Monday June 16th, 2008 @ 11:44 AM
Filed under: Ear
ok i had gauged my ears to 5/8 inch the right ear does fine and the left i dono whats wrong with it but it didnt wanna go so after hours of messing with it i finally got it and this wee lil piece of skin came out of my ear not like a blow out or anything but like just a piece of skin and this white stuff would come out of my lobe like around the plug so i switched from wood to opals and it cleared up and was fine but when i took out my plugs i noticed a purple mark inside the lobe so i thought maybe it was just a bit of bruising or something and went up to 3/4s inch didnt have to use a taper or anything just a bit of vitamin E oil and they went right in and now the lobe is doing the same thing again… is there any way to like get that to go away?
Try stretching properly from the get-go. Prevention is better than cure and let’s face it, knarly, chewed-up stretched lobes do not look attractive. There is a wealth of information on the internet and on BME on how to stretch correctly. Also organics are not meant to be used in fresh stretches due to their porous nature and ability to harbour bacteria, which can become an issue if you damage your lobe during the process. As in your case.
By rushing the process and damaging your lobes all you will gain is a thinned out lobe with a poor blood supply and a build up of scar tissue. It will look unsightly, hinder any future stretching and could even lead to necrosis and subsequent splitting. Not nice, eh?
For immediate treatment, remove the jewellery and wait until your earlobes have calmed down before commencing stretching at a size whereby the jewellery pops in comfortably and massage your vitamin E oil into the lobe to soften it and stimulate the blood supply in the meantime. Whilst you are waiting for your lobes to rectify themselves, do a little research so that you might stretch safely next time.
+11 / 13 votes 
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | 6 Comments
Friday June 13th, 2008 @ 12:23 PM
Filed under: Ear
A little over a month ago I added a third hole to my right ear lobe. I did it myself, as the only piercers available in my small town are downright unhygenic hacks or the mall boths with piercing guns. This is the third ear lobe piercing I have done myself and also the first one to give me any problems.
A few days ago what looked like a classic blood blister formed on the front edge of the hole and that part of my ear lobe seemed slightly swollen. After keeping it clean as usual and waiting it out for a bit, my obsessive compulsive side took over and I experimentally applied a bit of pressure. A bit of blood came out, as well as some pus, so naturally my initial reaction was “Oh shit, I’ve popped a boil!”
Since then I’ve kept it clean and largely left it alone.
Now heres the thing thats concerning me: this evening I noticed that my lymph node on the right side of my neck was pretty swollen and hurt a bit. However, I also got the first Gardasil shot in my upper right arm today, so I have absolutely no idea if it’s a normal side affect of the shot, or perhaps an allergy, or if an infection has spread throughout my ear.
Any recomendations would be appreciated- Should I retire this piercing, wait it out or consult a doctor? Hopefully I’m worrying too much, but you never know…
If your month old piercing is encapsulating blood and pus and your glands are swollen it would seem a common sense option to err on the side of caution and visit a doctor to see if they would advise antibiotic treatment.
+2 / 4 votes
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | Comments
Sunday June 8th, 2008 @ 5:23 AM
I’ve had my conch pierced for about 5 weeks now. Everything was great for the first few weeks, until the day I accidentally hit it once, then a few days later a friend of mine gave it a good knock.
I’ve noticed that there’s a little bit of tissue around the entrance hole, but there’s still never been any pain or discomfort. Do you think a jewelry change when it’s 6-8 weeks old would help?
Personally I’d much rather use a Labret Stud or Barbell for jewelry when doing a Conch Piercing, I find them to be less problematic then CBR’s.
What I’d suggest doing first though before changing jewelry is to do hot salt water compresses or even chamomile tea bag compresses to try and help sooth the area. If the problems persist after about a week or so, I’d then suggest switching over to a pre-sterilized implant grade steel (or titanium) internally threaded labret stud or barbell.
But first try the hot salt water (or chamomile tea) compresses.
