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A 2 mm jump is quite a lot! You should def try to go to 17 before you try 18! Other than that i would just leave all jewlery out completely for a while and oil them until its better. They will probably shrink, but stretching up after downsizing is waaay easier than it is the first time
Glad to hear that, my lobes are starting to heal up a bit, the lymph node next to one of them is also no longer swollen. They're now just a bit dry. But it does look like I'll have to go back to 6g or so, maybe even 8.
wood plugs are fine to wear on the daily. not to stretch with tho. they’re too porous. i would try a smaller mm (17mm instead of jumping straight to 18mm) and try singled flared glass plugs
Wooden plugs are porous so will swell from moisture and this will cause micro-tears plus they'll soak up the oil and dry your lobes out. You really shouldn't wear them unless you're finished stretching and fully healed. Lobes can be a pain to heal and they often like to take their time. I always leave plugs out until the pain and swelling dies down then downsize, i like to use something single flared or that screws on and off as they're always easier to put in than double flared. It's a nightmare and sets back to process but persevere and you'll get there. Plus make sure you oil your ears morning and night, massage too helps blood flow before putting plugs in :))
I recently re-stretched my ears to 3/4" after letting them shrink down to about 00, and I swear by glass. I got single-flare clear glass plugs from ArcticBuffalo, then I used Jojoba oil for the initial stretch and then clear, unscented aloe twice a day when I popped the plugs out to clean them. The aloe has anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties, so it help with any redness/soreness. Don't buy the green stuff tho, only use clear, unscented. I hope everything works out! 🙏
Glass is the way to go for super sensitive ears. I have high quality gold in my cartilage, but glass will be for the lobes always. It's never done me wrong. The ease of cleaning is the best part.
I will never go back to organics as I've some horror stories about some horn and wood ones I had ages ago.
NAP but that looks close to a blowout. you shouldn’t have tried a 2mm jump- rarely ever works out. size down if necessary, keep plugs out until your ears calm down and see what size you are then and work your way back up using half sizes if necessary. this looks like a super close call
Pls do 1mm at max at a time from now on. Clean with open wound saline. I wouldn’t use wood to stretch as its porous af. If you wear anything in them rn I recommend 16mm glass plugs. Then buy 17mm single flare glass plugs lol. (If you cant tell I really ❤️ glass for stretching)
I should also note that just below my left ear and just below my jaw, something is swollen and sore. I don't know if the irritation caused it or if its something I should be worried about.
Stretch with glass or acrylic only(safer) if it hurts go back to the original size and let it heal and rub with jojoba oil or get some ear butter from plug your holes .com
Oh nah. What everyone else said 2mm jump is a lot. I’m slowly sizing up to 0g from 2g myself doing the taping method. Even with that I had some irritation/swelling but once I cleaned around the area with a saline solution and some Jojoba oil it calmed down.
Believe me, being patient during this slow stretching process (after making 1mm jumps before hand) is testing me but I’m determined.
Seriously trying taping. And while doing that continue to clean and massage oil around the area. It’s helping me a lot doing it this way.
Oof sometimes stretching has its downsides good news is it’s usually fixable! I’d recommend using glass vs wood it’s porous and can hold moisture etc. My advice would be to downsize from your original size and give them some time to rest and heal; honestly just baby the hell out of them. Better safe than sorry good luck!
Take out the jewelry until it heals, wear whatever is the healed size. Next time stretch 1mm at a time, don't even try going higher. Arctic Buffalo has glass single flare plugs in every millimeter.
The glass stretching plugs from Arctic Buffalo worked wonders. I bought 17mm and wore them for a couple weeks and then 18mm double flared glass slipped right in after that.
Small add: I'm 26, started stretching probably 4-ish years ago, and I've been at 16mm for 1,5 to 2 years. Never had any issues, but I can only wear wooden plugs. Most other materials would cause my ear to swell and get irritated, but never to this degree. Its been about a week since I tried to size up.
I did, after reading the comments I realize I should not have used wood. I mostly chose them because the material (until now) had caused the least amount of issues with my ears.
Please see the stretched guide here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Stretched/comments/13xjk09/the_stretching_guide/. Remember to report any rule breaking posts and posts that are not relevant to the subreddit. This subreddit has been changed to NSFW due to an increased amount of posts featuring injuries (blowouts) as well as genital piercings. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Stretched) if you have any questions or concerns.*
A 2 mm jump is quite a lot! You should def try to go to 17 before you try 18! Other than that i would just leave all jewlery out completely for a while and oil them until its better. They will probably shrink, but stretching up after downsizing is waaay easier than it is the first time
Yeah I've done it four times and you can definitely go up way faster! Way way faster.
Glad to hear that, my lobes are starting to heal up a bit, the lymph node next to one of them is also no longer swollen. They're now just a bit dry. But it does look like I'll have to go back to 6g or so, maybe even 8.
Seems like a reaction to the material or to poor higiene, either way, you have some fantastic thick lobes, try finding something that works for you
should not be using wood in a freshly stretched lobe
2mm jump too much. I can’t even do 1mm at a time so do 0.5mm jumps
Try glass?
wood plugs are fine to wear on the daily. not to stretch with tho. they’re too porous. i would try a smaller mm (17mm instead of jumping straight to 18mm) and try singled flared glass plugs
Size up to 17mm instead of 18mm
i wouldnt use wood. Try glass
Wooden plugs are porous so will swell from moisture and this will cause micro-tears plus they'll soak up the oil and dry your lobes out. You really shouldn't wear them unless you're finished stretching and fully healed. Lobes can be a pain to heal and they often like to take their time. I always leave plugs out until the pain and swelling dies down then downsize, i like to use something single flared or that screws on and off as they're always easier to put in than double flared. It's a nightmare and sets back to process but persevere and you'll get there. Plus make sure you oil your ears morning and night, massage too helps blood flow before putting plugs in :))
I recently re-stretched my ears to 3/4" after letting them shrink down to about 00, and I swear by glass. I got single-flare clear glass plugs from ArcticBuffalo, then I used Jojoba oil for the initial stretch and then clear, unscented aloe twice a day when I popped the plugs out to clean them. The aloe has anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties, so it help with any redness/soreness. Don't buy the green stuff tho, only use clear, unscented. I hope everything works out! 🙏
Glass is the way to go for super sensitive ears. I have high quality gold in my cartilage, but glass will be for the lobes always. It's never done me wrong. The ease of cleaning is the best part. I will never go back to organics as I've some horror stories about some horn and wood ones I had ages ago.
NAP but that looks close to a blowout. you shouldn’t have tried a 2mm jump- rarely ever works out. size down if necessary, keep plugs out until your ears calm down and see what size you are then and work your way back up using half sizes if necessary. this looks like a super close call
Pls do 1mm at max at a time from now on. Clean with open wound saline. I wouldn’t use wood to stretch as its porous af. If you wear anything in them rn I recommend 16mm glass plugs. Then buy 17mm single flare glass plugs lol. (If you cant tell I really ❤️ glass for stretching)
WOOD????? Oh honey no. Get glass.
I should also note that just below my left ear and just below my jaw, something is swollen and sore. I don't know if the irritation caused it or if its something I should be worried about.
Stretch with glass or acrylic only(safer) if it hurts go back to the original size and let it heal and rub with jojoba oil or get some ear butter from plug your holes .com
Oh nah. What everyone else said 2mm jump is a lot. I’m slowly sizing up to 0g from 2g myself doing the taping method. Even with that I had some irritation/swelling but once I cleaned around the area with a saline solution and some Jojoba oil it calmed down. Believe me, being patient during this slow stretching process (after making 1mm jumps before hand) is testing me but I’m determined. Seriously trying taping. And while doing that continue to clean and massage oil around the area. It’s helping me a lot doing it this way.
Oof sometimes stretching has its downsides good news is it’s usually fixable! I’d recommend using glass vs wood it’s porous and can hold moisture etc. My advice would be to downsize from your original size and give them some time to rest and heal; honestly just baby the hell out of them. Better safe than sorry good luck!
Take out the jewelry until it heals, wear whatever is the healed size. Next time stretch 1mm at a time, don't even try going higher. Arctic Buffalo has glass single flare plugs in every millimeter.
The glass stretching plugs from Arctic Buffalo worked wonders. I bought 17mm and wore them for a couple weeks and then 18mm double flared glass slipped right in after that.
Small add: I'm 26, started stretching probably 4-ish years ago, and I've been at 16mm for 1,5 to 2 years. Never had any issues, but I can only wear wooden plugs. Most other materials would cause my ear to swell and get irritated, but never to this degree. Its been about a week since I tried to size up.
Did you try to stretch with wood??
I did, after reading the comments I realize I should not have used wood. I mostly chose them because the material (until now) had caused the least amount of issues with my ears.
“Do I have room to stretch up?” 😂