Well as many other people before me I'm going to tell you about my first piercing.
At A Glance Author Jawsper Contact Jawsper@bme.anon When Six months ago Artist Can't remember her name Studio Studio Flash Location Heerenveen, Netherlands It was january 2006, and I had thought about getting a piercing for a while but couldn't decide on the location. After my girlfriend at the time got her tongue pierced I was certain. I wanted one as well!
I looked around on the internet for a decent studio not too far away from where I live (I live in a small town, so there wasn't one here). Looking around I found a place called "Studio Flash" which seemed to be a good one judging on the professional website and the good hygienic quality.
I really didn't want my parents to know beforehand knowing that they'd try to talk me out of it, but also certain that they wouldn't or couldn't forbid me, since they said themselves that when we (the kids) would be 18 we could get pierced if we wanted to and not before. And I was 18, so that's something I didn't really worry about. Still, thought it was better not to tell.
So on a thursday evening, the shops in the city I was going to were open late on thursdays, including the studio. Found the route to get there online and went there by bus (about 40 minutes). Finding it wasn't troublesome, kinda worried about the number of (probably marihuana) smoking people in that street creeped me out a little but when I got to the studio I was glad to find a small, clean place. Looked almost like a doctors office, and perhaps just as clean as one.
The girl who was drawing (tattoos i guess) went to the counter and I told her I wanted my tongue pierced. After showing my ID, reading and signing a release form and paying I was ready to get it done!
The room I went in was just as clean and everything she used was clean and the piercing itself sealed. After that it was just a matter of marking the spot, and a short while later with almost no pain at all a barbell was stuck through my tongue. A little blood was visible in the mirror but nothing to worry about. She had a cup of mouth wash ready so I cleaned my mouth with it as well as having a cup of water since I was feeling slightly light-headed of the adrenaline rush (and having it again while typing this).
After that she told me about the after care, no drinking or drugs for 24 hours and no kissing and beyond for at least a week. She also gave me the shorter bar and told me I could put it in after about 10 days and if i couldn't do it I could come back and they'd do it for me. I also got a spray can with salt to make a salt-water mix to clean it, which I didn't even use in the end, since it healed so well.
When i got home my dad didn't notice anything, not even that my voice sounded slightly different. I showed it to my sister since i did tell her about it. About 1,5 hours later when my mam got home from work she did notice something odd, and I decided to show it to them. They were shocked but not mad, so that was a big relieve for me.
Eating was a real pain the first 2 or 3 days, but after the swelling reduced I had no trouble at all. About 10 days after getting it I decided to put in the shorter bar, and with a little trouble I managed to get it in myself.
A few months later I had a few different balls on it, one of them a nice Hello Kitty one which I sadly lost while eating. Luckily I found a new one which I had for several months until I changed the whole bar recently (october 2006) for a completely black bar. It might even be UV-lighting I'm not sure, but I liked the colour of it in general.
Well that concludes my story about my first piercing. In the end I was really pleased with the look and feel of it, and I still like to play with it in my mouth, which is a great time killer when bored. The "trick" of taking it out and back in during breaks between classes is great since some people are almost shocked by how easy it is for me.
I'm sorry if the sentences get too long sometimes, it's something I do sometimes sorry! I hope you liked my story, and like many other people : Get it done by a professional! It might cost a bit but it's worth every penny in the end!