Never in my life did I think I would ever get a piercing near/around my face. Never. But, as life always does, it changes. About 6 weeks ago a friend of mine came to visit me out in Amherst, and had a pleasant idea: he wanted to get his tongue pierced. Keep in mind, this is a guy who has never had any ink or metal done, and has been very adamant against that kind of thing. Needless to say, I was shocked by his decision, but at the same time thrilled. Obviously I needed to join him in his adventure!
At A Glance Author evilolive Contact evilolive@bme.anon IAM evilolive When A month ago Artist Not sure Studio Mom's Tattoo/Piercing Location Amherst, MA Originally I was thinking of getting either my rook or my nipples re-pierced when he got his tongue pierced, but for some reason, the piercing gods above decided that I should pierce my tongue as well. I wasn't in the mood to be in discomfort while sleeping with a rook, and didn't want to re-pierce my nipples quite yet because I didn't have enough money for two. I think when that happens they'll need to be done at the same time because I have symmetry issues. Anyway, I figured, since he's getting a tongue piercing primarily to "test" out on me, why not do the same. If I do take it out (which now I don't want to do), a tongue scar shouldn't be too noticeable anyway.
We decided to go get pierced the day after Valentine's Day to Mom's Tattoo/Piercing in downtown Amherst, MA. What drew me there was the proximity to campus (UMass) and the fact that they have great prices. The piercing cost $30, including jewelry! Great deal. So we get there, fill out the necessary paperwork, and waited for our piercer to get down to business. Funny, the piercer was very thorough with every detail of the experience, but she never mentioned her name! She went through the aftercare procedure with the two of us before she began the piercing process, and put the both of us at ease.
When asked who would go first, I decided to step up seeing that I've been through the piercing routine before. I rinsed out my mouth for about 30 seconds with ½ diluted Listerine, I believe, and then sat in the bright yellow "banana chair." I was given a dentist's bib just in case there was a major drool issue. The piercer was careful to show me the needle before she opened it, proving that it was new and autoclaved. She gloved up, and then proceeded to mark the center of my tongue, which was sticking out a mile. I'd guess the placement was about ¾" from the tip. Now, at this point in getting pierced I usually get the tummy flutters, just because you never know how each individual piercing will feel. She made sure the line up was perfect, and then clamped my tongue. She spent a good minute or two lining up the clamps, being anal about perfection. Now, the next part is fuzzy, and sounds odd, but seems to make sense looking back. She told me to hold the clamps for her while she pierced me! You've got to love piercee interaction! She told me that on "one" she would pierce me. "Three....two....one...." – stab!
You'd think that piercing a thick tongue would be so painful, when in reality, I barely felt the needle pass through my tongue. The needle was corked after, and I was still holding the clamps as far as I recall. She then slipped in the 14 gauge, ¾" stainless steel barbell. My oh my, those first 5 minutes with the metal in my mouth were so embarrassing. She had me rinse again with more diluted Listerine, and it was a pain in the butt trying to spit the stuff out. The barbell was just in the way, so instead of spitting out, I just kind of drooled it out! I adored my new metal, and thought it was the neatest thing ever. My friend proceeded to get his tongue done next, and all seemed to go well for him. I was go glad to be there as he was de-virginized to piercing.
Ah, the aftercare instructions. After being exposed to many different styles of piercings and information, I kind of already knew what I'd be doing for my own personal aftercare. Mom's recommends rinsing for mouthwash for one minute after meals, which I did, but only with non-alcohol rinse. I went with a brand called DenTek. The studio also said to rinse with salt water after snacks or smokes, and to rinse with water after beverages. I followed those instructions for the first week or so, until the swelling went down, then I decided to leave it the hell alone. I obviously kept my mouth clean, and would brush after meals sometimes, but generally just twice a day as normal. I don't think my tongue liked all the extra attention I was paying to it, as I got a white fuzzy look to it for awhile. I think I might have just been cleaning it *too* often. Mom's also emphasized to not touch the piercing, to avoid rough treatment, and to avoid oral contact and tobacco products for 6 weeks. I didn't really avoid the tobacco, but rather, I cut back significantly (which later led to me quitting).
After about a week or a week and a half, I got my jewelry changed because the swelling was down considerably, and the length of the barbell was beginning to get annoying. Another piercing enthusiast from campus treated me to a 14 gauge, 5/8" titanium barbell bought from Lucky's in Northampton, MA. I love the barbell, but once again, I feel the need to downsize. I'd like to go down to ½" seeing that I have plenty of space.
Overall, I feel this piercing experience was more fun than anything else. The whole experience gets a little lighter once you've gone through it a few times. Many thanks to the piercer, who put us at ease greatly. Go visit Mom's sometime for a quality piercing experience! http://www.momstattoostudio.com/