question about stretching/gauging my ears

hi there
I have been toying with the idea of stretching my ears for a while now. I'm thinking about going down to an 8 or 6. I just wanted to get some opinions on this practice such as
how slow should I take the sizes down?
how do I deal with any bleeding that may occur?
any tips? thanks a bunch!

 

http://jewelry.about.com/od/bodyjewelry/a/gauging_lobes.htm

Check this out. It might help you. Best of luck.

 

well first off, everyone says that they will only go to a certain size, 10, 8, 6, personally mine was a 4...that was when i was still in high school many moons ago, lol. i am now at a 5/8'' and considering making the treck to 1"

first off ( assuming your ears are at a standard guage) you may be able to fit up to a size 14 in your holes already, if not however, to save money on buying 15 different earrings and never using them after a few days/weeks you should go get the thin medical tape, wrap one rotation around each earring and insert them into your holes, you should be able to add a 2nd rotation in 2-3 days, but you should GO SLOW, i know it seems like its taking forever, but trust me you do NOT want to have a nastly blow out and end up with pus dripping ripped earlobes, they are not fun. every few days add another rotation until your at your desired size, as they get bigger you should go a little slower in between and let them rest. if you have a hard time getting the earrings end i suggest taking a steamy shower and let things losen up. hope that helps

 

Yeah.

Make sure you either have some vaseline or you're in a nice warm shower while doing it.

basically, you'll know if you've skipped too many sizes because it will KILL to put it in. So just take it 18, 16, 14, 12, 10 etc.

 

make sure you don't use tapers, the one time i used a taper i ripped my ear (it doesn't always happen, but sometimes it does you don't wanna take the chance) i had my ears at 3/4s and they healed nicely for the most part except for the side that i ripped the one time.

 

Taping your jewelry is a good alternative. It is slower, but much safer.

I don't know what type of tape to use though, that's google's job.

 

Honestly, what isn't google's job? haha

 

When I stretched my ears, i waited till it was healed to put the next size in. I used a taper once. i dont suggest them. like raz5 said, they can rip your ear. i'm not an expert, but i went from a 14 to a 0.

 

i advise against tapers as well. ive used them successfully, but you need to be careful, its easy to tear your ears.
the best way imo is to wait after each stretch until your ears are loose enough to accept the next size without discomfort. if you go slow enough, this method works well and is very gentle because your ears essentially stretch themselves.
since you are in the small sizes, i recommend using weighty jewelry to help them loosen up. captive bead rings work.
taping works very well too and is gentle and gradual. but its hard to tape something smaller that 10g ive found. the correct tape to use is PTFE (teflon) plumbers tape or bondage tape. those are self adhesive and smooth, they wont irritate your ears.

 

Hm, I skipped 14-10 as most people do. I'm going up to 6 from 8 here soon, 8-6 is actually a big jump for those sizes ha. Just take it slow, it could be done in 5 minutes or if you're a wimp when it comes to pain possibly hours. It all depends on you, EXPECT pain, there is going to be pain no doubt but if it's just fucking horrible than stop and take a breather.

 

wrong. pain is a sign that you are not stretching as gently and slowly as you should. stretching should not hurt and can be done without any pain.
yes you can tear holes in your ears and rip them and bleed... or just cause them to swell up and burn and its your own business, but make sure you know that it doesnt have to be like that.

 

lol, I seriously don't see stretching from 8-6 being painless at all, IMO you're going to feel something regardless.

 

i felt pain everytime. and mine never bled, got swollen or have ripped.

 

I used tapered through all of my stretching. I never ripped. Is it only in the larger guages that this happens? I'm at 2. I've noticed pain in every other size. Like 6 to 4 hurt, but 4 to 2 was no prob, just slid right in. I'm going one more size, I've tried but it hurts too much right now for that size. My stretching has been uneventful. No swelling, bleeding or ripping.

 

Ripping and shit can happen at ANY gauge, but the pain skipping every other size makes since. Glad to hear you're doing good so far!

 

Why do so many people stretch/gauge their ears???
I'm just wondering why people think it's so cool, honestly I think it's pretty stupid, but if someone could explain the appeal in it...?
i'm not trying to be bitchy or argumentative, I just really don't see it and want to know why people think it's soo cool.

 

Freaky, I think it's just a matter of, to each his/her own. You know? A lot of different people like a lot of different things. Its not something you can really explain. You just like what you do.

 

For me personally, i love body modification. i have 10 piercings and counting, two gauged ears, three tattoo's planned out already and homedone tattoos. some people see it as a popularity/scene look. i just see it as beauty and art.

 

Hm, for me, it's to be unique and different. I know a few people around here with gauged ears, I like the looks, I don't give two shits about what someone else thinks. Two words, self expression.

 

Cool cool. I was just kinda wondering, yeah. Kids around here just do it cause it's sOO cool, to fit in really, it's nice to see not everyone's doing it for that.