0 / 2 votes 
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Posted by Warren Hiller | Permalink | 4 Comments
Friday June 6th, 2008 @ 7:46 PM
Filed under: Ear
First i would like to say that I know this would be easier if I had a pic I could show you… but my cam isn’t working..
Last night my 00g was really sore so i took out the double flare titanium tube i had in it and imedietly after it was out my lobe got verry sore and a little red.. the hole has almost completly closed now… I would say its maybe a 10g now, and its only been a little over 12 hours. its now overly red or sore anymore, but the hole is still shrunk.
How can i save it? do you think there could be an infection causing it?
Oh and so you know I havent done any stretching lately, its been about 2 years since i reached 00g and i had it to 0g for about 3 years before that.
Thanks for your time..
Stretched lobes can be temperamental at times. Sometimes changes in the weather, being a little run-down or even getting a hair caught can cause a stretched piercing to flare up. Sometimes they get pissy for no obvious reason. You did right to take out the jewellery. I would keep the jewellery out until it is back to being all nice and healthy and then stretch up again from whatever size jewellery your rested lobe will accomodate comfortably. In the meantime, do twice daily seasalt soaks - especially if it is weeping and once the lobe is dry, try massaging it every other day with something like Holey Butt’r (my personal favourite - I should get commission!!) and you will be back up to your normal size in no time. Be patient. Don’t rush. Don’t hurt it. Give it the baby treatment.
+3 / 3 votes 
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | 1 Comment
Thursday June 5th, 2008 @ 11:17 PM
Filed under: Ear
i’ve got quite a bit of scarring on the back of my right conch. its stretched to 6mm as is my left. i never had any problems with scarring on my left conch and i can’t understand why its happened.
i stretched it slowly as i did with my left conch. ive been using emu oil on it but the scarring won’t go down.
have you got any suggestions as to how i can make it go away?
helen.
Cartilage can be a fickle and unpredictable mistress when it comes to both piercing and stretching. The fundamental reason this happened is because the piercing on that side of your head is irritated/traumatized/mad. Exactly why that is could be a bit difficult to pin-point.
However, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to find out that you sleep on that side more often and/or use the phone on that side more often. Those sorts of things cause additional irritation, which can cause scar tissue build-up. It’s also possible that the cartilage tissue on that ear is reacting differently to the stretching…just because. That probably sounds lame, but the human body is a mysterious thing.
While you may not want to do this, downsizing one or two sizes might help the scar tissue go away. Scar tissue usually forms because your body is irritated…it’s how your body protects itself from irritation. If you remove the source of irritation, often the scar tissue will go away…or at least decrease. Emu oil and things of that nature may help reduce the scarring, but very often they are only a temporary fix if you don’t address the actual problem.
Best of luck.
+1 / 3 votes
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Posted by Derek Lowe | Permalink | 1 Comment
Wednesday June 4th, 2008 @ 1:58 AM
im looking into geting my cartilage stretched on my left ear where i already have a 1.6mm stud that ive had for a few years. any tips on the best way to do it as im having trouble finding a guide and the studio’s in my area say the best way is to have a dermal punch which im not too keen on.
thanks,
max.
Depending on the size you’re interested in getting to Max might dictate what is ideal and what is not ideal. As with stretching ear cartilage there is a lot more that can go wrong, then say just stretching an ear lobe.
I’d advise you to check out this previous question: http://ask.bmezine.com/2008/05/27/cartilage/.
Know that if you ARE going to stretch your ear cartilage I strongly advise you to do so slowly, wait YEARS and be very careful…Because with this its not just about causing a tear in the fistula, but more so causing a spider fracture(s) in the cartilage itself.
+4 / 4 votes
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Posted by Warren Hiller | Permalink | 4 Comments
Sunday June 1st, 2008 @ 3:06 AM
Filed under: Ear
I went today to get my tragus pierced. I asked the guy who was doing my piercing if there was any way he could do it w/ a labret stud instead of a CBR. He said he could but b/c of the flat back pushing into the back and the ball on the front, the piercing would not be able to drain properly. My question is was he just bullshitting me or what?
