I guess everyone has their first's right? Well my first piercing [other than the lobes, but I got them done when I was around 11 years old and at Claire's Accessories of all places] was my tragus piercing. Now that I think back on it, it didn't actually hurt that much... It was just extremely uncomfortable.
At A Glance Author Rache Contact r.linaker@hotmail.co.uk When Six months ago Artist Corina Studio Holier Than Thou Location Manchester When I got it done, it was kind of a spur of the moment thing. I had planned it I guess, but I really had wanted an anti-tragus piercing. I'd heard that it was a very painful piercing and decided not to get it done; after all it was my first major piercing and I didn't really know what to expect.
I went with one of my friends (who had previously been pierced at the studio) to Holier-Than-Thou, an amazing studio in Manchester that do piercings and other modifications. The staff are all amazing and super friendly, so they keep you calm.
It was sometime in late August, just before I went to college really. I was pretty nervous thinking about it. Like I said, it was my first major piercing. When we got to Holier than Thou, we talked to the staff and told them what we wanted, a tragus piercing with a bar. My friend was getting his tragus done also, I had mine done and my other friend was getting her navel pierced.
We got all the expected information, aftercare sheets and they were happy to answer any questions we had – I think I had e-mailed them the day before and I got a reply the morning of the piercing, I was pretty impressed. After everything was signed and verified and after my friend came out of the piercing room looking a little white, I proceeded into the room on my own.
When I walked in I had noticed all of the usual things that studios should have, the sharps bin, autoclave in the back room, antibacterial hand wash and the like. I sat down on the bed and I suddenly felt myself go really white, or should I say faint? Corina asked if I was okay, and I just said "Ah.. huh.. Not really" and she said I could go bring a friend in, so I ran out grabbed my friend and ran back in.
I told her which side I wanted doing and she placed a small dot on it and told me to inspect in the mirror. I briefly checked and said it was okay. She then told me to lie down on my right side and face the wall so she could have easy access to my ear. I was so scared, I really was. She put the clamps on and shoved the needle through. I was half expecting her to tell me to breathe the 1, 2, 3 so it was a bit of a shock. All in all, the clamp hurt more than the needle going through, although I did hear a little pop which made my toes curl a bit. I asked her if she was done, and she said she was finished with the initial piercing, she just had to put the jewellery in. "Phew" I thought, "this bit can't be too bad".
How wrong I was. Now, I don't really think I have a high tolerance to pain, in fact I'd say it was pretty low but I know how to keep a brave face. I expected the bar to be put in my tragus in a matter of seconds however she had some trouble doing so. Now, facing a wall and not being able to see what someone is doing is kind of frustrating, especially when there is a lot of tugging and a lot of "I'll just have to do this bit again" and all I managed to say was a lot of swearing and a few "urghhs" as she tugged away. In the end she had to get Marcus to sort it out which he did in about 5 seconds flat; he was lovely. Apparently the hollow tubing had been cut too short and the piercer somehow couldn't manage to fit the bar in, I'm not really sure what Marcus did but it worked!
After the whole procedure was over and done with I sat up, thanked them and went outside where I immediately felt faint and nauseous so when we went into Forbidden Planet, I had to sit down for a while.
All in all, it was probably the piercing that gave me a lot of bother. It hurt for about a week afterwards, and I had difficulty sleeping on that side for about a month. Cleaning it hurt for a couple of days and it bled a tiny bit too. I had a bit of trouble about, a month and a half after I got it pierced but I think that was due to me fiddling with it all the time, what can I say? It was a new piercing and it was egging me to touch it – even though I should've known better.
Although it hurt a bit [felt like someone smacking you in the head rather than a huge searing pain] it didn't put me off and here I am now with a total of nine piercings [and more to come!]
Hope the information helped and I'm happy to answer any questions you have regarding the piercing. I know it's not exactly the most extreme piercing, but I know a lot of people who are thinking of getting it done and, naturally, I thought "why not write about my experience".
Rache, xxo.