When one becomes interested in body modification and all it's aspects, they begin to experience a certain "itch". This "itch", it's this undeniable feeling that you must, MUST, puncture your body with more holes... For the most part, people tend to go to piercing studios and get their holes done by a professional. I am not one of those people. I am however, one of those people who are constantly feeling the itch. And for the most part, I cannot do anything about it. I've been forbidden, at 17, by my loving, but ignorant, parents to get any more piercings. Seeing I only have 7 in my ears (all of which are gauged to various degrees) I felt this was rather unfair.
At A Glance Author Clare Contact ozzyjade_77@hotmail.com When A week ago Artist Self-done Studio Bathroom Location Canada So, henceforth began my quest to find a piercing that was invisible to the naked eye... I contemplated the nipple, but a lack of cash made that impossible. So I began to (of course) browse BME to see if I could find anything else that was easily hidden...
I came across mouth piercings, and the number that existed made me very hopeful that I would find the one just right for me.
I came across the tongue web. This piercing intrigued me, with it's unique placement, the taunting glimpses that it had when at proper angles... I was completely smitten after looking through various photos.
So, feeling confident that this was a piercing I could complete myself, I began to research (once again on BME) procedures, tips and advice from people's stories. I hope by sharing mine, I shall be able to shed some light onto this piercing and some of the pros and cons that one can expect from it. This is not advocating DIY piercings in any way, this is merely being written so that others may get to read to my experience with doing my tongue web.
I began the special night by doing some final reading on BME and by getting all my supplies together. I gathered together my needle, my ring, my mouthwash and some disinfectant to clean all my tools. I proceeded to wash down my counter and spread out a towel to lay out all my supplies. I then disinfected all my supplies and got out the gloves (that's right, I did this up proper!). I spent some time looking at my tongue web, pinching it and making sure I was sure I could handle having it there. IF YOU ARE CONTEMPLATING A TONGUE WEB, THIS IS A SERIOUS STEP TO TAKE. You never quite realize your tongue web exists until you have a piece of metal sticking through it.
Once I felt comfortable with the idea, I swished my mouth thoroughly with mouthwash, which, I must say, burned. I then sucked my tongue back into my mouth and made sure my tongue web was as stretched at possible. Taking a needle that had a slight curve to it, I then just went, in one quick motion, through my tongue web. A lot of people complain about how they found the tissue to be very stretchy and impossible to keep straight: I never found that. I had a really easy experience getting the needle through.
The needle was about a 16 gauge, if not a tad larger. I left it in for a few minutes to just calm myself and get the feel for the piercing. Once I took the needle out, I was greeted by two twin spots of blood that began to form on my web. I wasn't worried though, and so taking Q-tips and cotton pads, I mopped up as much saliva as I could and then, began the tedious task of inserting jewelery.
From reading people's stories on BME, I had expected this to be really difficult. For me, however? It was not. It was easier than putting in my frowny ring, which seemed to take forever. I chose a small, 16 gauge ring with two little pointed beads on the end, which constantly makes me think of devil horns. Once I had the beads screwed on, I sat back and sighed. I had done my tongue web with no problems thus far and it felt and looked great.
The only problem I really had with it was the fact that keeping my tongue in that position for 20 minutes really made it sore. A week now after I did it, I think it's doing great. So far, no major build ups of plaque and the hole has remained straight and I haven't really stretched it from playing with it. My aftercare consisted of rinsing out my mouth with a 50/50 water/mouthwash solution and cleaning the bar with a Q-Tip just to make sure it's all shiny!
Other than a sore tongue from the original procedure, I have experienced no problems with my tongue web, except that I can't stop playing with it.
Once again, if you're considering a piercing and you feel like you want to do it yourself: Make sure you think about it long and hard. Do not just pierce yourself on a whim. It's important to research your piercing and to make sure you feel confident about your abilities. The tongue web was not my first DIY piercing, it was my 9th.
All in all, happy piercing and be safe.