Earring issues

I haven’t worn earrings in years—seriously, ages. I finally decided to start wearing them again about three months ago, which was totally fine at first, but then I took a little break for a month or so. Well, I popped them back in the other day, and now both my piercing holes are bright red, super tender to the touch, and honestly? They look like I’ve got two tiny, angry red-and-black blemishes sitting right on my ears.
Now I’m stuck in this ridiculous dilemma—do I just put them back in tomorrow, or should I play it safe and wait for things to calm down? 😠

Is there a chance they could actually get infected? 😠

And if I decide to leave them out for a while to let the irritation die down, am I basically signing up to have my piercings close up entirely? Because if that happens, I'll be forced to go through the whole piercing process all over again. Am I thinking about this the right way? 😠

Are you wearing the same earrings?

Did you clean both the jewelry and your ears with alcohol first?

Yeah, they could get infected if that redness doesn't clear up soon.

Yeah, I actually went with the exact same earrings this time.
I haven't cleaned anything yet—not my ears, not the piercings, nothing. I'm finally getting around to doing it now.

Honestly, your best bet right now would be to ditch the earrings to let things settle down... once they start causing trouble, trying to clean up the mess is way too late. 😁

You'll see... if things keep going downhill, you're better off without them.

gentlecanyon92 said:Honestly, your best bet right now would be to ditch the earrings to let things settle down... once they start causing trouble, trying to clean up the mess is way too late. 😁

You'll see... if things keep going downhill, you're better off without them.

Are you kidding me?😍 I just took them out a second ago. 😬
I cleaned both my nose piercings and my ears, too. 🙂

By the way, if your ear starts swelling up like a damn muffin, it’s infected. 😁

I've actually had my ears pierced 3 or 4 times myself 🙂 and not once did they take 🙂 😳

Things are looking up today—honestly, everything has finally settled down. There’s no more pain, no stinging, nothing at all. I even went ahead and put my rings back on! 🤣

I have to say, though, a little alcohol actually did wonders for me. 👍

It’s not even about whether he helped; the point is that earrings absolutely have to be sanitized with alcohol first—both the jewelry and the ears. Otherwise, you're just begging for an infection... honestly, it drives me crazy seeing girls put in any random pair, swapping them around, or just shoving them in 🙏 🤮

Quick question:
I pierced my cartilage—the upper part of my ear—about a year and a half ago, and there’s still this lingering bit of discomfort... I'm not sure if it ever actually fully healed? It isn't red or anything particularly painful, but when I take my piercing out, there's this white stuff right inside the hole. Is that normal? And will the aching eventually just stop...

Best,

I don't know... I’ve got two piercings in my upper cartilage and I've never had a single issue. Plus, I just pierced that little bit of cartilage opposite the tragus recently and it was totally fine. Honestly, I'm pretty much pierced all over and I've never dealt with any major problems!!!!

If you're dealing with those annoying little holes closing up—like if you haven't worn earrings in forever—your best bet is to go with some gold or maybe platinum studs first. It basically lowers the risk of an infection or some weird skin reaction kicking in.

She’s pure gold!
It isn't constant pain, really... just whenever I move things around. It gets a bit awkward because my hair is long, so if it pulls near my nostril, it stings. Honestly, it feels like it hasn't even healed yet, despite the surgery being over a year and a half ago...
I don't know. Maybe he hit a nerve or something... we'll see...😕 🙄

Best, 🙏

Angela Diaz11 said:She’s pure gold!
It isn't constant pain, really... just whenever I move things around. It gets a bit awkward because my hair is long, so if it pulls near my nostril, it stings. Honestly, it feels like it hasn't even healed yet, despite the surgery being over a year and a half ago...
I don't know. Maybe he hit a nerve or something... we'll see...😕 🙄

Best, 🙏

I dealt with this exact same mess—my lymph nodes started swelling up right after I got my ears pierced. It was a total nightmare. I ended up having to chug a full course of antibiotics just to get things under control. While I was healing, I was slathering Geokorton on my ears constantly. In the beginning, I was being super meticulous—cleaning the earrings with alcohol first, then dipping the posts in Geokorton before sliding them back in. Just one of those things that turns into a massive headache.

gentlecanyon92 said:By the way, if your ear starts swelling up like a damn muffin, it’s infected. 😁

I've actually had my ears pierced 3 or 4 times myself 🙂 and not once did they take 🙂 😳

I personally went through the whole process 6 times!!! before it finally stuck, and I was honestly so thrilled that I could finally wear earrings that I ended up just piercing a couple more holes in both ears 😬

Noah Diaz29 said:I dealt with this exact same mess—my lymph nodes started swelling up right after I got my ears pierced. It was a total nightmare. I ended up having to chug a full course of antibiotics just to get things under control. While I was healing, I was slathering Geokorton on my ears constantly. In the beginning, I was being super meticulous—cleaning the earrings with alcohol first, then dipping the posts in Geokorton before sliding them back in. Just one of those things that turns into a massive headache.

Honestly, Geokorton is a lifesaver; my mom has such bad allergies to costume jewelry, and it’s really the only thing that helps her feel better.

I have to admit, though, I can be pretty irresponsible when it comes to keeping my piercings hygienic, and I tend to just shove whatever earrings I want into my ears without much thought. You guys actually gave me a little food for thought, so I just headed straight to the bathroom to go dab some alcohol on my ears.

My biggest struggle is definitely those big, heavy statement earrings—I absolutely love them, but they end up making my ears ache so much afterward. I can't even go for a quick jog in them because I'm always worried they'll pull on my lobes, and since I have long hair, they occasionally get tangled up too...

My ears have basically gone on strike against anything that isn't gold—I’ve switched exclusively to gold because honestly, nothing else even fits in my piercings anymore.
The only exception is when I’m heading out for a quick bit, maybe just a couple of hours max, then I might dare to throw something else in.

I heard there’s some specific component in costume jewelry—I can't quite remember the name—that seems to trigger allergies for people way more often than usual, especially smokers!?? Maybe it's nickel???

Anyway, one little trick you could try is dipping the earring post, just that part that actually goes through your ear, into some Geokorton before putting it in; it might give you a few hours of relief without any irritation.

But honestly, the best piece of advice I’ve ever come across for allergy sufferers is to just coat the earring in a layer of clear nail polish, which basically creates a barrier so it never actually touches your skin, effectively preventing any reaction at all.

Alright, I'll give Geokorton a shot. Hopefully it won't kill me... I'm still young enough...🤣 😬

Thanks for the advice, fingers crossed it works. It might react to white gold too, so maybe I'll test some silver or yellow gold instead... worth a try.

Best, 🙏

Angela Diaz11 said:Alright, I'll give Geokorton a shot. Hopefully it won't kill me... I'm still young enough...🤣 😬

Thanks for the advice, fingers crossed it works. It might react to white gold too, so maybe I'll test some silver or yellow gold instead... worth a try.

Best, 🙏

Personally, I don't think white gold should be an issue.🤔

I used to deal with this constantly... until I finally got smart and stopped wearing those stud earrings with the screw backs... if you know what I mean. These standard hook earrings work fine for me because they actually let my ears breathe.