stormymaker24
Active MemberOP
98 messages
joined Sep 2008
I find myself returning to this space with a rather significant predicament, and I would be profoundly grateful if anyone here has navigated a similar ordeal.
Long before my ear became a site of such persistent irritation—roughly five or six years ago—I was able to wear costume jewelry without any undue consequence. However, when I originally had my ears pierced during my previous post on this subject, I awoke the following morning to find my ear twice its normal size and found myself being treated at an emergency room in Chicago. At that time, I simply removed the earring, took a course of penicillin just to be safe, and applied compresses until the inflammation finally subsided.
Because I possess a genuine desire to have pierced ears—as I find earrings quite aesthetically pleasing, for whatever it's worth 😁—I consulted my physician regarding preventative measures to avoid infection during a future piercing attempt. The woman was visibly stunned by the question, clearly perceiving it as medically irrelevant, which frankly left me feeling utterly dismissed.🙄 I suppose it is all quite futile.
Fine then, I decided I would manage the situation independently.
I returned to the same jeweler where the initial piercing occurred, and the staff there advised me against gold, suggesting instead that I opt for gold-plated surgical steel to avoid complications. We developed a theory that the gold itself might have been substandard, though I did test this by moving the earring to my other ear, which showed no reaction, implying the metal composition was likely acceptable. They also recommended a specific antibiotic ointment to use during the initial days of healing.
I proceeded with the piercing around April and purchased Betrion ointment as instructed. To my frustration, the wound refused to heal properly. It only seemed to close when I kept the earring perfectly stationary, but the moment I attempted to switch to a different piece, the area bled profusely, forcing me to abandon the idea entirely. I waited. Eventually, while vacationing on the coast, I managed to insert an earring a few weeks ago, and everything seemed fine. Following that success, I tried wearing costume jewelry on two separate occasions about ten days ago, making sure to disinfect everything, revert to surgical steel, and apply the Betrion.
Yesterday, I accidentally tugged on my ear and realized it was painful. While there was no redness, upon inspecting the back of the lobe, I discovered it had become quite purulent. I removed the earring, cleaned the area, dealt with considerable bleeding, expressed the pus, applied the Betrion, and replaced the earring. Despite these efforts, the infection persists and the pain remains, albeit slightly diminished than yesterday.
Does anyone have experience with this or perhaps a suggestion on how to proceed? I am truly determined to have these piercings, yet I am at a complete loss as to why my body reacts so violently. I even had two additional piercings in that same ear—one in the cartilage and one at the junction leading to the cartilage—and I simply cannot fathom what is happening.🤷
Any assistance?
(My apologies for the verbosity; I felt it necessary to provide a thorough account.)
