advice plz! stupid mistake?

[raddizzle]

let me start be saying that i was uneducated going into this experience, and have since learned lots from this forum and that's what's freaking me out...

i was in a piercing/tattoo shop two nights ago to talk about a crooked septum piercing (i've been having some bad luck), and because i'd been kinda thinking about it, decided to get my lobes stretched. i talked to the clerk, and she showed be some s.s. tunnels. their tunnels started at 10g. the piercer came out, and told me that she could stretch me to 10g, maybe 8g. i didn't realize that this was a big stretch from my current 18g! i told her that i was patient, a wuss (didn't realize that stretching shouldn't cause pain) and that i was willing to spend the time and money to do it right. she said she saw no problem getting to 10g and she would try to get me to 8g, so we brought both sets of jewelry back. when she put the taper in my first ear, it hurt! so i told her that no way would we try to get 8g! it hurt way more than any piercing ever! she fitted the other ear, once getting over 'the bump' of the tunnel. ouch!
the jewelry looked super cute, and i was pleased with the look.

but it hurt - not badly, but noticeably all evening. my ears were really red and sore. i didn't see any blood when she stretched them, and have not had any blood crusties, but when i got home i got online to see if some pain was normal, which is when i found this forum and tons of info and advice to GO SLOW!

argh!!!!! i'm mad at myself for not educating myself, but also feel the piercer didn't do me right. i called her back that night and told her about my concerns and pain. she said that was not a huge jump for the first stretch (18g to 10g), and that we would take it slower in the future. she said ice them, and take an ibuprofen, and call her back the next day if i wanted them out.

so now it's been two days, my lobes are not red anymore, but are still sore, esp. to the touch. not bad enough that it disturbed my sleep, but sensitive enough that i arranged my pillow to avoid pressure on ears. i now realize that s.s.tunnels were really stupid jewelry to start with (the piercer could have advised me on that to)

so, my questions are:

- should i just ride this out? i feel like the soreness will go away in a couple more days, and i LOVE being at 10g already! there was no blood, just pain. or should i figure how the hell of get out of these double flared tunnels (i'm thinking pliers to un-flare one end...)?

- if i leave them in, once they've healed, should i weight the tunnels to stretch the holes a bit to accommodate getting out of the flared ends?

- should i kick the piercers ass? jk

i appreciate all advice! thanks in advance for your time and opinion =)

[corazon_de_oro]

Yeah, 18G-10G is way too big of a jump. In the future, I'd recommend staying away from piercers when it comes to stretching and just do everything yourself. The best thing to do would be to take them out, but it's up to you. Keep in mind that by leaving them in you might develop scar tissue and have a difficult time stretching in the future.

Are you sure they're double flare or do they screw on? If they ARE double flared, they're going to be really hard to get out and you'll probably have to wait a while. But I don't even see how it'd be possible to get double flares in a fresh stretch so they're probably screw-on tunnels.

[ast.riske]

I agree with lindsay. That piercer did you wrong. Personally I would get those tunnels out and let your ears heal up. They will be really loose, for a while, but taking the pressure off and putting some 18g or 16g jewelry in will help you get your ears back in shape. If you downsize and your ears aren't infected, the pain should ease pretty quickly.

If your tunnels are screw-fit, you can get them out yourself. If not, you might want to visit your doctor and have them cut the flare off one end so you can remove the tunnels without causing more damage.

If you have to have your doctor remove them, you should go to the shop and talk to them about reimbursement for the jewelry and the doctor visit. If your tunnels are screw-fit, just set them aside until you're at 10g safely and then put them back in.

Either way, I highly recommend you downsize and work your way back up. If you choose to stay at the current size, you should let everything heal for 2-4 months and then begin massaging your lobes to remove the scar tissue which can take several more months and your success is going to be variable depending on how your body does with scarring.

Honestly, it will likely be much faster for you to move back up than to stay at your current size as your healing process will be shorter.

Best of luck!

[raddizzle]

thanks lindsay and ast. =)

so, ummm...i was wrong - they are not double flare. phew! relief - that was freaking me out.

unfortunately my ears are still red, and there is some pus so i guess they are infected? i think i'm going to take them out and soak them in saltwater....going to give it one more night.

i called the piercers shop, she wasn't in, so i talked to the other piercer, the guy that trained her. He said they always start out stretching to 10g or 8g, and that i should expect pain, stretching always hurts, the internet has useless info, blah blah

i told him there was some pus, and he said that was normal, that i'm being too worried and to chill. he said i should come in and see them if i'm worried. he also said he doesn't recommend i take them out, and that i should stop worrying.

geez, i'm confused. i'm not in terrible pain, just sore still, and my lobes are reddish. i was about to take them out, but think i'll wait another day or two...

thanks so much =)

[ast.riske]

Omg! Please find a new piercer. That one is horrible. Stretching should not hurt and infections are not normal. Please downsize and keep 18 or 16 gauge jewelry in to prevent an abcess.

Piercers who immediately go for the "everyone else is an idiot, you should only listen to me" card are bad. They are not doing their clients a service and, IMO, should be run out of the business.

SSS soaks are important right now. They will encourage blood flow and help draw the infection and discharge out of your ears. Be sure the water is as warm as is comfortable for you. This will help the healing process. I encourage you to do soaks once in the morning and once at night.

I'm sorry you're having such a bad experience with your piercer. Is he APP certified? It sounds suspiciously like he might not be. If you go to a new studio, ask lots of questions. Look for APP certs. Ask to see their autoclave. Ask about procedures. Be thorough. If the piercer gets uppity or balks at ANY of these requests or questions, leave. That is the first sign of a bad piercer.

Lots of luck! Please keep us updated as you heal.