So it's been a little over two months since I got my industrial piercing. I got it pierced on August 15, 2013 and today is October 25, 2013.
Here is a picture of what it looks like currently:
So quick update. It feels much better now that it's been healed for two months. I've finally found a cleaning method that I like which has definitely helped it heal much easier. It hasn't gotten infected and I've had absolutely no hypertrophic scarring or keloids. It's still sore when I clean it but that is not unusual since industrial piercings take at least six months, most of the time eight months to a year, to fully heal.
In the first month, it felt irritated quite often and I think it was mostly due to the cleaning process I was using then. I have since switched it up and within a couple days, my ear felt much better, not irritated at all, and it has since healed much quicker. During the first month, it would still bleed a little when I was cleaning it and it was far more sore. It doesn't bleed at all now, even when I accidentally hit it, and you can tell that it is healing just by looking at it. This is usual as well because piercings heal from the outside in.
Just a few tips from what I've experienced:
1. Try your best not to sleep on it. If you are a side sleeper, try to get it pierced on the side that you don't sleep on. If you do tend to roll around though, try to make sure that you change your pillowcases often so that there is less chance of bacteria getting into your piercing due to your pillowcase. If you do sleep on it, it will take longer to heal because of the pressure you're putting on it and you are more susceptible to hypertrophic scarring.
2. Make sure you go to a really good, experienced piercer. Industrials are not easy things to take care of and maintain. And if you get it pierced by an inexperienced piercer, you are even more likely to have issues with them. The holes must be perfectly lined up in order to prevent strain on your cartilage. Not only will it slow down your healing process, it can also cause damage to your ear. Even if you cannot feel it, your ear may still be strained if the piercings are not lined up properly. This leads to hypertrophic scarring. So go to a good piercer. And good piercers aren't cheap. Just saying.
3. Keep your hair away from it as much as possible. I kept my hair tied up for the first month every single day. Now that it's healed more, I let it down once in a while but I can still feel the difference with my hair down and sometimes my piercing will feel irritated from it.
4. Don't slack on your cleaning. That's how you get infections. Clean it twice a day, don't skip out on it, especially with an industrial piercing. Make sure you wash your hands with antibacterial soap before touching your piercing and only touch your piercing if you're cleaning it. And, for the love of everything, DON'T touch the actual piercing sites. Just the jewelry. Remember, q-tips are your friends.
Okay, moving on. I would really like to change it but I will wait the suggested minimum six months because it's suggested because it's a good idea. So the barbell I was pierced with is the one I still have in. I know I don't have much to say but when I was researching getting this piercing, there wasn't much information put up by people in the healing process. They either had just gotten it pierced or it was already fully healed so I just wanted to be helpful.
And that's pretty much it! Let me know in the comments/on Twitter (@killjoygrl) if you would want me to post how I clean it.
