I can't remember when I decided that I wanted to get pierced. Ideally, I could say that it started when I was 14, and my step-sister ( who was 16 at the time ) got her belly button pierced, but I'm not quite sure that'd be too true. I never wanted my belly button pierced, and was more interested in something around my mouth. So for the longest time, I wanted my tongue pierced. And no, I haven't submitted this to the wrong category. Just read on. :)
At A Glance Author Antigone Contact Antigone@bme.anon When Three months ago Artist Amanda Studio Studio Zee Location New Haven, CT, USA
After bugging my mom for two whole years, she finally gave in and said that if I could pay for it, I could pierce it. This was when the excitement began! I turned 16 in October, and right around Christmas I planned to get my piercing. This way, it was on a vacation, but it was a longer vacation ( Unlike that in November ) so I'd have more time to heal. And it'd be great to start out the new year with a new piercing, right?
Of course, like the good girl I am, I did my research. BME was one of the first sites I found, and I read up on a few experiences that other people had. For the most part, it seemed like getting your tongue pierced was going to be a walk in the park. Except the needle. It may sound silly, but I am so, so, so, afraid of needles. Six months before, I had almost broke down in tears when the doctor had to give me about six shots. In one day. Ugh. So I was kinda nervous, because I didn't wanna chicken out or pee my pants or anything. But I decided that this piercing, aside from making me really happy and stuff, would help me overcome my fear of needles.
My mom still opposed the idea of me getting a piercing, and tried to tell me that they were permanent, and that I should get a tattoo instead. What an idea, right? I thought it was silly, and besides, what's the worst that could happen, right? Well, it could get infected ( and it did! ), but that's another story.
Skip forward to December 20th, and I'm ready to get my piercing. Having emailed and phone called the place to death, I was sure that I wanted my tongue done, even though my mom still didn't like it. She told me to maybe get my lip, or my eyebrow done instead, but I wasn't even listening. My father decided to drive me up to the studio, which was about fifteen or twenty minutes away from my house. When we got there, the place reminded me of something out of a movie. It was very bohemian looking, with dark red paint and comfortable couches in the waiting room.
As I sat filling out the paperwork, and reading the contract they gave us, I started to feel nervous. Of course, I wasn't going to tell my dad this, but I was getting kind of scared. I'd practiced seeing how far I could stick my tongue out in the mirror, and it wasn't all that far. And even a friend of mine was telling me about all these weird things that happened to people with tongue rings. For some reason, I was scared, and decided to go with my lip instead. Lips rings looked really cool, nobody I knew had one, and from what I'd read online, they didn't hurt one bit. I was sold.
About five minutes after handing the paperwork in, I was called into the back room. I brought my dad, of course, because I didn't know if I'd be needing any moral support, I suppose, if you can call it that. The girl who was going to pierce me was really nice. She started telling me about the procedure, and about what exactly I would have to do to take care of my piercing. She even likes Tool, which was a total plus! Hee, anyway. She took out the needle, and sterilized the piercing ring, and put on her gloves before I took my dad's hand. I was kinda nervous, and even though I didn't squeeze his hand, man was I sweaty. Just my palms though. The piercing itself lasted about two seconds, and I didn't feel a thing. It was a quick pinch, and that was it. Very bearable! The only thing that was slightly painful was the clamp on my lip, but that was hardly anything at all.
After she was done, she gave me a pamphlet about aftercare and talked to me a bit. She said to email her if I needed any help, and gave me her card and the specs of the ring. She put in a twelve gauge, and told me to come back in two months if I wanted to get it downsized. I should probably mention that I got this done on the left side of my lip, and the only problem I had at first was it hurt just a little bit, and I had to drink with a straw. Other than that, it was fine.
However, despite my best efforts, and my constant cleaning, I woke up on Saturday morning with a lip the size of Kansas, and was kind of surprised. I do a good job of cleaning myself, and my piercing was obviously a part of myself, so why did it get infected? I called up the piercing place and told them about it, and they said that if I really wanted to, I could go see the doctor and get something for it. I decided that it would be a good idea, so I grabbed my ice pack and headed down to see the doctor. The waiting room was packed, and every now and then, a kid would look at my lip and make his mom look, too. It was pretty amusing, to say the least. Once I saw the doctor, everthing was fine. He provided me with a prescription for ammoxicillan, and I was better before Monday. Just a minor bump in the road, right?
All in all, I think getting one's lip pierced is great. If you've been considering it, do it! It doesn't hurt at all, and it looks and feels great.