How long will it take my gauge to heal?

Question

I've been stretching for years, and I just recently stretched to a 3/4" and my left ear is extremely red, harder than normal, and is ozzing out puss from the back. I was thinking that it was an infection, but I cant take my plug out to clean it, because thats how swollen it is. Its been like this since yesterday, right after I woke up, I figured it was because I slept on it too much. But I was wondering how long will it take to heal up? and go away because I want to put a normal plug in it because the Silicone one is still in it. So I was wondering if this has happened to anyone before, and how long it took to get better.

Answer 1

This hasn't happened to me, but it happened to a friend of mine. We found that using alcohol and peroxide didn't help too much initially, so the woman who originally pierced her ear (before she gauged it) suggested SeaBreeze. It's an astringent, and it's often used to help with dandruff problems and things. It tingles a bit hen you apply it and smells strongly of peppermint. After about half a week, she found that the swelling had gone down. Also, aspirin can help alleviate the pain. If you need to take the gauge out in order to clean you ear, try icing down the area for an hour or so. This should reduce the swelling enough for you to remove it. Just be certain you're going to be able to put it back in, if you wish to keep the gauge. :) Properly cleaning it and whatnot should help and it likely won't become too serious a problem! I hope you figure it out, hon!