The other day, while walking along on 6th street, in Austin, Texas, I saw a girl walking out of Custom Tattoos for the Soul. She was bleeding badly, but also smiling widely. I couldn't help myself, seeing as that is the tattoo parlor of choice for all us color by numbers youngsters, so I asked what she had done that cause her to be so bloody, yet elated. She said in muttered English, "I jush gots my gumsh tattooed", loosely translated, "I just got my gums tattooed. My interest peaked instantly. Gum tattooing. Gums. Who would have ever thought that body art could stretch to an arena, a forum, rarely seem by mankind. I had to learn more about this. I talked to the tattooist, Robert Garcia, and he informed me about the delicate, yet dangerous art of gum tattooing and how they would not be permanent, in the sense of a back or arm tattoo, because of the acid wear on your gums, i.e. stomach acid, food oils, etc. But, while being discouraging, Robert encouraged me to try a new form of body art. The gum piercing.
At A Glance Author Bethyblue1 Contact ednelson_ut@hotmail.com When It just happened Artist Mr. Sandman Studio Custom Tattoos Location Austin, TX I went next door, to Mr. Sandman, the piercer extraordinaire. His parlor was extremely dark. The weather was foreboding, but it didn't change my mind about the piercing. Its like an addiction. If you set your mind to body art, you must follow through. He told me it would cost $100, because of the delicate procedure and that I would have to sign a waver that would leave him without responsibility if my teeth were to become loose or if my gums were to get infected, causing my teeth to loosen.
After I signed my life away, I sat in his piercing chair in the back room. It was cold that day, which made me shake every once in a while. I held the airs of the chair tightly because I didn't want to chance shaking while he was piercing and have him damage any of my teeth.
The procedure didn't take much time. Because the gum area is much thicker and sensitive than other areas you pierce, it took about 15 minutes to get the needle through. It was very painful, but also interesting. I could feel the piercers strength going into this. It shook slightly as he pierced me. There wasn't a lot of blood, but it was sensitive and awkward for a while. I pierced the gum area above and in-between my left upper central and my left upper lateral. It made it odd to move my mouth for a long time. It hurt to smile, but it also hurt to keep my mouth closed. I kept wanting to lick the piercing, but was afraid it would loosen or get infected.
To keep it clean, here goes my list of 10 things to do:
1. Buy Tech 2000. It is the best medical mouth wash available. My piercer told me to use plain old Listerine, but I didn't feel it would be strong enough. Don't not only use plain mouth wash. It will not help your healing process.
2. After you eat, use Sea Salt rinses. I don't know why this works, but it's the other piece of advice the piercer gave me, and it worked.
3. Do not over mouth wash and only use sea salt after meals. If you smoke, you should also sea salt rinse or mouth wash after that. It is recommended not to smoke or drink sugared anything during anything.
4. Anything cold is good. Ice, ice cream, yogurt – any thing. Ice will calm the swelling. It will swell. But don't worry, it won't be obvious to most people.
5. Anti-inflammatory over the counter drugs will be your friend. Only use them if you really need to, as they might slow down the healing process.
6. Even though it may hurt, you have to brush your teeth, at least three times a day, but especially after you eat and drink. This will cut down on the bacteria building up in your mouth and will also be somewhat painful. Try not to be too careless, seeing as catching the piercing will cause it to bleed and slow down the healing process. Plaque will build up around the piercing if you don't wash it daily. Remember, use a soft tooth brush, so as not to cause the area to become inflamed, or swollen.
7. If you are going to show off your piercing, make sure you hands are clean before touching it. First and foremost, this is a wound, an open would, and you should expect it to act like one.
8. Check the jewelry for tightness. If the ball comes loose while you are sleeping, you may swallow it. If the piercing comes out, it will heal.
9. Don't go into a pool, lake, etc. Treat this like any other piercing. Be even more precautious with this one. These are your gums and they are extremely sensitive and an infection could cause your teeth to loosen.
10. Lastly, love you piercing while it lasts. Most people say it lasts only a few months
And, good luck.