells are almost right next to each other. This did not take away from the look of venoms that I loved and also made the piercings more comfortable in my mouth. After the marking was checked and rechecked it was time for the actual piercing. I was getting rather nervous by this time because not only was this be a completely new type of experience (oral piercing) but this also would be my first time getting pierced twice in one sitting (other than my lobes which were a breeze). My mouth was dried and the clamps were applied. I started my breathing routine as Brian told me just to relax and then the needle went through. I cannot say this was a pleasant experience but now that I think about it, the piercing did not really hurt all that much (Definitely no where near as painful as my rook was). The jewelry took the needle's place and then it was time for a little rest, quick glass of water, another rinse with Listerine, and then back to the all too familiar clamps (Brian of course made sure I was fine and ready for the next piercing). The second piercing went just as smoothly as the first, albeit it hurt a tad more (With me the second piercings always do.) I was rather embarrassed that I drooled a little with this one but Brian assured me that it was completely normal and not a problem at all.
When I first returned my tongue back in my mouth I was completely astonished at how different this familiar muscle felt to me. I knew it would feel a little different but it was completely not what I was expecting. Brian gave me a few more cups of water, went over the aftercare with me, made sure I was feeling completely okay before getting on my feet again, and then it was time for my girlfriend to get her nostril repierced (again another story).
For aftercare, Brian told me to go out and buy both a bottle of biotene (it has no alcohol in it making it much more gentle than Listerine or other mouthwashes) and also a new tooth brush because my old one was probably harvesting a lot of bacteria. He told me to brush my mouth as well as my tongue about three times a day, to rinse with the biotene after every time I ate, drank, or smoked a cigarette (this became quite the nuisance), and also to rinse with a mild sea salt solution once or twice a day until the piercing was fully healed. He then explained that taking ibuprofen (which I did) would help reduce the swelling and pain as well as cold water. Finally, I was told to stick to soft foods for the first few days (pudding, mashed potatoes, ice cream) as eating solid foods was almost impossible.
The healing went very smoothly and thankfully I had no problems. Although most people say that your tongue would only swell for three days mine was actually swollen for about a week or so. This kind of worried me but I assumed it was because I got two piercings done and also because of the fact that I smoked. My speech was also somewhat altered for a little more than three days, it was probably around the fifth or sixth day that I was speaking completely normal again. I really did not have any problems not playing with it while healing, it usually was too sore to even attempt it. The only real regret about getting this piercing was that I could not really "kiss" my girlfriend for the entire week right before she left for college but other than that I have no regrets at all. It has become a little hard for me to maneuver my tongue around my teeth but that may go away once I get the shorter barbells put in (this should be soon as it has been about two weeks since I have gotten the piercings).
If you are thinking about getting your tongue pierced, regardless of whether it be multiple piercings or just one, I say go for it. Just make sure you are willing to be rinsing your mouth out after doing anything with your mouth and also prepared to not each very much for a few days before going to get it done. Although no one really sees this piercing I still know it is there and it is extremely fun to play with when bored. Finally if you are ever in New Jersey and in the Brick Township area I suggest you at least stop by Exotix. Jen is an extremely sweet and fun person and Brian is one of the only piercers in the area who has your best interest as his first priority, not your money.
Happy Piercing.