Gauging can be a calming and safe phase of your life, or it can be a horrid memory. My mom pierced my ears when I was a new born. When I was about 14 and a half I got 14 gauge earrings, they where kind of hard to put in but the pain was worth it when I saw how cool they looked. I had 14's in for about 3 months, and I was never interested in going bigger. As the months went on, and saved my allowance, I said "Hey why not!?". I went to the mall where I bought 12's and 10's (plugs). 12's slid right in, no complaints at all. 2 weeks later I put 10's in, they hurt a little more than usual. I didn't plan on going any bigger so I kept them in until I was 15. I didn't know if I was able to hide them from my mom, so I stopped there.
At A Glance Author xpwndyoux Contact SpazzzOutSilvia@aol.com When N/A Artist Yours Truely Studio Room, Bathroom, so on. Location Nevada! One day I was hanging out with some friends, and I was in awe because of the way their ears looked. One of my friends was at a 2 gauge[tapers] and the other was at 5/8's[tapers]. As soon as I saw their ears, I mentioned that I was considering gauging again. I thought twice. However, when my friend came out with 8 tapers I went for it. They where soaked in hydrogen peroxide but by the time he gave them to me they where completely dry. I really never knew what to expect because it was my first time using tapers. They didn't slide in easliy, it actually hurt really bad. So I had 8's in, my mom saw them. She surprisingly didn't care. Sure enough, this is where there was no stopping me or my gauging experience.
A week later I went to 6's. I know originally you're supposed to wait until they are completely healed otherwise you'll create scar tissue which is hard to stretch. I was infatuated by the fact that every Sunday night I would gauge my ears, and every week they would look a bit different. I read up on some gauging facts and ear care. I was scared about the fact that your ears can blow out, that would really suck. But I felt as if I was ready, so each week it'd be a new step. 4 gauge is where I was at, I bought 2 gauge tapers. Cleaned them, lubed the up and put them in.. The pain was horrible. I had never felt a pain like that in my life. Blood and puss, you name it. Gross. That's when I knew I was going too fast, and I never wanted to go through that again.
I waited for them to completely heal, it took about a month. I bought 0 gauges, it felt like a pinch. It didn't hurt at all. Double zero's came along and I borrowed a pair from my friends. Thinking I was a hard ass, I went from double zero's to 1/2 in a matter of a month. It was painful but sooner or later I found out that I had gotten used to the pain, it was addicting. When I was at 1/2 I never really had tapers, plugs or anything like that. I went to Wal*Mart and bought paint brushes. I saw that the caps they had on them[to protect the brush] where perfect size and you can just squeez them in. I did that for size 9/16. The same day I bought 5/8 paint brushes which I put in about 2 weeks later. I finally decided to buy 5/8 single flared tunnels online because I thought that was the size I was going to stop at. Yeah right.
I really was in love with my 5/8's. They where awesome. I kept those in for about a month in a half. All of sudden, here I go again wanting to stretch out some more. I went to Hot Topic and bought 3/4 tapers. Quick note: They're jewelery isn't the best, but it does the job to a certain extent. This is where the fun starts. On the internet, I was looking up gauge size charts that I could follow. Never in my right mind did I know there was a size in between 5/8's and 3/4's. No chart had indicated that. I was in the process of sanitizing my tapers, and they looked really big. I put a lot of muscle into it, and they would not go in. I was pissed off and I cursed Hot Topic for their horrible jewelery. Both my ears where swollen for trying too hard. So I put it off. I was surfing the web and found out there was a size between the two. I was becoming more infuriated. 11/16 is the size I was supposed to be at.
Just recently: 2 days searching for tapers in local piercing shops. No luck. 11/16 is the size of dime. So I started looking for things at home that could be that size. Sooner or later, I did... A clearasil cap. No joke. I put it in my left ear. I let it sit for 2 days. I got my 3/4 taper out, and slid right in. However, this pain was worse than the pain I had experienced when I went to two's. My ear is in a really bad pain right now, but its a lot better than last night.
A bit of information: ALWAYS wash your hands before stretching. Hydrogen Peroxide and Rubbing Alcohol worked best. Using some kind of lube helps to make them slide in easier. Trust your body. ALWAYS wait until your ears are healed. I know I'm no one to say that but my best advice to you is to wait. It's a fun process. Every month you'll have something to look forward to. It's a lot better that way, trust me. NEVER EVER skip a size, your ears will blow out and your ears will look abnormal. The dates on this might be a bit off, I don't remember exactly when I started to gauge.