About 8 months ago, at the end of my sophomore year of college, I got my tongue pierced by Jessika Simmons at River City Tattoo in Richmond, VA. For awhile I had been thinking about getting something pierced or tattooed because college isn't complete without some sort of body modification! I ruled out getting a tattoo though because as much as I would like to have a tattoo right now, I'm not so sure I would want it when I'm 40, so I decided to go the piercing route since it would be a little less permanent.
At A Glance Author Annie Contact Annie@bme.anon When N/A Artist Jessika Simmons Studio River City Tattoo Location Richmond, VA I did a lot of thinking before getting anything done. I came to the conclusion of getting my tongue pierced because I didn't want something blatantly obvious (like my nose or lip) that people could see immediately when they looked at me. I thought that belly-button piercings were too cliché, and getting my nipples or clit pierced was just a little bit further than I was willing to go. So after much thought, I deduced that a tongue ring would be a subtle yet sexy piercing.
This would be my first piercing (besides getting my ears done when I was like 10) so I was a little nervous but more excited than anything. I'd heard rumors that a botched tongue piercing can cause paralysis of the tongue or if the piercer hits a vein you could bleed to death. I doubt either of those is true, but nonetheless, for obvious reasons, I wanted to go to a reputable, clean place. My roommate was from Richmond, so she knew the area well and I asked her where she recommended going. She immediately said River City Tattoo was the best place. She knew people who had gotten stuff done there before and were happy with it. I looked up River City's website online and it confirmed all the good things my roommate had told me.
The night that I went to River City to get it done, there was someone already in the piercing room. I had to wait for about 30 minutes because the person ahead of me was getting topical anesthesia, and since they needed some time for that to take effect, my wait was probably a little longer than it would have been otherwise. While I was waiting the guy at the front desk briefed me on what would happen, and he told me about all the aftercare stuff I needed to know. He showed me all the tongue rings in the case that I could choose from. Even though they had some cool looking ones, I decided to go with a traditional silver ball because I thought it was sexier than say, a confederate flag (and yes, they did indeed have a confederate flag tongue ring). The people working in the shop were cool and really helpful, which put me at ease. I think the worst part of my entire experience was the wait before I got it done, since the anticipation was building up and I was getting a little nervous. While I waited I browsed all the body jewelry they had and looked through the albums of tattoos.
When I finally went back to the piercing room, I met Jessika Simmons and she was incredibly professional and confident which put me at ease. Another thing about her I liked was that she wasn't completely covered from head to toe in distracting piercings and tattoos, which showed me that she had good taste and made me even more trusting of her. Since it was well over a half year ago that I got my tongue pierced I don't remember the exact details or the order that things happened in, but I think it went something like this: First, Jessika had me rinse out my mouth with some mouth wash. She offered me a topical numbing treatment for $15, but decided to suck it up and deal with the pain. (In retrospect I'm glad I decided not to get it, since it hardly hurt!) Then, (while wearing gloves, of course) she marked a dot on my tongue for where the piercing would go. She had me take a look in the mirror, and it looked fine to me so I gave her the go-ahead. I sat facing her in what was sort of like a dentist's chair. She had some tools set out on a tray nearby. At this point, I don't really know what exactly happened because I shut my eyes and squeezed the hand of my friend who had kindly accompanied me for moral support. My friend later told me that Jessika had clamped my tongue with a thing that was sort of like pliers with a hole in the end that encircled where the piercing would go. In a matter of seconds the piercing was over and done with. It hardly hurt at all; it felt sort of like a pinch but with barely any pain. My tongue didn't bleed at all. As soon as Jessika said, "ok, it's over," I felt the greatest rush of euphoria.
After that I went up to the counter and paid. They offered to sell me a bottle of sea salt water mouthwash which was supposed to help with the healing, but I decided to pass on it (and my tongue healed up just fine without it). The piercing cost $65, plus I gave a $15 tip, for a grand total of $80. Later, someone told me that that what I paid was a bit on the expensive side, but it was well worth it, knowing that I had my tongue pierced right by an experienced professional. What I paid covered the initial ¾" long barbell that they put in, which was extra long to accommodate for the swelling of my tongue. Three weeks later I went back and they switched it to a 5/8" barbell, which is the normal length, which was also included in the price. When I went back to have my barbell switched, I also purchased a clear ring that I could wear for occasions, when, uh, I didn't want people to see that I have my tongue pierced. (You know, stuff like job interviews, visiting my grandparents, etc.) Jessika gave me a slight discount on this ring and I think it's because I gave her a good tip when I was in the first time.
Overall, getting my tongue done at River City was a great experience. It barely hurt, and I felt like I was in good hands the entire time. I walked out of River City with a huge smile on my face. When I was driving home, at every red light I admired my new tongue ring in the rear-view mirror. Everything healed up just fine. I followed all the aftercare instructions, which involved using alcohol-free mouthwash (I used Crest) after every time I ate for about 2 or 3 weeks. I also waited a full three weeks before drinking alcohol (since it slows healing) or kissing anyone (since other people's mouths are foul). The first 48 hours probably hurt the worst, and my tongue was pretty swollen, but all in all it wasn't too bad. Sucking on ice cubes helped make it feel better and reduced the swelling. It kinda hurt to talk and eat at first, so I stuck to soft foods for a couple days. But after a week I was completely accustomed to it.
All in all, if anyone reading this is thinking of getting a tongue piercing, I would say go for it! I'm incredibly happy with mine. It's been 8 months and I haven't had a single problem with it. The nice thing about getting your tongue pierced is that if you change your mind and want to take it out someday, I am told that your tongue will heal up very quickly and there will hardly be a scar (and no one looks at your tongue that closely anyway).