My Tongue Ring

At A Glance Author eMoTiOn SiCkNeSs Contact emotion_sickness@antisocial.com Artist Jiggs Studio Artistic Tattoo and Body Piercing Location Brandon, MB, Canada

For the past few months I had wanted a tongue ring. I'm not sure what made me want one, it just clicked. I already had gotten an eyebrow ring and tattoo, so I knew exactly where to get it done. I went there with two of my friends, another girl who wanted a tongue ring was supposed to come with us, but she ended up deciding not to get one.

I phoned and made my appointment for 3:00pm on a Thursday. I told them that I was underage and they just said bring a note (which is basically the same thing they said for my eyebrow ring and my tattoo).

So we arrived a bit before my appointment so we had to wait for one lady to get an eyebrow ring. That didn't take too long. So then I payed my $40 and it was my turn.

For awhile I was considering getting my tongue ring done in Winnipeg, and when I phoned around to places there, most of them were between $50 and $60, so I was quite happy that it was $10 cheaper in Brandon. (I don't know if it's because Brandon is a smaller place or what).

I went back (I made my two friends come back with me. Hey, I have to hold SOMEONE's hand, I'm not THAT brave.) and sat in the chair. The guy who was going to do it was the same one who did my eyebrow ring. He's a really awesome guy, his name is Jiggs.

He showed me the needle was clean then he told me to stick out my tongue as far as possible. Then he put the clamp on. Now the clamp is the only painful thing about the whole procedure. I closed my eyes and i barely felt him put the needle through or the barbell in. A couple of times he said I was trying to put my tongue back in my mouth (I guess I was doing that without realizing it).

He told me to put my tongue back in my mouth and he took off the clamp. Oh my god, my tongue was HUGE! And it was bleeding! Oh great, I had heard the horror stories of the perciers hitting a major vein and you could bleed to death. I guess he knew I was freaked out though because he assured me nothing was wrong and some people bleed a bit. For the rest of the day I couldn't talk, it hurt too much. One hint though, have a cup of ice handy, it helps A LOT! I went to wal-mart and bought my Listerine (it was cheaper there then at the piercing place) there and headed on home. I ate a bowl of soup that night, and it took me 45 minutes to do so.

The next day it was a BIT better. I could talk, I just had an enormous lisp. I actually managed to eat scrambled eggs. I mostly stuck to soup though. My tongue was still really swollen also. There were times when I seriously considered taking my tongue ring out..but I stuck with it. Also, swishing with the Listerine really helps the swelling.

The third day it didn't hurt to talk anymore. My lisp was a BIT better, but the swelling was still pretty bad. You could actually see teeth marks on the side of my tongue!!! I could eat pretty much anything, it just took about twice as long as normal because I had to get used to eating with a hunk of metal in my mouth.

By the fourth day my lisp was pretty much gone. The swelling was still there a bit. I could almost eat normally. I actually managed to eat some popcorn and a bagel! Which is definately a good thing, because I was getting AWFULLY sick of soup. I didn't think getting my tongue ring was such a stupid idea anymore.

The fifth day all was back to normal. I could talk and eat and the swelling was as good as gone. I could even play with it a bit (yeah, I know you're not supposed to..)

If you get a tongue ring, the first few days it will seem like hell, just stick with it, and everything will be better.

I'm glad I stuck with it and now I LOVE my tongue ring. Also, it's a piercing that you can keep hidden if you want to. It can be your little secret. Although, I walk around with my tongue hanging out all the time because I want everyone to see it. =P

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me via email at emotion_sickness@antisocial.com or you can go check out my webpage at http://www.angelfire.com/ga2/goth

Cyas!!