At A Glance Author Annie Contact Annie@bme.anon When Six months ago Artist Myself Studio My room Location London Generally I think for a while before I get a new modification done, try out placements etc until I'm sure I will like it. However with my tongue web I was bored and browsing BME when I came across this piercing which I had never really seen before, or ever considered getting.
Immediately I was intrigued, and pinched my web to gauge how much pain it would cause. I liked the idea of it being hidden inside my mouth and straight away I had a craving to have it done. I am not the most patient person and aside from my tragus and navel, my other 15 piercings have been done myself (not the best idea, luckily I heal quickly and have never had a problem).
Without much more thought to it, I went to my mirror and cleaned a safety pin. The piercing itself was extremely simple and relatively painless as the web of the tongue is so thin. The pin slid though with a feeling of being pricked in the finger and I was shocked that it had been so easy. But now came the difficult part - inserting the jewellery. I ended up using a normal ear stud as I had nothing else on hand and the piercing wasn't planned. I pulled the pin out expecting bleeding, but there was none. As I tried to find the hole again quickly, it closed up. I repeated the procedure and the same thing happened. By now I was getting frustrated, and I was slightly careless when re-piercing it for a third time. I ended up piercing into the vein/artery(?) which runs down the front of the tongue web as I had pierced too far forward.
I didn't even realise this had happened until I pulled the pin out. Expecting no blood like the previous two attempts, the blood filling up my mouth took my by surprise. Luckily I didn't pierce right through it - just nicked it, as I sucked on an ice cube for a few minutes and the bleeding stopped. Undeterred I aimed more carefully and pierced through for a fourth time. This time I moved quickly and managed to get the stud in. I gazed at my new addition in the mirror and instantly fell in love with it. I couldn't wait till the next day when I could go down to my local piercing studio and get a barbell for it.
The next day there was a little swelling around the area and I had to be careful with my food but apart from that I had no other aftercare problems. It never interfered with my speech, I just reduced my talking on the first couple of days so as not to make the swelling any worse. The most awkward part was probably changing the stud for a 1.2mm bar (6mm in length). I found it almost impossible to get both hands into my mouth at once to hold the bar still and screw on the ball. However with practise I figured out the easiest way to do it is to stick your tongue forward and grab the bar with your teeth to hold it still then screw on the ball. Works well for me.
As for aftercare, I just gargled saline solution twice a day for the first week or two then left it alone - I never had any further problems with it thankfully.
Overall I would recommend this piercing to people as it is discreet (my mum still hasn't found out 7 months later) and it is a bit different from a regular tongue piercing.
People I know often ask "Isn't it uncomfortable to constantly have something underneath your tongue?" But the truth is after the first couple of days you completely get used to it. Now if I take it out my mouth feels strange and my tongue doesn't feel comfortable, as if it is not in my own mouth anymore. So far I've never had any food caught in it and it doesn't get in the way of any other oral activities in the slightest.
The only annoyance of this piercing I can think of is that plaque can have a tendency to build up on the balls of the bar. The only thing I can say to this is to make sure you clean it everyday or it will build up.
I've arranged an appointment to get a centre tongue piercing for a couple of weeks time, and at first I wondered if I would retire my web piercing incase my mouth felt crowded, but I've decided against it. I've grown so accustomed to having this piercing that without it my mouth doesn't feel like my own. Plus I've always liked the triangle created with a centre tongue piercing and a web piercing, so I'm hoping all goes well.
:)