My self pierced inner conch experience.
At A Glance Author Chris Woodling Contact chrisw00us@yahoo.com When It just happened Artist the king(myself) Studio dorm room Location Bowling Green, Kentucky Well I know many of you will think this experience is not good because I pierced myself, but I have wanted to do my own piercing for a while now and it is definitely something special to have done my own piercing. I did some research about possible risks of piercing cartilage and was willing to take them.
Well to start out, I have a couple piercings, nothing too big. 2 gauge lobes, nipples, and 6 gauge left inner conch. I got all of them done professionally, but I have always been interested in piercing my right inner conch after seeing how easy my left conch was. The procedure for my left conch took literally 10 minutes from walking in the door to leaving and it seemed like one that I would be able to do myself. So after thinking about it a while, I bought some sterilized needles, latex gloves, and antiseptic. I had some jewelry to use that wasn't sterile ( I let it sit in peroxide for 1 hour and didn't autoclave it), but I used it anyway.
So its 5 in the morning and Im feeling that the time is right to pierce myself. I get all of the tools and things ready and laid them out on my dresser in front of the mirror(in a dorm room). I put some music on (true black metal of course) and mentally prepare myself for what Im about to do. I put on the gloves and start to prep the area with the antiseptic. I clean it off with a paper towel and then line the needle up. I then took my left hand and held my ear straight out so that I wouldn't hit the back of my head with the needle after it went through. I started to push in slowly so that it would come out straight. I didn't want to rush it and get it crooked. I slowly pushed and pushed until it started to not go any further. By now the pain was getting a little intense, but not too bad. My hands were shaking as the needle went further into my ear became a little hard to keep the needle straight. Despite the shakiness, I proceeded to put push and made sure the needle was in the right position that I wanted it to be.
By now, I felt like the needle might have gone through my ear. I looked at the back of my ear to see that the tip was through. So I pushed a little harder and it didn't seem to budge. Finally I gave the needle a forceful push and it went through. It kind of popped and it gave me a real sharp pain. I was relieved that the needle had finally gotten through. I then pushed the needle through the thick cartilage and when it got to the end I lined up the barbell and pushed it through as the needle pushed out the back of my ear. The skin seemed very tight and I had a hard time getting the barbell through, but it went in after a couple seconds of pushing. I realized now that maybe I should have used some type of lubricant, but it was too late and I already had it through. Oh well, maybe next time. I then put the ball on the back of the jewelry and smiled to myself as I now had a new self pierced inner conch.
I felt proud to have done my own piercings and it came out pretty straight. It matches my other conch perfectly and it didn't bleed at all like my left conch had. After I finished the piercing I went to the shower and washed all the antiseptic off and washed out the piercing with antibacterial soap. The barbell seemed real tight when I moved it around and it would barely budge without some force behind it. Maybe its because the cartilage in the inner conch is so thick. I couldn't remember my other conch being this tight, but then again I didn't touch it until the next day. Anyway, I cleaned it all out and went to bed.
It has been 2 days since I pierced myself and so far it is looking good. I have been checking it out in the mirror every time I pass, and cant help but to smile when I see it. :) Im hoping that it wont get infected so Im trying to take good care of it by washing it out 2 times a day and soaking with sea salt. I wouldn't suggest piercing yourself, but I wanted a piercing that I had done myself despite the risks. If you do plan on doing your own piercing I would suggest you find out the risks involved and know what you are getting into. In a few months if it is healed, I plan on thickening the jewelry a little bit as I have done to my left conch. I know that cartilage doesn't stretch easily, but so far I've had good luck with stretching my left conch, so hopefully I will have the same luck in stretching my right conch when the time comes. Well I hope you all enjoyed my experience and wish me luck in the healing process.