I have been stretching my lobes on and off for about 3 years. Nothing I had given a lot of thought to really. I had seen someone with stretched lobes and decided it was something I wanted to do. Planning not to exceed a pinky-sized hole, I set out on my journey.
At A Glance Author Laurie Contact Laurie@bme.anon IAM heavenANDhell When A week ago Artist John Studio Scarab Body Arts Location Syracuse, NY Being serious about my lobe stretching for the last 16 months or so, I've diligently stretched them on my own, from a 6 gauge piercing. This involved tapers until about 7/16". After that, I thankfully discovered a taping method and happily enlarged my holes to 7/8" that way. I was happily on my way to my goal of 1 ¼ inches.
As dramatic as it may sound, my happiness came to a screeching halt when I realized that my unevenly thinning lobes couldn't be, at least shouldn't be, stretched any more. A lot of my friends and family would scold me for saying this, but it was a HARSH reality. Something I didn't want to have to face on my journey of becoming. I mourned the "loss" briefly, appropriately, and then I moved on. I had a plan of attack!
I had known of people getting there lobes and other parts "scalpled", or cut. I knew this was a procedure done without anesthesia. It had seemed so extreme to me at one point in my life. But not now. Now, it was a necessary means to a glorious end I MUST reach. I quickly put fear aside and marched forward, without hesitation.
I shared my plan with a few close to me. Mark was one of those few. He showed extreme enthusiasm and genuinely wanted to be there for me during the procedure. I called John at Scarab Body Arts and made the necessary arrangements. That Friday I would drive the 90 minutes, with mark at my side-all the moral support I could need.
I was a bit discouraged when mark backed out. It seemed he had plans that superceded the importance of accompanying me. I put it off. I figured the next Friday would be just as well. Then he backed out again. Deciding I would have to go it alone, I made plans to go the following Saturday.
Saturday it was! I called my friend Rob, who was more than happy to go with me. I met him late in the afternoon and he drove me to the studio.
It was probably around 8pm by the time we got there. I walked in and sheepishly asked John if he had time to do it. He smiled wonderfully and said sure. Yay. I was so happy. And nervous and nauseous! I sat there while John got things prepared and wanted to puke. I was shaking from excitement and some fear, I'm sure.
John came out and asked me if I was ready. I clearly remember thinking "NO!" I don't remember my actual response. I got up and followed him to where he would be doing the procedure. I sat down and he talked me through things; what he was going to do and such. I was so nervous; I remember chattering incessantly about everything and nothing at all.
He began by cleaning my ears-the nice part. Then he marked the area of my lobe that was to be removed. So far, so good. I was doing really well. Then he was ready to cut. I lay back and prepared for what was about to happen. Well, I prepared as best I could. It was a bit nervous about the pain. I kept reminding myself that if I could handle childbirth, this would be a piece of cake. Rob, being the good friend that he is, selflessly offered me his hand, to destroy as needed during the cutting.
This next part sucked a little. John made the first cut. Hmm, I thought. Not so bad. So now I at least knew what to expect. Did it hurt? Yes. As bad as I had thought, no way! The pain was a smallish kind, pinchy, just as John had said it would be. There were a few more small cuts to be made. The pain grew with each one. It changed from pinchy to achy. It radiated upward, into my cartilage. My whole damn ear was throbbing. And talk about blood. That sucker bled like there was no tomorrow. I could feel trickling down the back of my head and pooling just below where my occipital bone rested. We had originally planned to go up to 1 ¼", but we decided against it. We stopped at an inch and when he popped that tunnel in my ear, I was as relieved as I had eve been. It hurt, yes and it bled still, but for now, it was done. It could rest.
After a brief wait, it was time for the right ear. This should be much easier. My right side is notoriously better than the left as far as pain and bleeding go. When he cut into my right lobe, the pain was more intense. I was quite surprised, really. It was a different pain than my left ear had felt. It was a deeper pain and it went down into my neck, rather than up into my ear. It bled very little than the left which facilitated cutting and made the process much quicker and therefore better. It was done before I even knew it.
I sat up and John cleaned me off gently. He handed me a mirror. I was a bit afraid to look at first. What if I hated it? I had endured all that pain, but what if it were for nothing? When I did check my new lobes out, I was ecstatic. I have never been more thrilled about the outcome of ANY procedure as I was and still am about this. My ears looked fucking amazing. I was so happy.
I walked out of there on a cloud. I was high from all the lovely chemicals my brain released. I went home and put old pillowcases on my pillows. I washed as much blood as I could out of my hair and went to sleep with a smile on my face.
It's been about 12 days since John cut me. My ears are healing so well and feeling fantastic. I am so thrilled when I look in the mirror and am happier than I have ever been.
John is a tremendous artist. He did a phenomenal job and has such a great personality and spirit. I will definitely be visiting John for everything I get done in the future.
Thanks for making me feel more like me.