Ok so I started stretching one earlobe last night, though I think I must have slept on it funny? 'cause it was really sore and bleeding when I woke up (btw I used the smallest size, like 18 or something) so today I took it out and washed it a lot and stuff, then put it in the other lobe (also because I have 3 piercings in the first lobe I did, and 2 in this one, so I thought it would be better and less crowded) The new stretch still kinda hurts a little and feels warm, I was just wondering whether this is normal? And should I take it out whilst I sleep or will this cause added irritation? And also should I take it out and clean it, or try and twizzle it like you do with new piercings to prevent the skin heling to the taper?
The stretch will sting/feel warm for a good day or two, or maybe even longer since your ears are accustoming to the new size. I definitely would recommend that you don't sleep with tapers in your ear(s) since tapers tend to deform the stretch, so I would go with actual jewelry such as plugs, but I suppose tapers are okay for the beginning week or two. I only used tapers so I could ease the plugs in. It's definitely safe to sleep with plugs in your ears, which is what I did. I only took maybe one day a week to sleep without them in so my lobes would get decent circulation, and the plugs would fit right back into place (so they didn't shrink at all). I usually soak my ears in sea-salt water and used antibacterial soap on my plugs before putting them in which won't cause an infection and helps with irritation. I wouldn't worry about twizzling tapers/plugs, maybe only taking them out in the morning and at night just to clean them and put them back in.
Well since there shouldn't be an open wound when stretching eat lobes, there's no chance of the skin healing to the taper. If it is bleeding and open, leave it to heal before you start stretching it. Also, are you using any kind of lubricant to put the taper in? Like Vaseline or something?
mine never bled, but all my friends did im not sure why haha. you can sleep with it in it will be fine but the first few days it will be sore. yeah twist it round and wash it with salt water twice a day just like you do any new piercing. only when its fully healed prob take about 2 weeks, maybe 3 then should you stretch again. (could be wrong though havent stretched my ears for yeeeears lol) if you stretch it again too soon you will prob get a blow out or it will hurttttt! lol. if yellow crusty stuff forms on the taper, thats normal just clean it off. i found cleaning the crusty stuff off my ears was most satisfying haha!
The advice that has already been given is more than enough imo but I would suggest that you do not use Vaseline. I've read that the chemicals in it do more harm than good when stretching. I had tried using it and it didn't help. Also, just a piece of advice for the future, try not to skip sizes. I had done it succesfully two times, so I was confident that my ear could take it, and the third time it started bleeding so much that I had to downsize before stretching again.
Yeah I wasn't planning on skipping sizes. Too many horror stories on the web! I'm gonna leave it alone for a day or two, then try taking it out to clean it and so on, because the first one I tried, I tried to twist it and stuff the day I put it in to make sure it didn't like heal onto the taper or whatever, but it made it really sore and bleed. I put a normal stud in it and it's fine now though, just healing
i'm a bit confused as to why you're leaving the tapers in your ears at all.....? i haven't even stretched my ears,i've just been thinking about it and researching it on and off for years, but every reputable place i have consulted/looking into (not places who are just trying to make a sale or aimed at teens) has said that contrary to what seems to be common belief/the current trend, tapers are intended to only be used as tools to guide in a higher gauged piece of jewelry; they were never intended to be worn for any amount of time as actual jewelry and it's not recommended that one do so..... is this wrong?? honestly, i'm not trying to criticize you or imply that you're doing it wrong. i'm genuinely curious as to why people leave tapers in their ears......
