I get piercings to overcome my fears; blood and of needles. So what better way to tackle them than piercings and tattoos?
At A Glance Author Scytle Contact Scytle@bme.anon IAM scytle When Six months ago Artist Ron Garza Studio True Blue Tattoo Location Austin Texas I had been thinking about getting my nape redone for a long time, the first one I had had started to reject and had to be removed. I was all alone in Texas, doing a term of service in Americorps, (don't let anyone tell you moded aren't good for this country), I didn't know anyone in Austin and I was looking to make myself feel a little more special. It was hot, and all I had for transport was my trusty bike. I rode around town looking for people that knew anything about surface piercings. Finally I ran into Ron Garza at true blue tattoos. I met his father Bear, biggest damn ear lobes I have EVER seen in my life. I could have jumped through them things. Anyway they gave each other a big hug right in front of me, it was so cute seeing these two big Texas guys be all loveable with each other. I set up an appointment for next week.
I remember the day because it was REALLY hot outside (I am from the north we don't get number like 117 on our weather reports). I rode down town and was a bit sweaty and dizzy so I went and got a sprite and a candy bar (never hurts to boost the old blood sugar a bit), ate and drank my sugary snack and headed into the shop. The pleasant wash of air conditioning hit me as I went upstairs. The place was super clean, I sat on a little couch as Ron explained to someone about something I cant recall. When it was my turn to go (it was really slow that day just that one person ahead of me), I went in and sat on this kind of scary old dentist seat. Ron cleaned and did everything a good piercer does (autoclave gloves safety showing everything as it came out of the back). As I sat there I recalled the first time I had my nape done. It was a 10-gauge needle, and I just remember it being HUGE, this time I decided to go with a 14 gauge, much smaller but this nape was going to be mu ch longer (its almost 2 full inches wide).
He marked me up and asked if I was ready, I was. He pinched my neck and asked that I take a deep breath, I did. The needle pushed in slowly, a tiny spark formed in my mind where the needle first touched, the spark started to move across the back of my neck. It took him three slow pushes to get it all the way through. Each push moved the spark closer to the end of its journey. Behind the spark, pure pleasure. I don't know why but nape piercings just feel GOOD. Finally he was done, I was slightly disappointed. I knew that at any moment I would start to feel dizzy, it always happens. Ron got the tygon in and I told him I was going to lay down, big mistake. As I lay down one end of the tygon just slipped into one of the holes in my neck. Like I had swallowed it. Damn! This stuff is so bendy, so flexible its not like you can just push one end and have it come out the other. Ron seemed slightly concerned when he saw this, but undaunted he went to work immediately. < p> He grabbed a taper and started to do stuff. I don't know what kind of stuff because I don't have eyes back there, but it felt kind of strange. Not bad, just strange. Then I hear this POP sound. It was loud. So I ask, "what the hell was that!" and Ron very calmly replies, "Oh that was your subcutaneous fatty tissue.", so I say "Oh, cool". Well Ron is the man, and in a few seconds all was well the balls were on and I was holding a mirror in my hand admiring his work. It was perfect and shiny and lovely. Just how I wanted it. The great thing was Ron had done it all free hand, no stupid clamps, I hate clamps. That's pretty much it. I paid, gave him a tip, sat around till I felt really comfortable standing, then road my bike home. What follows is the next six months in diary format of how the piercing has behaved so far.
Piercing date Aug 21
Piercing went great. However when I was laying down one side of the tygon slipped into my neck. Ron did some magic with a taper but managed to pop a bit of my subcutaneous fatty tissue (actually made a popping sound but I couldn't feel anything.) But he said it wouldn't do anything only make a bruise. But no bruise ever did appear
Day one
Was able to ride bike home with no problems.
Problem with tygon slipping back in seems not to have caused any problems.
Felt great couldn't feel it at all.
Day two
Holes still a little red
Neck a bit sore...but for the most part I can't feel it at all
Some small amount of white goo came out when I take a shower was removed with a q-tip
No problem sleeping feels fine looks great
Day four
Kind of stupid but I am working outside all week. One small bit of blood on the right hand side...I think that if I am careful I can make it through the week then I have three more weeks without any problems (go back to working my computer desk job). Not getting much pain but I can feel it healing up. Holes are still a little red. Not picking at it and not touching it, but its hard I really want to paw at it, must stay strong.
Day 7
Been one week. All is well. Even though it stings when sweat gets into the holes so far the hard outside work doesn't seem to have any effect on it. I have been keeping a bandana over the area to keep dirt and sun off of it and it seems to be working very well. Also I am cleaning it really good right when I get home. Its hot in Texas and even with the bandana sweat is getting in there. It's healing up well and not making too many crustys. Just enough. It isn't bleeding and it doesn't hurt. In fact I can hardly feel it at all. It's a bit itchy sometimes but that's normal. Still trying not to touch it. Been hanging out with the same people all week, but tonight I am going out with some new people. Wonder what they will say about it. *Update they all thought it was "cool but painful looking"*
Day 15
Wow this thing is really healing well. When I first wake up before I do anything for the day there is no redness at all. Its only when I start moving my head around do the holes get red, and only on one side. I wonder if this is because I still haven't gotten the tygon shortened and it sticks out just a little from one side. Ill take a trip down to true blue and see what Ron thinks. Its no longer itchy or sore or anything. I am working inside for the next three weeks so it's not a problem with the sweat and sun anymore. I have been getting some fun reactions from people, for some reason people just think its ok to touch me...I have to tell them to keep there dirty meat human fingers off my neck cause its healing and I don't feel like getting there germs in my still open wounds. Most people ask the usual...did it hurt, does that go all the way through, if I hook wires up to your neck will you dance like Frankenstein (ok so maybe that's not the "normal response" and no I wont because tygon is plastic not metal) I told one older guy that it was a "posture correction device" installed by my doctor because I slouched. He said was a great idea and something about how kids today don't have good posture anymore. It was hard to keep a straight face.
