At A Glance
Author	Manada
Contact	Manada@bme.anon
IAM	Manada
When	A week ago
Artist	Tom Brazda
Studio	Stainless Studios
Location	Toronto, ON

A bit of Introduction:
Four years ago today I was sitting in an internet cafe in London (UK), searching for a reputable studio to have my tongue pierced at. I don't remember exactly where I first saw it online, but I remember being totally enamoured. Imagine, an inch and a half of stainless steel running straight through my upper ear cartilage.

Fast forward to about a month ago. I was surfing BME and developing an idea of and ear project --What better time to start thinking about the industrial? I researched online some more to figure out what options were available. I thought of everything: orbitals, custom industrials, rings, coloured bars. I asked opinions, I read experiences. I immediately rejected any concept that had the potential to interfere with the earbuds for my discman. The only thing I was able to conclude from all my research was that I needed a professional opinion -- the last night I wanted was to get attached to a concept that would be difficult or impossible to heal.

Decision making time!:
A week later I was sitting in TomBrazda's waiting area. When he was ready for me I went in, sat down and the first words out of my mouth were "I'm here to talk industrials"....

So we talked industrials. We discussed everything I had researched, but eventually it became obvious that the small ears that I (and my mother!), were so proud of are more of a hindrance than anything else, there just wasn't much space up there to play with.

So Tom took a look at my ear, and proclaimed me in need of a daith --then he showed me how hot a daith would look in my ear, and it's hot. Then he explained that with a daith, it would balance out an industrial at the top of my ear, so that things don't look too top heavy. So we decided that a standard helix-to-helix industrial and a daith were in order.

Now, as mentioned previously, I love my discman. It makes those subway rides around town so much more enjoyable. The industrial itself wouldn't case an issue with the ear buds, but a daith most certainly would not be compatible with them. I sat there looking at the pretty little ring Tom had set in my ear I decided that I would just have to get new headphones.

This was my first cartilage piercing. And because I had heard so many horror stories about them I was nervous about doing two piercings on the same day. After some consideration we decided that it would be best to do the industrial that day, and for me to come back for the daith when I felt ready. The reason for this was that Tom rationalized that the industrial was the one most likely to get knocked around, and I also needed some time to sort out the music situation!

The piercing process:
So Tom cleaned up his "area", got all his tools out and eventually I was sitting on his piercing table, swinging my legs. After a brief discussion about the non-existence of pain the first hole was pushed through. What a wierd feeling, not painful, but I was aware of the needle going through my helix. With the top needle in and in place Tom lined up for the second one. With industrials he pierces them with two separate needles, apparently it makes it easier to get the angle right -- I imagine it's also easier on the piercee! I can't imagine having him try to muscle his way through with a single needle! He waited a few minutes to let the top hole stop bleeding a little before moving on. The bottom one was a bit different. At first I just felt the needle sliding in, and then there was some intense pain feeling, like he was working near a nerve or something -- nothing unbearable, but I think I went "whoh" and my fingers gripped the edge of the table a little harder. Soon enough though it was over -- I didn't even feel Tom sliding the needle out and the barbell in -- just got this intense sense of pressure being relieved when the last needle was out. It bled, I could feel the blood running down my ear, but it clotted pretty quickly. Eventually, Tom cleaned me up as best he could without risking it bleeding again, and I took a look! It's VERY hot. I love it!

Aftercare:
It's true. Cartilage piercings do seem to be inherently cranky. I think I've had a pretty okay time of it so far though.
The first night it didn't bleed again. I came home and soaked my ear in a cup of warm salt water (1/4 tsp sea salt per 250 mL water) before going out dancing that night. I'm REALLY careful about not sleeping on it, and find the best way to do this is to wedge my body with pillows so that it's really only comfortable to sleep on one side. I also wash my hair with my head either sideways or upside down -- this just keeps all the shampoo and crap out. Tom also recommends taking Stress Vitamins (containing the B vitamins, Vit. C, Vit. E, and Iron), because being healthy is the first step to healing a piercing.

Day Three: It started bleeding after a soak and eventually scabbed over. For the next few days I soaked as normal but made no attempt to remove the scabs as they seemed to be doing a good job of keeping the entry/exit points sealed off from the outside world.

Eventually I got annoyed with the (very messy!) process of putting my entire ear in a cup of warm water and went out and bought a small spray bottle. At home I cleaned and rinsed the bottle well before filling it up with sea salt solution. Spraying is SO much easier! AND it keeps the water our of my ear canal! **I highly recommend the cup soaking method for when the piercing is still very fresh, it felt nice and allowed the blood/crusties to come off in a non-traumatic way**

Last night (Day 7) after a good soak with the water I sprayed on, the scabs around the holes finally came off on their own. The ear itself looks GREAT! It has been pretty itchy on and off, but I guess that's the reality of healing anything. It also swelled by around day 2 or 3; in some places more than I expected (ie. the inner rim of the helix) and in some places less. I guess it'll take a few months for the piercing to settle and everything to get back to normal. But it's not read, and it's not warm to the touch, so *knock wood* everything looks great so far!

The daith will probably go in sometime in the next couple of weeks, and I can't wait to see how they'll both look together! Feel free to contact me on IAM or by e-mail if anyone has any questions about how the rest of my healing turned out!