I wouldn’t use such a harsh word as “bullshitting” but more so that they are just misinformed. If the right length is utilized the stud will most definitely allow for easy drainage of the piercing. Not only that but it reduces the amount of irritation that occurs normally with CBR’s as they often rotate in and out of the piercing dragging bacteria that can collect on the outer portions of the ring.
But yeah they aren’t technically “bullshitting” but more so they are just not informed and/or never even tried using a labret stud in that specific piercing. That or they just aren’t doing the research well enough because many reputable artists have been using labret studs in tragus piercings for quite a few years now, problem free.
So maybe just ask them to try or perhaps visit a different artist(s) for second, third, forth,etc opinions.
0 / 0 votes
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Posted by Warren Hiller | Permalink | Comments
Tuesday May 27th, 2008 @ 6:50 PM
Filed under: Ear
In a few months I’m going to get my tragus pierced but I want to be as informed as possible before getting it done. I dont know whether to use a ring or a bar as my starter jewelry. I really want a ring but I heard they make the healing process more difficult. Is this true? I’m willing to settle on a bar if it means that there’s a better chance of avoiding complications.
As with many piercings, a barbell is going to be the best option for a tragus piercing. A barbell is going to get caught on fewer things, get moved around less and have less pressure put on it than a ring will. This is going to result in a piercing that is more-comfortable and heals faster. You shouldn’t have any problems changing your jewelry to a ring once the piercing is healed.
+1 / 1 votes
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Posted by Derek Lowe | Permalink | Comments
Tuesday May 27th, 2008 @ 4:13 AM
Filed under: Ear
Hi,
I stretched my lobes to 6g approximately half a year ago and figured that I was ready to move up. I recently purchased a quality pair of 4g spring loaded CBRs but can’t get them through through the fistula. The ends, as you know, are very different from the standard CBR. I’ve tried twice in 4 days without any success.
Does this kind of jewelry require my lobes to already sit at a larger gauge or am I missing something? Is there anything else I could do?
Correspondence is appreciated!
The other thing you can do, is simply wait longer. As sometimes the body just needs longer time to become more relaxed and uniformed to slide another larger size in. If the jewelry isn’t going in, don’t force it. Massage your lobes in a warm/hot shower and even try to perhaps use some Vit. E, Neem Oil, Jojoba Oil based products, personally Neem Oil works very well on relaxing and loosening up my lobes.
Continue doing these two methods until when you gently tug down on the jewelry in your lobe and if you can see a little bit of light through the lobe, attempt to slide the jewelry through. If it does not work, give it more time.
+2 / 2 votes
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Posted by Warren Hiller | Permalink | 2 Comments
Tuesday May 27th, 2008 @ 4:08 AM
Filed under: Ear
a few questions, if you dont mind =]
is it possible to stretch a cartilage piercing?
does cartilage heal back or does the skin close the hole up but theres always a gap in the cartilage?
does the needle take a section of flesh out or just push it aside?
thankyou, im a bit confused! =]
Yes its possible to stretch cartilage piercings however the main concern is how much stress is applied to the cartilage when you stretch it. What can occur later on eventually is distortion and even stress/spider cracks within the cartilage as it makes an attempt to relieve the pressure that has been applied via stretching.
Cartilage does not grow back, the only thing that can possibly heal back together is the skin once the jewelry is removed. Even then its also in relation to how long you kept the piercing, how healed the fistula is,etc.
A proper piercing with a proper needle will/should not core out tissue. Instead with a proper needle and the proper speed in which to pass the needle through the body, the needle makes an incision and then tapers its way through thus displacing(pushing it aside) the tissue as it cuts its way through the skin.
+4 / 4 votes
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Posted by Warren Hiller | Permalink | 4 Comments
