I was first inspired to get my anti-trag pierced by the movie "Matchpoint." I think I was kind of confused on the Scarlett Johanssen's piercing, however, as I believe that she had a regular tragus piercing. However it worked out, I decided that I wanted to get an unusual cartilage piercing, so I googled the parts of the ear in order to find the name "anti-tragus."
At A Glance Author anonymous When Six months ago Studio Splash of Color Location East Lansing, Michigan About a week or two after deciding to get this piercing, I went in to Splash of Color to get my ear pierced (I had gotten my nostril piercing there a couple months before and was totally impressed with the cleanliness and professional appearance of the place). Even thought I was getting my nipple pierced at the same time, I was still more nervous about the anti-trag, because I thought it would hurt really badly!
As it turned out, I had nothing to worry about. After the piercer marked a spot on my cartilage, and had me check it in the mirror, I wanted the piercing placed slightly further back than the traditional anti-trag. I then selected a 16g sparkly curved barbell (which was actually an eyebrow bar in order to allow for swelling; I had a smaller barbell put in after about six weeks), and the process began for real. In all honesty, the preparation for the piercing hurt worse than the actual ordeal. The clamp holding it had a lot of pressure, but not much actual pain. The piercer then had me breathe in, and she pierced on the breath out. While it stung, it wasn't nearly as painful as I had been expecting. Putting the earring in was awkward, though, because the angle was difficult, and it took some time.
The healing was relatively easy, although soaking it in sea salts was difficult because of the spot on my ear. After unsuccessfully trying to submerse my ear in a cup of water (and having it dump down my shoulder and arm), I ended up soaking a paper towel in warm water and sea salt, then pressing it on my ear as a compress. I realized too late how important this was in the healing process, because I forgot to soak it for a day or two, and my piercing developed a large, blood blister-like "bump" on it. After soaking it for a few days, however, it eventually went down (although it was about two weeks before it was completely gone).
I learned the hard way, though, that this is a very delicate piercing and needs to be treated carefully. When the blood blister appeared by the piercing (it actually appeared twice after I got the piercing, but each time went away within about two weeks or so), I was so annoyed that I wanted it gone immediately! Rather than soaking it carefully, I at first tried a different method; I took a needle to the blister and stabbed it, hoping to reduce the blister. Instead, it just bled all over and hurt like crazy, but it did go down for about an hour or two. Then the blister popped back up, this time with a scab! It was horrible! After trying that method a time or two, I ended up just soaking it, with much better results.
Another complication with the healing was just that I'm used to sleeping on my side, but this piercing presented problems while trying to put my head down. As suggested by the piercer, I was able to fix this by placing two pillows at the head of my bead, then putting my ear in between the two. While the piercing generally wasn't uncomfortable, placing pressure on it (for the first month or so)could hurt.
My only complaint with this piercing is how difficult it is to take care of. Although I didn't have many complications, the placement is awkward and can provide trouble while trying to care for it. Changing jewelry is also nearly impossible, because screwing the tiny balls on the end of the barbell is difficult due to the angle.
The barbell that I have, though, is kind of boring; if you get this piercing, I would definitely recommend looking at some form of a hoop. While there's nothing wrong with a curved barbell, it doesn't look quite right because it either sticks up into my ear, or gets caught on things. I plan to buy a hoop of some kind so that it looks slightly more feminine.
All in all, though, I love this piercing; I get so many compliments on it, and I no longer have any problems taking care of it. I love how unique it is and it's subtle enough that I've never had an employer complain about it. Don't worry about the pain, because it really isn't that bad!