Cartilage Piercing: 4th Month Update, and How I Fixed the Crooked Angle!

Hi guys! Long time no see :)

In case you missed my 3rd day and 3rd week updates, just scroll down!

Here is a picture of what it looks like today, I took this picture about 27 seconds ago:

As you can see, the piercing itself has straightened out a lot. In the end, the angle it was at did bother me quite a bit, How I "fixed" this issue is pretty interesting - I took a bobby pin and attached it to the spot RIGHT behind the silver ball of the stud. I held it down a bit, so the angle was less steeper, and taped the bottom portion of the bobby pin to the middle of my ear. Strange, I know. I did it overnight twice, and after, this is how the piercing ended up. I worked really well for me, so if your cartilage piercing's angle is bothering you, try if you feel comfortable with it! I recommend doing it in the early stages of healing, within the first month or so.

The piercing is a lot less sore now, and hardly ever gets caught in my hair. No more redness anymore, either. There's still some swelling around the piercing. The front of it is flat and normal, but the back has a bump-like thing on it. I apply tea tree oil on a Q-tip and apply it really gently around it. It's worked okay, but I guess consistency and being committed to the piercing is a big part of it.

I still clean it with H2Ocean every morning and night!

I can sleep on the ear now, but only on soft pillows and in certain positions only. It doesn't really bother me anymore, except the sleeping part.

Remember, cartilage piercings take a long time to heal, six months up to a year. It takes a long time. Be sure that you're willing to take the time to take care of it, and nurture it like it's your baby.

Good luck!

Cartilage Piercing Update: 3 Weeks After

If you haven't seen my blog post about after 3 days of my cartilage piercing, you can read it here.

Anyway, I figured I would update you guys since I've had my cartilage piercing for just over three weeks.

It doesn't get caught in my hair as much anymore - I tried having it down for a day or so in the first week, and it got caught on just about everything. I kept my hair up in a ponytail or a bun for the first week and a half to two weeks, and after that I've been keeping it down whenever I want. It gets caught, but MUCH less and it doesn't hurt. It is still a bit sore to the touch, and I can't sleep on it yet. Crusties still happen, but it doesn't hurt, it just gets stuck to the jewelry for a bit. I still clean it twice a day with H2Ocean on a cotton swab. Nothing significant.

There hasn't been any sign of it being irritated. I haven't had bumps or swelling at all.

I've noticed that my piercing is slightly crooked, and slopes downwards, but I don't really mind it. I think it makes it a bit more unique and mine. Here's a picture, for those of you who want to see:

As you can see, it goes down a bit. It's not severely crooked or anything, and not that noticeable. Not many people come up to me and glare at my ear. 

I plan on putting in a small hoop for the future - I think that's really cute and I can't wait!

Cartilage/Helix Piercing! Experience and Day 3

Hey guys!

So recently I just got my left cartilage pierced (on Nov. 16, 2K13). I thought that it would be an interesting idea to share this experience with you, and I also thought that this would be a lot of fun.

I got my cartilage pierced at a professional tattoo&piercings shop with a 16 gauge needle. I personally don't recommend getting your cartilage pierced at Claire's, Icings, or even Piercing Pagoda because they all use guns, and those are more traumatic for your cartilage than a needle. A hollow needle actually removes the skin and bone where your piercing is going to be, when a gun pushed the earring directly in your ear. Having your cartilage piercing done with a gun can and possibly will make your cartilage shatter.

My piercer marked my ear with a marker, and sanitized everything and pulled out a clean, new needle still in the packaging. The told me to breathe continuously and before I knew it, my piercing was done. Of course, I still had the needle in my ear, but that actually didn't hurt much. A part I clearly remember is feeling the needle go through the first layer of skin, the bone, then the last layer of skin. It didn't hurt too bad, but it was a strange enough sensation. I got a silver flatback for my initial earring - when he put in the earring, that was the worst part. I would say maybe a 2 out of a 5 pain scale, which really isn't that bad. It felt hot and a bit sore throughout the day, but nothing unbearable. Here's a picture of the piercing, right after it was done -

Cartilage piercings are notorious for being extremely irritable and easily infected. The healing period is a lot longer than a regular lobe piercing. You have to be very careful for the first several weeks to not pull or tug at it, and clean it vigorously. To clean it, I use H2Ocean (around 10 dollars from amazon.com) twice or three times a day. I spray a bit into a clean cup so I don't waste anything, and let a Q-tip soak it up. Then I push the earring to the back (VERY GENTLY) and clean the front part. Then I push it forward (ALSO VERY GENTLY) and clean the back. Then I make sure that the ball part is still screwed on tight (ALSO VERY VERY GENTLY). Then I leave it alone - try your best not the touch it! 

Something I realized really early on from having this piercing is that it gets caught on EVERYTHING. I'm going to have to wear my hair up for several weeks so nothing gets tangled up while the piercing is still fresh. I'm super careful when pulling on and off my shirts, and keeping my hair from the piercing at all times. The second day of having the piercing, I was just out of the shower and was putting my hair up with a towel, but it got caught in my hair and pulled so hard that I started crying. Holding your phone up to your ear while calling people is a problem too. I slammed my phone up to my ear once and I freaked out because it hurt so badly. The piercing is really sensitive so try to keep your hair pinned from it until it heals a bit. Here's a picture I just took of my ear - 

   

Yes, I did get my second holes done the day after my cartilage piercing. I got it done at Piercing Pagoda,where I got my first holes. Piercing Pagoda, unlike Claire's or Icings, use one-time use guns so there isn't any chance of other peoples' blood or anything getting on to you. I felt safe about that, and because I had good experience there my first time, I felt okay with going there for my lobes. But for cartilage, DO go to a professional place with a needle!

As you can see in the picture above, the redness has gone down significantly. It's been healing nicely, absolutely no problems at all. It's still tender to the touch, which is expected. I've had some crusties lately, but that's a sign of healing so I'm good with that. Overall, I LOVE my cartilage piercing and how it looks, can't wait until it fully heals (which can take up 6 mo-1 year). I'll keep you guys updated soon, and thank you for reading! :)