I have always been just a little bit obsessed with piercing, and this was no exception to the rule. I was browsing BME and came across the tongue web piercing. I was in love with it from the start. It was so secret, so hidden. But I had just one little problem. The Parents. In my house, piercings are STRICTLY FORBIDDEN beyond the ear lobes. And no one in my family has ever cared about this little fact except for me. So asking for it was definitely out of the question.
At A Glance Author dcecile When Two years ago Artist me Studio my bathroom Location my house So all I could do was.....pierce it myself. I know, brilliant, right?(by the way, this is NOT a good idea. You should not pierce your own body. Just suck it up and wait until you are eighteen or your parents say it is ok. It will always turn out better.) I had the idea that I just needed an earring and a needle. Simple. So I got an earring(yes, an earring intended for your ear.. Dumb dumb dumb.)and a needle that was actually a large lapel pin. But it was a larger gauge than anything else I could find. So I gathered my supplies. I got alcohol and some paper towels. I cleaned everything and put the edge of the needle up to my tongue web. This was going to hurt way more than I had planned for. So I got a bowl of ice from my kitchen and began to ice my tongue web. After a few minutes, I put the needle back up to my tongue web, and pushed it through with little resistance. Until it came to push it out the other side. And it just would NOT go through. So I pushed harder, still no luck. So now my tongue is really sore and I'm drooling everywhere and I have a needle half way through my tongue web.
This was just the most ideal situation to be in. I realized that I just had to get it through. There was no way I was quitting now. So I just took a deep breath and shoved it through. I felt the skin pop and new I was done. But the needle and my skin did not want to slide, so it was painful working the needle back and forth so that when I took it out I would be able to find the hole for the earring. All was going well, until I decided I was ready to take the needle out and put the earring in. I slid the needle out, and blood started to pour out.
So I got the earring, and decided to just go for it and get that fucker in. I stuck the earring in, but could not find the hole. After about 3 minutes of mindlessly sticking the earring into my tongue web, I finally found the hole to put it into. All that was left now was getting the earring back on the other side, which wasn't too difficult. I rinsed out my mouth with mouthwash, and brushed my teeth. An earring felt weird and metallic-y inside my mouth, and I didn't like it at all, but I had no choice. I just kept my mouth shut, because my tongue was entirely sore. The next morning I woke up with a blister on my tongue where the earring back had rubbed it, and I had to switch the side of the earring. I had a friend buy me a little 18g barbell that afternoon, and switched it out, thankfully. The next day was a little better, but it was still really sore and a little bit swollen. I made sure to clean it two or three times everyday, and to clean it every time after eating.
My mom noticed the piercing a few weeks later, when I had a ring in it, but she told me I could keep it if I was grounded. Which , by the way, I didn't actually have to serve the grounding.
It also fell out a few weeks later, and I didn't have any jewelry to put in it, so I let it close and pierced it again a few weeks later, this time with proper jewelry. This time went much better, and the piercing has since lasted 14 months.
The moral of this story: do not pierce anything yourself, unless you have the proper equipment. It could have ended up being a much worse story for me, but I was lucky. I am very very happy with my tongue web piercing now, but it was a very rough time getting it to the point that I have it now, and can live with it. Consider the risks of everything you modify on your body, and research it as much as you possibly can. Go to a professional, and take proper care of it. If done improperly, you may be stuck with a very disfiguring scar.
Good Luck!