Wednesday

My rook piercing: One month on


Last month, during my visit to Plymouth, I finally got a rook piercing in my right ear. As my forward helix piercing post seems to have helped a lot of people, I thought I'd do a similar one about my rook piercing. I hope it's some help to anyone who's thinking of getting their rook pierced! 

WARNING: Images of blood ahead!

The Studio
I went to Blue Banana in Plymouth as I'd had a good experience at the Cardiff branch (admittedly back in 2006!). The man who served us at the desk was absolutely lovely, funny and very easy to chat to. I wasn't nervous about my piercing but, if I had been, I think he would have put me right at ease. 

For those who aren't aware of the chain, Blue Banana are an alternative clothes shop that also has a piercing studio. The piercers are all trained in-house and they work closely with local councils to make sure they offer the safest possible environment. It was very clean, all the piercers' certificates are on show, the autoclave (sterilising machine) was in clear view and the piercer opened the needle in front of me so I could see it was unused. I felt very comfortable being pierced there. 

The Piercing
I was pierced by a girl called Nadine. Unlike some other studios, they did not allow anybody to come into the piercing room with you. This may not be the same for all branches- I remember the Cardiff one allowed my friend to come in with me but that was 8 years ago! This isn't a problem for me, since I'm happy to go in alone but I know some people prefer to have some emotional support.

Nadine was easy to talk to before the piercing and answered my questions well. She marked the spot on my ear and asked me to check if the positioning was ok. It was fine so she went ahead and pierced it. Perhaps because it was clear I'd had a lot of piercings and knew the drill, Nadine wasn't very communicative during the actual piercing. She was very quick and matter-of-fact about it. Although I was fine with this, if I was unfamiliar with the process I think I would have preferred someone more patient and reassuring.

After the horrible double whammy of pain I experienced with my forward helix piercing (Ever had an attack of cramp in the middle of a piercing? Not nice!), I was braced for pain but it wasn't bad at all. It wasn't the least painful piercing I've ever had (that was my conch) but neither was it the most painful. 

There was a hitch, however. It bled. A lot. I was prepared for this, since my scaffold piercing resulted in blood pouring down my chest and needing to return to the studio half an hour later for a check up. I could feel the blood dripping down my cartilege and pooling in the conch of my ear which felt disgusting and tickly, but wasn't at all painful. It stopped bleeding after a couple of minutes though and was easy to clean up.

Aftermath
In the hours after the piercing, it was stinging when the wind blew on it but it wasn't especially painful. After that, it developed into a vague warm feeling. I couldn't sleep on it that night, but it was almost entirely pain-free the next day, although I didn't touch it at all besides cleaning it. 

After a couple of nights, it was ok to sleep on but then I knocked it gently and it became really sore and tender again. It was a huge annoyance for a week or so, but nothing that daily seasalt soaks couldn't fix. 

What's next
It was pierced with a really long bar to allow for swelling. I'm leaving this in while it heals, but I'll shortly be swapping it for a much shorter bar. This one is far too long- It's cumbersome, it looks a little overwhelming and it's going to get in the way. I'll change it for a tiny, dainty little bar so it's just two little silver balls each side. 

This was my 26th piercing (my 17th "active" one), so I know a fair bit about piercings. If you have any questions about rook piercing, or any other for that matter, just let me know and I'll answer it to the best of my ability. 

My piercings
Pearl Stud Earrings 
Curved barbell- 1.2mm
Scaffold bar- 36mm

19 comments :

  1. 26? That's a lot! But only 17 active. I don't think I have that many.... *counts* I have 11 active and 3 retired, one which I will be activating again when I buy a new ring for it. I'm also tempted to reactive the other two, if only for the weekends - they're not too compatible with work.

    My rook heal quite nicely, after I stopped sleeping on it for a good few nights in a row.

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    1. Yup, but I did get my first piercing at 10 so that's almost 16 years of piercing time!
      Which piercings do you have?

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  2. I wanted this when I was a lot younger. I remember when I was younger I used to buy from Blue Banana online all the time.
    Hayley
    Water Painted Dreams xo

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    1. I was all about Attitude and Grindstore haha!

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  3. Haha my helix piercing was REALLY playing up, it was horrible and swollen but I just couldn't get it out. In the end I went over to the trusty people at Blue Banana in Cardiff and they got it out (eventually...) after a lot of pulling and tugging - at one point the guy even had his foot up on the bed to help him snap it off with these GIANT pair of pliers. Pretty scary.

    Now I've taken all my piercings out minus my two lobes (boo...) but I was starting a new chapter in my life that urged me to take them all out, sometimes I miss them, but they were giving me a lot of grief.

    The rook looks awesome!

    Vicky xx
    Lots of Love, Me.

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    1. That sounds so traumatic! It sucks that you had to take them out but it sounds like it was for the best.

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  4. God your bar is so long!! Mine is ridiculous, I catch it two or three times a day and it HURTS SO MUCH. X

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  5. Great and really useful post, thanks.
    I'm currently pondering whether to get my daith or rook pierced, edging towards my daith but found this info really helpful. Thanks.

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  6. On a scale of 1-10 what was the pain like? I'm a baby in terms of pain yet I have 9 earrings (3 on my helix) a belly ring and 4 tattoos - I really want to get my room pierced but the nerves are there due to the pain to come lol - any advice or suggestions? Your post really helped a lot though thank you!

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    1. Maybe a 5? Not the most painful but not the least either. Just remember that the pain will only be there for a second and then you've got a cute piercing forever!

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  7. This is really useful :) I'm getting my rook pierced tomorrow and I'm a bit scared but I'm pleased you said the pain wasn't that bad!

    Hannah x

    www.hannahgetshench.com

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  8. Hi! I just got my rook pierced yesterday. I love it! It was pretty painful but afterwards, not bad at all. I did take Ibuprofen before and after which helped! My question is, how soon can I sleep on it? In your original post, you said you slept on it after a few nights but my piercer really really really stressed not sleeping on it for the entire healing process (8 months!) saying that sleeping on it could cause "major ear damage." This seems extreme IMO and honestly, plan to break his "rule" so I can sleep better than I did last night! Thanks in advance for your feedback! X - Alicia

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    1. Wow I've never heard that before! That definitely sounds a little extreme. I'm no expert but I have no idea how you could avoid sleeping on your side for that long- you can't control what your body does when you sleep! And not entirely sure how it can cause ear damage, especially major damage!!

      I've always slept on them as soon as I've felt comfortable to. If it's painful, I'd wait a little longer but I've never had any issues sleeping on new piercings!

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  9. I got mine done yesterday and it's been bleeding in and off, I dunno how normal that is?

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  10. Found this really helpful as I'm thinking of getting my rook pierced, but can you comfortably sleep on it once it's fully healed?

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    1. Definitely! It's a little uncomfortable at first but after it's healed, it's fine

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  11. Mine is not that swollen but i think it bruised. What do you think about it?

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