Day 18
Went in to show Ron my neck...all is well...healing at a great rate..I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that I have changed to a vegetarian some time in between when I got my last piercing and now...I also am eating better and sleeping right...bet that has something to do with it
Day 25
The redness around the holes is going away. I am very happy with this. It is no longer that itchy most of the time. This whole time I have just been using warm water soaks. No salt no nothing. I just let warm water run over the wounds. My guess is that the warm water is helping to increase the blood flow to the healing area. Also I wash it once a day with an anti-bacterial soap and make sure to keep all the shampoo and other shower stuff out of it by leaning my head forward while I wash my hair. (Lucky for me I don't really have a lot of hair)
Day 32
All I can say is hurray. It seems that the damn thing is going to heal up all right. I have been thinking a lot about why this one healed and the last one didn't. Placement, this one is lower on my neck in a spot that moves much much less. Depth, this one is much deeper and far longer than the one before, that one was only about an inch long and very shallow, this one is about 2 inches and deeper. Care, I took much better care of this one than the last one. That means you love on it every day. Long soaks in nice warm water, care to keep your hands off of it, don't let sun screen get in the holes keep others hands off it, don't bump it. All the good stuff. This is the first piercing I haven't done salt soaks on. Just warm water, and it seems to work very well. I could never get the salt level just right anyway. Basically I just let the shower water run on it for about ten minutes in the shower. I'm happy, I think I might get some larger balls for the end. The 14 gauge ones look a little small for my tastes. There is not just a tiny tiny little amount of redness around the holes. Even though it's healing well I am still all paranoid that its suddenly going to start looking horrible so I still do the two mirror dance every day to check up on it. I have been getting really odd reactions from people on the bus (I don't ride the bus that often) mostly just gasps and then silence but a few people have commented on the fact that "that don't look right boy" or "god damn man" or "wow that's cool".
Day 44
I woke up today, and it just looked perfect. No red, nothing. I am so happy. I think its actually going to heal and stay in. It's been almost two months. I thought it was going to start going bad because it was getting sore last week. But what was wrong was that it was starting to heal in the middle and it had no way to drain, so now when I clean it I just make sure to wiggle the tygon back and forth a little bit to make sure that anything that might be building up in there can get to the edges and be soaked out with the nice warm water. I don't pinch the skin or try to wash it out in there just wiggle the tygon back two or three times while water is running over it. I don't have many visible mods, so people don't "look" for balls sticking out the back of my head, so I have found that a whole lot of people never seem to notice. I have yet to decide if this is a good thing or a bad thing.
2nd month
After a slight accident (lets just say sometimes its hard to control where peoples hands are going to be) and a little bleeding I think that it's healing up nicely. The redness returned after the bump but its going away again. Twice a day warm water soaks seem to be doing to trick again. So far so good :)
2 months and 2 weeks
Damn damn damn...I am getting a tiny keloid from the rip...going to sea salt it some and maybe get some tea tree oil...and it was going so good. I have hope the keloid is still very very small, so I think I can kill it.
3 months and 2 weeks
Damn that keloid, I now have a little keloid. But its stopped growing, and it seems to be staying the same. I am going to sea salt soak it some and see what happens. I don't really care, as it is not that big but it just bothers me, I want it all pretty damn it!
4 months
So tygon gets all funky when it's in your body for too long, so off I go to true blue for a tube change. There is a nice woman there (sorry cant remember your name), she pulls the old out and slips the new in, I love the feeling of the taper going in, it gives me the shivers all up and down my spine. With my new tygon in, I have a lot less discomfort. That stuff gets stiff after a couple months. She was even nice enough to give me a good length of tygon to take with me when I move back to Ohio, just in case.
5 months
Hmm so who's over reacting, yea that's me. I don't have any keloid's it was just puffy and red, and that went away mostly. I swear, does everyone get this worked up about this shit, who knows.
6 months.
It seems I will always have the ever so tiniest bit of scar tissue, oh well that's what you get for hanging out with aggressive women who like to throw you around in bed (did I just type that). Everything is going well. Even in this frigid northern climate, scarf's and coats seem to have little effect; its just placed really well on my neck and nothing seems to rub.
I figure if this thing can survive half a year it can survive forever, there doesn't seem to be any more problems and it is all healed up, so I am going to stop this diary of sorts at this point. If anyone has any questions about tygon, (I have had two tygon napes now) feel free to drop me a line.