Way back on June 15th, I kissed my [soon to be] boyfriend for the first time. About two minutes in, I stopped and asked him to stick out his tongue, and with a sly smile held the jewelry between his teeth. I don't remember any more what my reaction was, but from that day on, Jaime's tongue was a major transfixion of mine.
At A Glance Author Wendy Contact Wendy@bme.anon When It just happened Studio The Quillian Location Allentown, PA The more I thought about it, the more it interested me. I asked him to stick out his tongue at the most random of times. I asked every question I could, but I still wasn't satisfied. I wondered what a tongue piercing would feel like in my own mouth, but I'm kind of a goody-goody; all I had pierced were my ears. Still, I loved the idea, and as he had me help him pick out new barbells while we were down the shore, I swore that one day I'd "have that" too.
Even during my first year of college, someone in a seminar of mine had theirs pierced. Just being able to see it while he talked drove me crazy. I must have been procrastinating writing a paper when I typed "tongue piercing" into a search engine and happened to come across BME. With BME and other websites, I found out that while there were risks involved, danger of infection and other complications were relatively small and the procedure was not particularly painful. My mind was made up. I would have my tongue pierced, but questions remained: When and where?
I'll cut this part short, but after consulting when Jaime would be in town, when my fall recess was from school, when my friends were free, and what place would be the safest, we finally decided on Tuesday the 4th of October after classes ended. Of course, I barely did any work for a week because of the excitement. Saturday the 1st Jaime and some friends from home were in town, and after we went to an amusement park to celebrate my friend's birthday, we had some extra time before they left. I had already been scared to death on the rides; not much else could effect me that day. We grabbed my friend from college and walked up to The Quillian on 19th Street a few days before we had planned.
I have no doubt the employees were surprised to see so many people. I marched right up to the counter. The two men smiled nicely, and I forget exactly how they asked how they could service my group of 7, but I replied confidently, "I would like my tongue pierced, please." I filled out the paper, showed him my ID, and picked out the ends of my barbell. This is where I am going to stop and give some advice. Most people start with a generic steel barbell, but my boyfriend insisted, with reason, that I get the plastic ends. As far as I know, you are much less likely to chip or crack your teeth when you don't have metal balls at the end of your barbell. I'm sure you will have to ask, I needed to, but I think healthy teeth are worth it.
I took my allotted three people in the piercing room with me, sat on the green chair, and my piercer explained the procedure to me. Most of this I already knew from doing research, but it helped my confidence and my piercer's professionalism for me to hear it again. The one part I had not heard was the he would pierce my tongue ever so slightly on an angle, so that when I closed my mouth it would lay flat. He raised my chair to (what felt like) three or four feet off the ground. I rinsed my mouth with some non-alcoholic mouthwash, my piercer drew a line down my tongue, had me stick my tongue out as far as it goes, and put the clamps on.
This, my friends, is the part you have been waiting for. He had me breathe slowly in and out, in and out, in and out. It seemed as though it took forever for him to actually put the needle in; my friends told me he was checking and lining the needle up, but I'll admit: my eyes were closed. I finally felt the pressure of the needle going through, and I probably started holding my breath. What I felt was a slight pinch, but mostly the feeling of the needle going through, which seemed like it took forever. Eventually my piercer said "Okay, look in the mirror. You have a needle through your tongue!" My friends were taking pictures, and yep, I had a needle in my tongue.
He had to keep reminding me to stick my tongue out "all the way" while he put the jewelry on, and I don't remember feeling the needle come out. He told me to put my tongue back in my mouth, and reminded me that I could talk, so I said, "I don't know what to say. Won't mom be surprised?" We went back out to the front counter and I paid my $60 with a bank card. When I had to sign, I was surprised I still hadn't started shaking. I have been more nervous buying fancy underwear.
So now the issue is talking. You can talk normally, if you want to. Since your tongue is a muscle, it gets sore like a muscle. It's easier to let your tongue rest a little and talk funny than give your tongue a workout and sound better. So far my friends have been understanding enough, but my boyfriend promised to make fun me until I talk normally (isn't he sweet?) and my roommates laughed when I brought back two enormous jars of pudding to live off of.
Anyway, my final advice is this: if you want to get your tongue pierced, as long as you will take care of it, I highly recommend doing it. Go to a clean, professional place, because it will settle your nerves. Finally, don't be nervous! Be excited!