New piercings are not to be taken lightly, and I usually like to give lots of time into making the decision to get a new piercing. This was not so for the last piercings I got. Well, almost not true. I knew I had wanted to get my tongue pierced for some time now, but I also knew that my parents would be very displeased if their straight A daughter came home with a tongue piercing. My mom said that I would ruin my teeth (my teeth were very expensive, hehe), and my dad said that tongue piercings looked trashy. So I put the idea on hold for a few years.
At A Glance Author kayla Contact kayla@bme.anon When A month ago Artist Elayne Angel Studio Rings of Desire Location New Orleans Flash forward six years. It is my first year at college, and I had just celebrated my nineteenth birthday. The subject of piercing came up, and my desire to go under the needle yet again sparked. I actually thought against getting my tongue done, because it had gotten so trendy in the last few years. I thought about maybe piercing my septum or repiercing my nipples. But, the old longing for a piece of metal in my mouth won out over either of these options. I came to BME (a great resource), and looked at pictures of tongue piercings just to make sure that it was what I really wanted. While browsing through the plethora of pictures, I stumbled upon pictures of tongue venoms. I thought that these were beautiful. They were different, and they were exactly what I wanted.
I knew of only one studio in my new area to get a piercing done: Rings of Desire. The shop is run by master piercer Elayne Angel, formerly of the famed Gauntlet. I bribed one of my friends to go there with me, as getting to the French Quarter from uptown without a car means depending on New Orleans public transportation, which is, shall I say, just less than dependable. After waiting for the streetcar for about half an hour, it came and we boarded. The ride to the quarter was uneventful; I was getting myself mentally prepared to have needles stabbed through my tongue. I told myself that it would hurt less than biting your tongue, it would hurt less than the nipple piercing, and it would be all worth it in the end. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, we got off the streetcar at Bourbon and Canal, but we still had about 10 blocks to walk on a hot New Orleans summer day.
Once we got to the studio, we reveled in the invention of air conditioning. After a couple of minutes, I walked to the counter and said that I would like to get my tongue pierced. I told the counter person what I wanted, and she called over the piercer to check out my tongue to see if the placement of the venoms would be possible. She gave the ok, and I was so excited. I was finally getting it done! I filled out the paperwork, and then it was time to choose my jewelry. I decided on 14g barbells with small, purple acrylic balls. I chatted with my friend as Elayne (the piercer), got everything ready. She then called for me to come upstairs to the private piercing room. An apprentice asked if she could watch the procedure, and I said ok, so all three of us walked up the stairs to the piercing room.
I was then instructed to swish with a small cup of Listerine for one minute. Not so bad, I thought. But one I got the stuff in my mouth, I thought differently. Turns out, one minute is a really long time to have something as vile-tasting as mint Listerine in your mouth. We all entered a smaller room, and I sat down in a chair. Elayne then proceeded to explain to me all of the aftercare I would need to know. She then gave me an aftercare pamphlet. She took out what looked like a toothpick and started to mark my tongue. After she marked both dots, she asked me to ok the placement. It was perfect, so she got out the needle and asked me if I was ready for the first piercing. I said ok, and the clamps went on, the needle went through, and then the jewelry went through. She asked me if I needed a few minutes before she pierced the other side, but I said no, go ahead and do it now. So the second pair of clamps were put on, the second needle went through, and the second barbell went through. I really don't think the initial pain was that bad. After I finished wiping the drool and blood off of my chin, I promptly hopped out of the chair and went to look in the mirror at my new piercings. They were perfect and beautiful. I left her a ten dollar tip, and went straight to the French Market for a cherry snowball.
I know a lot of people have minimal swelling and pain in the few days following the piercing, but for me, this was not so. The next few days were hell. Pure torture. When I woke up the following morning, I wanted to rip the piercings out, my tongue hurt so badly. My tongue had swelled during the night, and I woke up with tooth marks on both sides of my tongue. I couldn't even talk, much less eat. I found that bread and all bread products were very difficult to eat, so I avoided them almost completely for almost three days. I existed on cut up fruit and salad for just about three days. I then moved on to rice and cereal, and was eating normal food after about a week and a half. I took anti inflammatorys like it was my job, and tried to avoid speaking as much as possible.
But all was back to normal about two weeks after the piercing. I could speak and eat normally, and my tongue had stopped swelling. I have not downsized the barbells yet, but am going to within the next few days. All in all, I am very happy with my new tongue piercings. To anyone who is looking to get their tongue pierced: go for it, but make sure you go to a reputable shop, and be prepared for a couple of days of pain afterward. Good luck, and happy piercing.