Getting a tongue piercing can be one of the boldest moves one can make, at least in the mainstream community. In the body art world, however, it’s a very common thing, and there are good reasons for it. The benefits of having a tongue piercing will become pretty obvious once you enter into the social world again, but it’s very important to be extremely careful with it for the first couple weeks. These are some general guidelines on how to take care of your tongue piercing, so that it can be a very attractive and useful adornment.
Tongue piercing is nothing new, although it’s certainly been increasing lately in popular alternative cultures. Part of the whole category of body modification, these kinds of piercings have been around for centuries. Most people will mention the Mayan tradition of tongue piercing, but that ritual is a bit different, where they would run barbed threads through the tongue to make offerings of blood to Earth Deities, and most people today aren’t considering that option. Instead, it’s a metal enhancement, and will in time become a part of your own make-up, although it will take a little getting used to.
The piercing itself is fairly painless as these things go, and the most annoying part of it will be the swelling. Generally this is the most pronounced within 2-5 days. After two weeks, the swelling should be long gone, and most of the healing taken care of, and you can switch from the longer post to the shorter one. However, before this, take care to keep rinsing the mouth out with mixtures of salt water, antiseptic that’s been diluted with four times the amount of water, and drink a lot of cold water. Cold water first thing in the morning has a great benefit to the healing process, and like any wound, it can keep the swelling down. Be careful, too, not to talk much during the first couple of days, and eat soft, bland foods, chewing slowly because it will take time to get used to the new object in your mouth.
It’s also important to keep pure alcohol out of the mouth, as this will irritate it very much, and so will excessive smoking, and any amount of these things can slow down the body’s tendency and capacity, for healing. With any unusual signs of infection, or swelling that persists, see a doctor. Your tongue is very important, and your new jewelry will show you exactly why soon enough.