My stupidly cranky ears. (All better! Thanks for the help.)

[Killu Killaya]

I've had my lobes pierced 4 times, the first time when I was little (yes, with a gun, how is a 5 year old supposed to know any better?) I've been stretching them gradually for over 2 years and just finally reached 8g. I have been at 8g for about a month and a half. I bought some new 8g jewelry last week and, while they're a bit heavy, my ears seemed perfectly happy with them. Now, my left ear is acting like it's a brand new piercing again. It's oozing, it's red, it's bleeding, it hurts like ********, and there's a small shiny dark red mark forming above the jewelry. What are the first signs of a keloid? I know this may just be regular scaring as well, but I'm paranoid.


I am about to go remove the jewelry right now and replace it with my old jewelry, but I spent a lot of money on these gauges and they are absolutely beautiful. And my right ear is tolerating the jewelry just fine.

Here's a few pictures.. somebody help me cry

(also, before anyone asks or comments on how uneven my ear piercings look, the 3rd hole in my left ear did migrate down and there is a migration scar. They were pierced even, but due to an accident at work, I almost ripped it out and it got angry and migrated. )



good ear vs. bad ear
 

[kseniya`]

The same thing has happened to me. I find that my ears prefer acrylic to most metals. It could just be an allergic reaction, or perhaps you got something in that ear. Make sure to clean it at least once a day, and do sea salt soaks.  

[Aetherna]

My left lobe piercing has been irritated in the past in a fashion similar to yours. For me, the irritation occurred after attempting to stretch to a 0 gauge; the lobe did not react well and I replaced my 2 guage hooks (a basic design compared to yours). It has taken my left lobe many months to recover; it would flare up overnight but changing the jewelry did not help since aside from these hooks, I only had some cat-eye glass plugs. The silicone O-rings did not give my skin the space it needed to breathe.

The metal does not agitate my skin and as the jewelry hangs, there is no foreign material pressing against the front and back of the lobe. I think I should mention, though, that hooks can be heavy and even a bit of strain on the lobe may contribute to the problem and prevent the lobe from being fully relaxed.

What I've done is keep my hooks in and clean them daily. I also clean my lobe as there has been dry (dead) skin. Soaks have helped too, and my lobe is well on its way to being fully healed so long as it doesn't go into a spontaneous remission. I also won't be trying to stretch my lobes until several months after the left lobe is fully healed.

If the advice given by others still does no good, one option is to remove the jewelry and allow the fistula to heal itself; your lobe will no longer be at an 8 gauge but there would be no pressure on it to prevent healing (with sea salt soaks) and cleaning. You'd have to start over but you sound to be a patient person; the lobe may even retain some elasticity meaning you may not have to start from a 14 gauge; your fistula may stay at 12 or even 10 gauge pending its nature.  

[Killu Killaya]

Thanks. I actually just took out the jewelry yesterday and only put an earring back in the healthy lobe... so should I try to put jewelry back in the irritated one before letting it heal up first?

I'm going to start sea salt soaks tonight, I had to buy some more.  

[astrosnik]

Your 1st, 3rd and 4th holes are way too close to the edges for much stretching. (Not surprising, happens often with gunned ears)

A month is not very long for a new stretch (especially once you start getting above a 10g) to start wearing large, heavy jewelry in. Dramatic sizes like that will add pressure relative to a difference of 1-4gauges.

A keloid is not a dark shiny mark. What you have is raw stretched skin, the inside of the fistula being pulled outwards. The skin on that lobe looks really dry too, so there appears to be a material reaction going on as well.

It looks like you're using black o-rings. Try switching to clear ones, or bnetter yet, none at all. You shouldn't need them on a hanging style, and as mentioned they'll only pinch working against that much weight. A lot of people are allergic or sensitive to the black, and may take some time to start irritating. A fresher stretch or recent irritation will make it more likely to react, as would the pressure pushing them deeper into the fistula.
You should also carefully inspect the jewelry for any flaws in the finish. Tiny rough spots can rub. What metal are they made of? Ie BAF was selling similar ones a while ago from really shitty "steel."

The sea salts are a good idea. I'd also recommend putting small 8g jewelry in for another month or so, and try gently massaging your lobes with vegetable oil for about 5 minutes a day.  

[Killu Killaya]

Thank you for the replies everyone.

astrosnik - Yes, I know cry Had I known anything about body mod when I got my ears gunned, I would have... well, I wouldn't have gotten them gunned at all, actually. 8g is as far as I'm going, because I don't have much room.

I've soaked it and I switched back to jewelry (The hole closed up a little, so I currently have a 10g light-weight acrylic claw back in which I bought from my piercing parlor when I was stretching in the first place.) My ear looks SO much happier already. I guess it was the metal, because all my stretching above 14g has been done with acrylic, which my ear really likes.

I've looked over my metal jewelry and I can't find any flaws in the finish. They are implant-quality titanium, according to the package. I know I'm not allergic to the material itself, because my other ear handled it just fine and I've used titanium earrings before. But I guess you're right, it was too soon for me to try to wear the big earrings.

Well, thanks for all the help, as I've said my ear looks a lot better. Still testy, but I'm continuing sea salt soaks and I will try the vegetable oil trick too, my lobes are extremely dry. After if looks better, I have to re-stretch to 8g again, and after that I'll wait a few months before wearing the heavy jewelry again.

whee Glad to finally have a place to go for body mod help instead of having to hike all the way to my piercer every time I screw something up.  

[apanda999]

They are dry? How many times a day are you doing the sea salt? Also how much are you using?

 

[Killu Killaya]

^ They were dry long before I began using the sea salt, but because they're dry I've only been soaking once a day with about a quarter teaspoon of salt.  

[popcornsharingbox]

I've always had severe problems with black o-rings unless I keep them at a good distance away from my lobes, just making sure they dont let the jewlery fall out. I've had them just about sucked into my ear. Ughhh I hate em.  

[Aetherna]

Yar, nitrile o-rings (the black ones) did not irritate my ears at first, but now do. The result is swelling, redness, dry skin that both peels and oozes. It's painful and depressive. If I could still tolerate nitrile, I would opt for those over silicone o-rings for the sole fact that silicone o-rings sometimes slip off of the plug easily depending the material.

I hope your lobe is on the mend, Killu!  

[Killu Killaya]

Thank you, my lobe is so much better! The swelling has all gone down, and there seems to be no more infection. The lobe is looking a lot less dry too. I'm going to pick up some clear o-rings today. Hopefully soon I will be able to get it back up to 8g so my lobes aren't mismatched.