Ear stretching

The Boney King of Nowhere

To be honest I think you should completely take it out, it might be infected, especially if you keep changing the stretcher.

If you do want to keep something in there to keep the hole open maybe go for the 2 or 3mm for now until the swelling goes down.

Reply 2

yesioo

15

I suggest doctors if it's still like it in a few days, until then give them all a good scrub and keep soaking your ear. :thumbsup:

Reply 3

Maybe it's a sign you should stop mutilating yourself? :dontknow:

Reply 4

Juno

Leave the 6mm in for a while. Don't keep taking it out and putting it in. And don't try to stretch to 8mm for at least another month, but preferably 6 weeks or longer

Reply 5

Nathaaaan

how about get rid of it? They look disgusting, and you might as well hold up a sign saying "I'm a freak, beat me up!".

Reply 6

truthandtragedy

Need some advice, freaking out about my ear right now! I've been stretching it for about a year, starting off very small and it's still relatively small. I got a 6mm a few weeks ago and had it in up until Wednesday, when I put an 8mm in. It took me AGES to get the 8 in, and it was so painful for days afterwards. Took it out for work this morning and the hole was closing up by my morning break! Panicked and shoved the stretcher back in which was bloody sore, but then by lunch it closed again but this time it went really scabby and just disgusting looking, bright red, dry blood on it, just generally fusty looking! Soaked my earlobe in warm salt solution on my afternoon break, and again when I got home which cleaned it up a bit but it was still swollen as hell. Put my 2mm stretcher in, then 3, then 4, then 5 and I've now got my 6 in again which isn't painful.

But I'm freaked out because my ear just feels really strange now. I'm not sure how to describe it. It's sort of throbbing/twitching every few minutes, VERY swollen and feels sort-of rubbery and thick. I don't want to remove the stretcher because it'll be harder to get it back in again. I want to leave the 6 in for a week, and then put the 8 back in and that way it'll have time to stretch properly before I have to take it out for work. Should I just keep taking the 6 in and out and cleaning with salt solution or what? :confused:

Keep hearing horror stories of exploding ears and I'd rather that didn't happen!

Seriously, it's because numbers go 6-7-8. You can get jewellery in 7mm, and you should.

Take the 8mm out and put the 6mm back in or you'll regret it in a few days when you're pulling layers of crusty gunk off the back and it still doesn't feel any better.

Don't bother going to the doctors like someone else suggested, they'll just tell you off for wasting their time and tell you to take it out completely.

Reply 7

truthandtragedy

OP

Sakura-Chan

Seriously, it's because numbers go 6-7-8. You can get jewellery in 7mm, and you should.

Don't bother going to the doctors like someone else suggested, they'll just tell you off for wasting their time and tell you to take it out completely.

That's what I thought, but the only place I know where to get them only stocks them in 2-3-4-5-6, then jumps in 2s. Might have a nosy online for a 7. Thanks.

Reply 8

truthandtragedy

OP

Juno

Leave the 6mm in for a while. Don't keep taking it out and putting it in. And don't try to stretch to 8mm for at least another month, but preferably 6 weeks or longer

Thanks for the advice. :yes:

Reply 9

truthandtragedy

That's what I thought, but the only place I know where to get them only stocks them in 2-3-4-5-6, then jumps in 2s. Might have a nosy online for a 7. Thanks.

It's so much cheaper to just buy them online anyway, you can get plugs for £2 and like £1 for postage from Wildcat.

http://www.wildcat.eu/shop/product_info.php?cPath=1047_1127_1132&products_id=1850
http://www.wildcat.eu/shop/product_info.php?products_id=226

Yeah they're plain but there's no point spending loads on jewellery you're not going to wear forever, until you stop stretching.

it sounds painful.

Nathaaaan

how about get rid of it? They look disgusting, and you might as well hold up a sign saying "I'm a freak, beat me up!".

So if I personally think you look disgusting in accordance with my own personal prejudices I'm allowed to sink my fist into your face repeatedly? :s-smilie:

Begs the question, are you from the past or something? Ugg ugg cave-Nathaaaan make fire, cave-Nathaaaan attack outsiders for looking different :rolleyes:

Reply 12

skipp

17

I never take mine out except for cleaning or to change plug (I didn't stretch my ear until I had a job where it didn't matter :p:

) unfortunately they do close up really quickly and there's such a risk of infection...maybe stick to a small size if you can't wear jewellery at work...and get a plain clear plug so you don't leave your ear exposed...not sure what's happening to your ear right now though...probably your skin's still healing so it'll be tender and you've stretched whilst it's doing that...just make sure it doesn't get infected :s-smilie:

Reply 13

skipp

I never take mine out except for cleaning or to change plug (I didn't stretch my ear until I had a job where it didn't matter :p:

) unfortunately they do close up really quickly and there's such a risk of infection...maybe stick to a small size if you can't wear jewellery at work...and get a plain clear plug so you don't leave your ear exposed...not sure what's happening to your ear right now though...probably your skin's still healing so it'll be tender and you've stretched whilst it's doing that...just make sure it doesn't get infected :s-smilie:

There's next to no risk unless you do what the OP has done and irritated the flesh/caused more tears than the average stretch, more so if she's made them bleed. But it's still pretty slim.

