Earstretching.net

Alright so i got my ears pierced at 18G back in September 2011. This is how I stretched to where im at now.

18G September 2011
16G December 2011
14G January 2012
12G last week of January 2012
10G February where im at now.
(All my stretches were on exactly the 1st of each month.)

I know i stretched to fast to 10G, but i guess my question would be was it good for me to at least have the 12's in for a week? I never felt any pain at all on any of the stretches, and they felt healed every time i stretched up.

Was this good or bad? Should I slow down at these bigger sizes?

I'm not trying to be like "OMG you did everything wrong!" but you stretched way too fast and too soon. Everyone hates hearing this, but you really should wait about six months after a new piercing before you do your first stretch. When your piercing heals (which lobe piercings do in about 10-12 weeks), they're healed enough to change to jewelry of the same size, but not to stretch. They need a little extra time to strengthen.

Also, you should leave about 6-8 weeks between each size or until you can put the next size in with no pain or resistance, which might take longer.

Okay, so maybe i did stretch to early and too fast, but when i take my plugs out (only at a 10g) but they look perfectly circular. So should i wait another month or 2 to go to a 8g or do you think ill be fine, even though i made a few mistakes?

If you haven't had any problems yet you're pretty lucky so while it might not be necessary to downsize, you should wait a while (at least a couple months) before stretching again. The reason is so your ears can relax and you won't develop scar tissue that will make stretching way more difficult.

I know it sucks to wait but stretching is all about patience and you'll be a lot happier with the state of your lobes when you reach your goal size.

You should try doing some oil massages to help your ears stay healthy and prevent scarring. The best kinds to use are vitamin E oil, jojoba oil, or emu oil. Take a little and massage it into your lobes (without plugs) for a few minutes after you shower.

you'll be alright i strecthed maybe a month after my initial piercing. Just slow down on the bigger stretches....most people say that the smaller stretches are just important, but I would disagree. The smaller stretches are easier going up until about 6g. (this was my experience).

Sorry if this sounds rude or anything (not my intention at all) but just because you stretched a month after your initial piercing and were fine doesn't mean someone else can do the same thing. So you can't really guarantee that s/he will "be alright" doing that. Everyone is different, so just because one person got lucky doesn't mean another person will. I know my lobes weren't ready to stretch until almost 6 months after my first piercing; I tried after 4 and could tell it would've hurt/torn my lobe.

Well I stretched up to an 8 today! Against your advise... But safe to say, no blowout, didn't hurt, just a little red. Is it safe to try it every month and if theres no pain, just go for it? Im probably going to go to a 6 on the 30th of this month now. Then after that wait 2 months then tape? sound good to you guys? Especially corazon, you have been a lot of help