Ear Gauge Hygiene – Keeping Your Stretched Lobes Clean

Ear Gauge Hygiene – Keeping Your Stretched Lobes Clean : When you are stretching your lobes, aftercare is one of the most important things to keep the skin healthy. There is a difference between a freshly stretched lobe and a piercing. When you stretch your ears carefully – that is over time, you don’t skip sizes – you won’t tear your lobes, or end up with open wounds.

There are occasions where people stretch too fast; this is what causes tears. This will now need to be treated like a new piercing. If you are working with a piercer on your stretch, they will recommend either saltwater or a special piercing cleaning solution.

My Stretched Ears Smell, What’s Up?

It isn’t uncommon for people to suffer from gauge odor. But it is a simple enough fix. This unpleasant odor is a mix of dead skin cells and sebum. This biological cocktail gets stuck between your skin and the plug you have in and will let off a bit of a smell. You simply need to clean your ears a couple of times a week.

Is My Stretched Ear Infected?

If you notice in the first week of stretching that your ear is secreting a white or clear substance, that is most likely ‘lymph’. This is an indicator that your ears are healing. However, most people can’t tell the difference between lymph and infection pus.

The difference you will feel between infection and normal lymph are the following:

Redness and swelling that lasts a few days
The amount of heat from the area
Tender to the touch
Pus builds up, this may be in abscess form – a pocket of pus in the lobe
General high temperature

If you suspect you have an infection, you can call your piercer and have a chat with them for some advice. If it is more than a mild infection, then you should talk to your doctor. Always wash your hands before touching the stretched lobe (although not touching it all would be better right now). Soak your ear twice a day for 5 minutes or more in saltwater to help clean and heal the area.

How Long Do Stretched Ears Take To Heal?

Your ears are going to need between 4 and 6 weeks to heal. It is important to adhere to this if you are waiting to go up a size. If you go too fast, you risk causing damage to the ear lobes.

Oil Massage For Stretched Ears

Regular massages for your newly stretched ears are important. It will promote new tissue growth and break down any scar tissues. As well as increasing the blood flow. Here is how to oil massage your stretched ears:

Wash your hands well
Remove your ear jewelry
Apply your chosen oil to your fingertips
Massage your lobes between your finger and thumb for 5 minutes
Clean excess oil from your hands and lobes

You should only do oil massage on ear lobes that are fully healed. You can perform this oil massage on your stretched lobes once a day or once a week. There are a number of products designed specifically for stretched ears. However, you can use jojoba oil, bio-oil, or vitamin E oil.

If you have gone to a professional piercer, they will give you a guide to taking care of your ear lobes, if you do it at home then follow the simple steps:

Wash your hands
Wash your earlobe in warm water with chemical-free soap
Soak your ear in warm salt water for 5 minutes twice a day

Treat your stretch lobe well, and you will have a well-healed stretch and maintain the plumpness of the lobes too.