If I've read what you've written wrong then I do apologise, but you're saying leaving your lobes without jewellery makes them susceptible to infection? ********.

Reply 14

*Sparkle*

17

Put the 6 in, clean it every day, leave it 4 weeks before you try again.

I never made it to 8mm because the 6-8 jump was too much for me, just wouldn't happen.

Reply 15

skipp

17

Sakura-Chan

There's next to no risk unless you do what the OP has done and irritated the flesh/caused more tears than the average stretch, more so if she's made them bleed. But it's still pretty slim.

If I've read what you've written wrong then I do apologise, but you're saying leaving your lobes without jewellery makes them susceptible to infection? ********.

Well it's a hole in your skin :s-smilie:

if you poke a cut it can get infected but poking just normal skin doesn't carry any risk of infection at all...because that's what skin does...it's a barrier to infection...no offence but if I left my plug out just after stretching I'd be very conscious about washing my hands and touching my ear...of course it heals up with time but even now when I take my plug out for cleaning I make sure everything's clean...and the OP'd just stretched her ear...people get infected ear lobes just from normal piercings all the time :curious:

no harm in being clean

Reply 16

skipp

Well it's a hole in your skin :s-smilie:

if you poke a cut it can get infected but poking just normal skin doesn't carry any risk of infection at all...because that's what skin does...it's a barrier to infection...no offence but if I left my plug out just after stretching I'd be very conscious about washing my hands and touching my ear...of course it heals up with time but even now when I take my plug out for cleaning I make sure everything's clean...and the OP'd just stretched her ear...people get infected ear lobes just from normal piercings all the time :curious:

no harm in being clean

It's not an open wound. Yes, the skin is a barrier to infection but if you'd ever seen the skin on the inside of your stretch you'd know it's just like the skin on the outside. It's not like you've got exposed red flesh there.

Maybe yours are too small to see properly, I don't know. But you're 100% wrong. I wear mine empty most days now because it's winter, there's nothing wrong with that, are there's no way any infection can get in unless I manage to cut it. It's been at it's current size for over 2 years and it's healed skin, just like the skin on the outside of my lobe.

She has to be careful about her ear now because she's ****** it up. That's the only reason.

Reply 17

fairy_dust20

2

truthandtragedy

Need some advice, freaking out about my ear right now! I've been stretching it for about a year, starting off very small and it's still relatively small. I got a 6mm a few weeks ago and had it in up until Wednesday, when I put an 8mm in. It took me AGES to get the 8 in, and it was so painful for days afterwards. Took it out for work this morning and the hole was closing up by my morning break! Panicked and shoved the stretcher back in which was bloody sore, but then by lunch it closed again but this time it went really scabby and just disgusting looking, bright red, dry blood on it, just generally fusty looking! Soaked my earlobe in warm salt solution on my afternoon break, and again when I got home which cleaned it up a bit but it was still swollen as hell. Put my 2mm stretcher in, then 3, then 4, then 5 and I've now got my 6 in again which isn't painful.

But I'm freaked out because my ear just feels really strange now. I'm not sure how to describe it. It's sort of throbbing/twitching every few minutes, VERY swollen and feels sort-of rubbery and thick. I don't want to remove the stretcher because it'll be harder to get it back in again. I want to leave the 6 in for a week, and then put the 8 back in and that way it'll have time to stretch properly before I have to take it out for work. Should I just keep taking the 6 in and out and cleaning with salt solution or what? :confused:

Keep hearing horror stories of exploding ears and I'd rather that didn't happen!

hmm well sorry if this is a pointless reply as im not really too clued up on ear stretching, but well if you want to just put your mind at rest i would suggest going back to the place that did it for you, they can advise you etc. i did that when i thought my lip piercing was infected, i was getting worried, but it wasn't and they just put in a longer bar for the time being as had just become abit irritated, used salt water etc and then once it was okay again put the normal size bar back in...

Reply 18

truthandtragedy

OP