I have 11 ear piercings, 8 in my left ear and 3 in my right. The three in my right (and the matching three in my left) are in the lobe. The rest line my ear cartilage. They were all originally pierced with a gun at various times throughout my life. A few months ago I decided I wanted them at an 8 or 10 gage. I want to be able to wear small tunnels in them.
At A Glance Author Daderain Contact Daderain@bme.anon IAM Daderain When It just happened Artist Myself Studio My bathroom Location Denton, Texas First Stretch: I bought six 18g circular barbells. I was not sure what gauge they were originally pierced at but I assumed it was smaller than 18g. I washed the CBB's and my ear with warm water. I decided to stretch the top 4 cartilage and the first two lobes. I lined them up and pushed. The lobe ones went through easily. There was a little pressure but no bleeding or pain. The cartilage took a little more work but had the same results.
They were sore for a few days, the cartilage especially. One of them developed a bump on the back of it. I used sea salt soaks once or twice a day and it cleared up quickly. I tugged at them gently while in the shower every day to help them loosen up.
I now had six 18g, and five 20/22g.
Second Stretch: Two months later I bought six 16g CBR's. I washed them and the 18 gages. Again I washed my ear well with soap and warm water. I employed the same method. I lined them up and pushed. The 18g went into the 5 remaining piercings easily. The 16g slipped into my lobes easily. I had to work them into my cartilage but they went in fine. All ended the same way with no pain, and no blood.
Again, they were sore for a few days. The same one developed a bump again. I resumed my salt soaks. They did not seem to help this time though so I stopped. A few days later the bump went down on its own. I continued to tug gently at them when in the shower. I started to have problems with the third cartilage one though. Every time I tugged on it, it developed a bump. The bumps went away easily with a little babying but made me wary of tugging that piercing.
I now had six 16g, and five 18g.
Third Stretch: Five months later I decided to stretch again. I bought six 14g CBR's. I was a little intimidated by the 14 gauges so I decided to try using lube. I washed everything, opened my lube. ( I used one of the trial tubes so I could throw it away.) I lubed the end of one CBR and slipped it into my ear. The lobes went in just as easy as before. I started on the cartilage. The first two took lots of pressure but went through fine. The third one took a lot of pressure. It burned a little and I couldn't get the ball on because it hurt. I left it for the moment and continued down my ear. I was able to get the 16 gauges in easily. That's when I noticed a little blood on the third one. I lifted the CBR and pulled back. It was already extremely sore and a little swollen. I decided to let it rest for a while.
I took some IB profin and waited. By the time I was supposed to go to bed it was still really sore. I left it in overnight. When I got up in the morning it hadn't gone down and had blood dried on it. I knew I had torn it. I was really upset about it but I decided to be safe. After washing up and getting my supplies back out I took a deep breath and started to remove the ring. It hurt. I finally got it out and exhaled. I lubed up my last 16g ring and slipped it through. It burned a little but felt better immediately. I left it alone for a few hours and the swelling went down. I was able to put the ball on finally.
I did salt soaks for a few days until it felt better. Now I am just watching it and letting it recover. I plan on continuing stretching in a few months.
I now have five 14g, and six 16g.
My advice on stretching is this: Go slow! Listen to your body. Stretched piercing may look wonderful but they take time, patience, and knowledge. Make sure to research stretching before you start. Try to be as clean as possible. Also, a piercing should never bleed after stretching. If it does, go back a size and wait for it to heal. Good Luck!