Let me inform you that the first half of this story is shameful to me and I don't usually share it unless it is going to prevent someone from making the same mistake as me. My ear stretching experience started abruptly in a shopping mall not far from here. I had been admiring the colorful "spikes" through people's ears for a while but never really considered it for myself. I was, after all, a nice Christian boy with no piercing's at all. I went to spend the day with my girlfriend at the time and some friends, two of which sported tapers, one at 6mm and the other at 5mm. We visited the body jewellery store to buy them an 8mm taper each, because stretching ridiculously fast seemed to be the fashion at the time and the conversation arose about me getting one. After some consideration and a small amount of healthy peer pressure, I purchased a 3mm taper. Now what was I going to pierce it with? I went to all the stores in the mall until I made my way down to the local grocery store and bought a pack of safety pins and went home.
At A Glance Author MyEarsEatPeople Contact MyEarsEatPeople@bme.anon When A year ago The next morning I woke my brother up early and within 10 minutes I had a safety pin stuck through my earlobe.(Sure, it sounds bad, but keep reading. It gets worse.)
I jumped into the shower and quickly forced the 3mm taper through the hole. There was pain, a little bit of blood, but I had a shiny new stretched ear. When I say "shiny" I mean it was literally shiny, because it swelled up like a balloon. Within a week I had a 5mm taper in. Within two weeks I had 8mm. After a month I had actually managed to force a double flared 10mm stainless steel tunnel into my ear without a blowout and my ear hole actually looked surprisingly round and healthy considering the damage I had inflicted on it.
At that point my stretching stopped for a month or so, mainly to do with not being able to afford new plugs, partly to do with laziness.
A few months later I decided to start stretching the other ear. I still hadn't had the bright idea to look up proper stretching technique on the internet so the second hole was stretched exactly like the first one. I started with a name badge from my friends work, then a 3mm taper straight through, and then 5mm taper a week later. Believe it or not, I developed a nasty infection at this point (partly to do with using my friends name badge from KFC to pierce it maybe?)And a friend of mine taught me all about the benefits of SSS (Sea Salt Soaking) and I started soaking my ears daily in a salt solution. After 5mm I was in such a hurry to stretch up again that I actually used a pen lid that roughly resembled an 8mm taper. Then a 10mm spiral went in and I was the proud owner of a very thin, damaged pair of 10mm lobes.
Disaster struck.
The hole in my ear resembled nothing more then a cut, much like I had taken a scalpel to my ear, and there was a serious thin spot on the outside edge of my earlobe. What had happened?
It was then I figured that I should take my time and stretch slower. So I did. I slowed down from 6-10mm a month, to 2-3mm a month. It seemed sensible at the time, but now I know that even that was moronically quick. I stretched up to a pair of 16mm tunnels. By this point my ears were a depressing sight. The thin spot had become thinner and my ears were constantly red and sore.
I hopped onto the computer and started to research. Eventually I found a blog by a man we are all familiar with, Mr. Pauly Unstoppable himself. I learnt all about ear stretching. I threw away my cheap plastic plugs and bought high grade (non-flared) steel. I went out and bought a large roll of PTFE tape and a small bottle of pure vitamin E oil. I started taking my plugs out when I slept. But was it enough to repair the damage?
I am happy to announce that today I sport a healthy pair of 22mm lobes that are my pride and joy. They are still a bit thin on the outside but some downsizing over the next year or so should clear it up.
My experience has lead me to teach others making the same mistake as me not to rush. (This includes my now-educated friends who got me started stretching in the first place.) Just doing my part to help the greater good. Take it from me, take your time.
It's worth it