NONONONONO. Stretching puts tension on your skin and basically you're making a small wound that needs some time to heal. When you twist the plug while your ear isn't healed yet you keep opening that 'wound' and it doesn't get the chance to heal. Twisting it once it is healed is okay, but not during the healing process. A bit of soreness is okay the first few days, but superfat swollen and/or bleeding lobes are not. Don't worry about your ear getting "stuck" to the plug/taper: if you use the right materials that can't happen. Right materials for a "fresh stretch" are steel, titanium, acryl. Never use silicones or organic materials like wood in a fresh stretch cause they can get stuck to your ear during the healing. After a week or two it should be safe to use them. After stretching another size I usually kept it in for about a week before taking it out for proper cleaning. After a week it should be healed a fair bit so you can be sure that you don't damage anything by accident. And even though it seems like it's healed after a week, I do recommend to wait ± a month before stretching to the next size. I know a month seems long but it's better to be safe than sorry. You don't want to hurry it and skip sizes, or stretch while it's not healed and mess up everything. Seems like a lot to think of but I don't want you to screw up your ears
It takes some time for the ear to adapt to the new size so the taper is worn and pushed a little further inside every day until the big end is in the earlobe, if that makes sense. Then it should be left there for as long as it takes to heal so that you can downsize instantly, in case the need arises, without having to go down more than 1 or 2 mm. Images should help explain: How it looks like the first few days: Pressing it further in: As far as the use of tapers as jewelry is concerned, I had read negative stuff as well so I asked a professional piercer. He said that it's OK. I could't switch the taper to something else because there was nothing my size in any of the shops in my town so I kept it. I had no problems with it other than aesthetic ones. It's always better to wear plugs after the ear has healed but in my experience wearing a taper instead is not all it's made out to be.
hmmm.... interesting. thanks. i was under the impression that if you stretch as gradually as recommended (ie never skipping ANY gauge) and allow your ears to heal fully between each stretch, that going up a gauge wouldn't take the kind of time that you have described. in fact, i've heard/read that it could easily be done slowly in one go without much pain at all. for example, in the second photo that you linked it seems like the taper didn't even make it past half way through the ear before the person had to start applying some amount of force, which you would think would be totally unnecessary at that point along the taper. if the person was only going up one guage, the hole in their ear would already be large enough to easily accommodate the taper at the midway point, right? and at the end of the taper a size increase of 1 gauge would only be about 1mm or less (until you get to larger guages), so it wouldn't be THAT much of a stretch as to take a week of leaving the taper in..? ie you'd just pass the taper through the ear, insert the jewelry immediately after and then allow the ear to heal with the jewelry in place, not the taper.
Technically, tapers are used when you're in the process of stretching your ears to a bigger size. They help ease the actual plugs/jewelry in, so you're correct. You're not supposed to leave them in, or wear them like plugs.. but when I first started stretching my ears, I left the taper in for a day before putting plugs in. It made it a whole lot easier for me, imo. But I never wore them regularly. If you do, you could possibly get a blow out, or what they call "cat butt". It stretches your ears improperly. I haven't moved up in sizes in about 2 years, so all I do now is take them out, soak/clean my ears and plugs, and put them back in. Just like a regular ear piercing, practically.
All that I mention below are based on research I've done and/or my own experiences while trying some of the recommended things listed. Tapers aren't suppose to be used as jewelry. There is always a risk of the taper getting caught on something and possibly pulled on and damaging your ear. Personally, I use olive oil to make it easier to put the taper through then the tunnel. Other recommended types of oils are Emu oil, Bio-oil, Vitamin E oil ect. Stainless steel, titanium, gold ect. are safe to wear when your piercing is freshly stretched. But, acrylic, some types of glass, silicone, and organic plugs run the risk of your skin attaching itself to the materiel of the plug or tunnel. I wash my ears and jewelry with antibacterial soap then air dry. A lot of people also do sea salt soaks, but just be aware when doing the soaks a lot that your ear can get too dried out. Also, daily massages with oil or holey but'r are great to increase circulation and speed up healing as well as making sure the bottom part of your lobe gets sufficient circulation. A slower way to stretch is using bondage tape or plumbers tape wrapped around the jewelry and slowly increase how much tape you put on the jewelry to increase the size of the hole. I did this recently when I went from an 8g to 6g. Tape is normally used when stretching the bigger sizes but I found it made it a lot easier to stretch and with no pain at all, unlike the tapers.
I kept the taper in because I can't find plugs small enough for the size I need (18mm). Tapers are only bad to wear full time if they're quite large, as the distribute pressure unevenly across the ear lobe and cause a blow out. I think it's fine when my stretch is literally so tiny, the variation in weight is hardly anything. I took mine out because it bled and I heard that that was a bad thing, so I'm gonna wait a couple of weeks for it to heal with a normal earing in, then try again and perhaps not push it in as far..
I just posted the most useful info I have found over the years. Not only to be used now but later on if you want to move to a lower number gauge. Yeah, bleeding is not good. The key is patience, that is the hardest thing for me about stretching.
thanks everyone for your help. hopefully i'll land a job soon so i can stop being poor and be able to afford the stretching kit that i've had my eyes on. :dry:
