An ear cartilage piercing could prove to be quite painful and is a process that requires preparation and attention. Since professionals charge their performance fees, you can save some by piercing your ear at home if you have a high pain tolerance and are able to stay calm. Professional piercers often lack the medical training or credentials to perform what is, in fact, a medical procedure. Perhaps your preparation is not better but, from this point of view, turning to a professional does not bring further advantages. To take care of the piercing you will need to ensure good hygiene conditions at the wound site and prevent the ear from coming into contact with corrosive or irritating elements.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Preparation
Step 1. Purchase the necessary material and choose the area to be drilled with great care
The procedure involves some risks - even significant ones - to health and some minor complications have often been encountered. Since no special qualifications are required to become a piercer, it can create some serious health problems, even though an ear cartilage piercing is no more dangerous than an earlobe piercing.
Step 2. Sterilize the ear and the material
Make sure you buy a sealed and sterilized needle - this is crucial. Furthermore, the jewel should not contain nickel or other metals that could trigger an allergic reaction. Remember that the jewelry must be of a smaller gauge than the needle.
Step 3. To ensure maximum sterility and hygiene, use an autoclave
You can take a pressure cooker or other tool that has the same mechanism of action. Set it to maximum pressure and temperature, so the steam produced by the water will disinfect all instruments. You can also soak the needle and earrings in diluted alcohol or bleach, but the result won't be as good.
Step 4. Set up a sterile work area
Prepare gloves, a topical disinfectant to clean the site of the hole (preferably iodine), a marker to mark the place to be pierced, and a material to block the tip of the needle and prevent it from pricking your scalp. Remember that the work surface on which you place all this must be sterile, also organize another space to put the used material. Do not touch sterile and non-sterile material alternately.
Step 5. Wash your ear with antibacterial soap
The cartilage area is quite difficult to clean, so consider taking a shower. In addition, hot water and steam soften the skin, making the puncture less painful. Clean the ear carefully and mark the point of the piercing with a marker or permanent ballpoint pen.
Part 2 of 3: Do the Piercing
Step 1. Do not apply topical anesthetics or agents to numb the area
They are not effective in significantly reducing pain, because topical solutions cannot have a great effect on unvascularized cartilage. Ice is also not recommended, as it causes the skin to contract; furthermore, the contact of the ice causes damage to the skin tissue and makes it more difficult to guarantee the sterility of the area or to exactly center the point to be punctured.
Know that it will hurt. If you don't want to feel pain or really don't want to get a wound in your ear, then you should avoid sticking a large, hollow needle into a part of your body, and you shouldn't even pay someone to do it for you
Step 2. Spread a topical antiseptic on the area you want to puncture, for example you can use iodine tincture
Put as much as you like and don't forget the back of the ear. It is essential to avoid any type of infection, because this type of complication requires drainage, surgery and the removal of the piercing itself, not to mention the symptoms that include fever and intense pain.
Step 3. Place an object to stop the needle just behind the ear
You can use a sterile cotton ball to not prick your scalp. This step is important to avoid the pain caused by an accidental puncture and to prevent the tip of the needle from coming into contact with non-sterile parts of your body; all this allows you to keep the risk of infection under control. At this stage it is very useful to have a friend who can assist you, because a little dexterity is required to rest and hold the cotton ball while you make the hole.
Step 4. Push the needle into your ear
Once you have pierced the first layer of skin, check that the needle is positioned correctly and push it to pierce the cartilage. You will feel some resistance and three distinct "pops" as you pass through the skin, cartilage and skin again.
Step 5. Keep the sterilized earring handy and insert it into the back pocket of the needle
You need to be sure the needle has a larger gauge than the earring, so this step will be pretty straightforward. Remember that you must not use metals that you are allergic or sensitive to, as a simple repeated contact dermatitis with metals can turn into a wound infection.
Step 6. Remove the needle from your ear
This way the jewel should slip into the hole. Screw the ball to hold it in place inside the hole. You have to proceed quickly, as it is quite painful and, if you make a mistake, you would have to do it again in a different place, with the risk of mangling the cartilage and exposing yourself more to infections with a much larger wound.
Part 3 of 3: Aftercare
Step 1. Wash the area with a saline solution once or twice a day
Do not remove the scabs that form; the wound may take up to a year to heal completely. Since the cartilage is not very supplied by the blood system, the risk of infection is higher, and the healing times are longer.
Step 2. Check the piercing site
Keloids (deposits of scar tissue) and cartilage deformations can occur quite frequently, but if the ear appears swollen, red, hot, and has discharge for more than a week, then something is wrong. In this case, you need to see a doctor, as you may need a course of antibiotics or even surgery with a hospitalization of more than two days.
Step 3. Do not use sanitizing and antimicrobial solutions, such as denatured alcohol or hydrogen peroxide, to clean the piercing
These are too aggressive products that kill live cells and damage capillaries, as well as scar tissue in the ear. If you keep the wound site clean and prevent it from coming into contact with impurities, you greatly reduce the risk of infection.
Step 4. Avoid cartilage breakage that could occur with a gun or hand piercing
The gun is used to pierce the earlobe, although it turns out to be an inadequate tool for piercings in many other specific areas of the ear. Seek immediate medical attention if the pinna shows deformities.
Advice
- Piercing needles are much sharper than sewing needles. This means that the procedure is less painful. Remember that they are individually packaged in sterile packages; make sure you choose the right gauge (diameter) to reduce the risk of infections and unnecessary irritation.
- The chlorine from the pool water dries the skin and therefore also the piercing area which could tear easily. So remember to always apply a moisturizing product.
- Wash your hands before touching anything that comes into contact with your ear and sterilize all equipment.
- Get assistance from a friend, you will find that it will be extremely useful. But make sure she follows all of the sterility, hygiene procedures, and hopefully has some experience with this sort of thing.
- Be very meticulous and diligent in the care of the piercing; infections are dangerous, expensive to treat, and can lead to permanent deformities that need to be corrected with surgery.
- Piercing alone carries risks. Infections, allergic reactions and a bad positioning of the jewel are just some of the problems. If you want a perfect and safe piercing, go to a professional studio. Choose an accredited and experienced piercer who has a studio in your area.
- If you already have several cartilage piercings, space them out appropriately so you can wear larger earrings.
- Choose high-quality stainless steel, surgical or titanium jewelry to reduce the risk of allergic reactions. Do not use silver as it oxidizes and may stain the leather. Generate online remember that a metal unsuitable for surgical procedures is not even suitable for piercings.
- Wait six months before changing the jewel.
- Don't sleep on the side of your newly pierced ear.
Warnings
- Avoid immersing the piercing needle in any bleach solution, as it is toxic to human skin.
- You could get infections if you don't use a sterile, sharp needle, if you somehow break the "chain of sterility" of the process, and if you are simply out of luck. See your doctor if you notice any signs of infection.
- Make sure you are not allergic to the jewelry material, otherwise you will develop contact dermatitis.
