I had noticed that even though I have had my nose and tongue pierced for two years, that they are becoming increasingly popular among the college crowd, but I they are a part of me and I cannot cast them aside. Yet I yearned for something more unique to me.
At A Glance Author Robyn Contact Robyn@bme.anon When It just happened Artist Jeff Studio Jeff's Tattoo and Body Piercing Location St. Cloud, MN Two days ago I had two anti-tragus piercings done, one on each ear. I had been thinking about getting this type of piercing for a couple of months now, and since I really liked the look (noticeable, yet not noticeably freakish) I decided to go for it although I have heard it is an extremely painful procedure.
I have looked at the pictures on BME but unfortunately there are not too many anti-tragus experiences. In my mind I took note of details to include in my story.
I called around town to get prices, just to compare with my usual piercing studio. They didn't even know how to pronounce "anti-tragus" so I doubt very much they even knew it is part of an ear! I called up Jeff's and found out how much they charged ($40 with a BCR), took $80 out of the bank, and went to get pierced. Jeff's is the only studio in this town that I trust, as it's been around since 1960-something and I have never been disappointed with the results.
When I got there, I found out that they had remodeled since I'd last been in to get my tongue done. Very classy. Anyway, after I told Jeff what I wanted done I filled out the appropriate paperwork. He gave me a personal discount of $10 because I was doing two piercing at once, which was nice. I followed him to a room in the back of the studio, and sat down in a comfortable dentist-like chair. He clarified if yes, I did want to pierce my anti-tragus on both ears, and pointed out exactly where it was. Jeff disinfected my ear and asked where I would like the piercing placed. . .I pointed out that I wanted the piercing to go through the middle of the anti-tragus, where the cartilage is the thickest. He measured each ear to make sure that they were pierced in the same spot. While he was getting everything ready he explained to me that although he has been practicing for 35 years, this is not a common piercing to get. He told me that in fact no other studio in town performs this piercing because it is so rare around these parts.
Jeff had me lean back in the chair and clamped my ear, warned me that these tend to bleed, and glided the needle through my left anti-tragus with a loud crunch. The last bit of skin resisted so the needle had to be forced through. Then there was a problem getting the CBR through the piercing, and there was blood running down my ear and onto my neck. I'd say inserting the jewelry actually hurt more than the piercing. And now I had to go through it again for the other ear! I started to feel kind of sick . . .
The right ear didn't bleed at all, I barely felt a thing at all -- it was more like a hard pinch than pain. Just like that the jewelry was through, not so much pain. The room spun for a minute so I did have to lay down for a few minutes afterwards. I inquired about aftercare, and asked if I should do sea salt soaks. Jeff told me not to, and said "it's just what they tell you nowadays because they saw it on the internet" so I won't. He asked me to eat something so I would feel 100% again. I got an aftercare sheet, signed for it, and thank you, here's a tip, and we were off! I picked up some shrimp fried rice on my way home -- extra spicy the way I like it.
It's two days later. . .I've had some comments like "ouch that must have hurt" and " it's cute but I would never do it". My parents were mystified as to why I would do such a horrible thing. The left ear is slightly swollen and still oozes small amounts of blood when I clean it twice a day with anti-bacterial soap. The right ear is perfectly normal and it's as if I have had the piercing forever. I try to sleep on my back at night, but usually end up on my right side by morning. . . .
I don't foresee any major problems, although I'm slightly troubled by my left ear. The anti-tragus is defiantly a noticeable piercing. If you are considering getting this done, the pain only lasts for seconds. As they say no pain, no gain.