Before I got them, I had wanted venoms for as long as I can remember. I loved the look of them so much more than just the average, boring single centered tongue piercing.
At A Glance Author Kerri Contact Kerri@bme.anon When N/A Artist Laura Studio Steel Temple Location Burnaby, Canada So when I had every thing I needed; Money, a good three and a half hours, and nothing in the near future that could deter me from my venoms, I finally made the long, hour and fifteen minute, pain in the ass commute out to my regular piercing studio, accompanied by a couple of friends.
When we FINALLY got there, there was the usual small talk with Laura, then the inevitable, "So what'll it be this time?"
I told her I wanted my long awaited 14 gauge venoms, and she went into the back room to set up.
She would only allow me and one other person in the piercing room, so one of my friends decided that it would be her, although she's not the most supportive person to be with while having needles forced through your tongue muscles. Oh well...
First Laura had a good look at the top and bottom of my tongue, and determined that the placement that I had wanted in the first place (pretty much in the center of each tongue muscle, about an inch back) would be impossible without going through the two major veins in the bottom of my tongue. I'd either have to have them either closer together of farther apart than I'd wanted them, but would remain an inch away from the tip of my tongue. I decided to go with closer together, because it would minimize the risk of a chipped tooth, not to mention I thought it would look better. She didn't draw on any dots, because she said the drool would just wash them away, so I trusted her with them.
Anyways, first came that wonderful substance that many of us with oral piercings have grown to loathe; the yellow Listerine. This was the only oral piercing I've had in which this part was not the worst. So I'm sitting in the dentist-like chair, swishing this vile substance around in my mouth when after what seems like an eternity Laura allows me to spit. Oh... such relief.
Then come the clamps, which Laura held tight with and elastic band. My god, this part was pretty brutal, in the sense that I could barely help from retracting my tongue into my mouth. Not to mention I don't have an extremely long tongue, so the clamps pulling my tongue out of it's mouth made it feel like it was being torn out. (Alright, it wasn't quite that bad...) After maybe two or three tries, I was finally able to hold it still.
Laura positioned the needle under my tongue, so she could make sure that she wouldn't pierce the big veins under my tongue. Then I'm hearing Laura say the words I have heard oh so many times; "Alright. I'm going to pierce you on the exhale. In..." Cue normal panicky feeling that seems to have a knack for kicking at this time every time, "And out."
The infamous Sharp Burning Pain for five seconds, followed by the familiar Sore Achy Feeling, followed by the jewellery insertion and ball screwing on.
As Laura was attempting to clamp the other side of my tongue, my friends cell phone rings. Instead of turning it off, she picks it up and starts talking. Thanks, Alison. Remind me to never bring you along for "support" again.
After Laura shooed her into the hall, she went back to trying to clamp it. This was even more difficult than the first time, seeing how I was shaking from the adrenaline rush. Finally she got it, and again came the "Inhale... and exhale." I've always heard from people that the second one hurts a lot more, but this was not the case at all. It hurt so much less, which was a relief. Again, jewellery insertion, followed by screwing on the balls. The first one didn't at all, but this one bled like a motherfucker. Well, not that bad, but I've never had one bleed nearly this much, so it was a new sensation for me.
The relief of finishing this piercing was so great. It was the worst one I've gotten yet, because of the constant clamping, drooling, bleeding, etc. Keeping your tongue out of your mouth for long periods of time is a real pain in the ass too.
But no! After getting me to stick my tongue out for a look, Laura announced that the second one was crooked because I moved it during the piercing. Fuck. She took it out, and after a small breather I was back on the chair.
She had less trouble clamping it this time, because I was using all my inner strength to not move my tongue because I wanted this DONE. "Breathe in... and out" This one hurt even less than the one before, which really surprised me. Insert jewellery, and it was done.
She looked at them (after this procedure sticking your tongue all the way out of your mouth is incredibly infuriating and painful) and said, "They're still a bit off, so you can either let me repierce one now, which will hurt a lot less, or come back."
I had a look at them and was definitely not satisfied, so I decided to get it over with because One; It will be less painful, Two; If I got it over with right now then I could just get the swelling over with, instead of having it swell up AGAIN after getting it redone, and Three; I WANTED THEM STRAIGHT DAMMIT!
This time Laura did it a bit differently, because the bottom hole had the right placement but the top one was off. She clamped it, then unscrewed the bottom ball, inserted the needle through the exit hole, and then pushed it through my tongue, making the exit hole parallel to the other piercing. She inserted the jewellery, screwed on the balls, and it was done, for real this time.
Then, as usual, the aftercare. Oral B mouthwash after eating and smoking, washing my mouth out with sea salt soaks once a day, no drinking through straws, and no drinking beer, cider, or wine. The last one especially sucked because I came to the place carrying a six pack in my back pack, which I was looking forward to drinking that night. Fuck.
The swelling was really bad for the first three days. I could still eat, but it took quite a bit of time and effort, and was quite infuriating. It started going down after that, with the help of four ibuprofens a day, and after a week I could eat almost normally.
All in all, they were a bitch to get, but my venoms were worth it.