i was at a 8g and a week later i went to a 6g, 2 days ater my ear was still in pain and i look in the mirror and i had a cat but, it was also crusty so i put my 8g back in. how can i make the cat but go away and when will it be safe to re gauge it again?

 i dont want to wait so long i rushed and messed up whats a safer option

It's good that you downsized.  Let your ear heal up and then start doing oil massages to get rid of the scar tissue.  Wait for at least 6 months before attempting to stretch again.

dman0407:

 i dont want to wait so long i rushed and messed up whats a safer option

 The only "safe option" when it comes to stretching is patience.  Wait until your ears are actually ready for the stretch...you'll be glad when you have nice, healthy lobes.

 6months ):?

dman0407:

 6months ):?

At a minimum

yes. seems like a long time, doesnt it?

then remember, stretching shouldent be a fad. its more of a lifestyle, or life choice. this is because its a perminant modification to your body, one that for a variaty of reasons, some people tend to look down on. have you thought about that? if you have, then you shouldent be in any rush to get anywhere. a life's work shouldent be completed in a week.

slow down my friend. if your doing this for the wrong reasons, please acknowledge the consiquences. if you do realize this is perminant, and your ok with that for life, then...haha well, slow down. you have the rest of your life to get to your goal!

 yea i  get you , thanks ...and yes im doing it for the right reasons

and i looked in one ear today and it looks alot better  the left ear still hurts

the back of my left ear loab is bothering me and the hole is bigger than the front and bigger than my right ear

did you wear tapers as jewelry?

 Or, have you downsized?

 yes i did wear taper, is that bad i have them on right now

 yes i did and im wearing them now

 i have downsized

my senses tell me that you might be flamed for your choices shortly. before that happens, brother, let me tell you about the dangers of tapers as jewellery. First off, are your tapers acrylic? your not gonna want to wear acrylic after stretching. acrylic is a porous material, and your ears can grow into the pores and heal there, causing a world of problems you dont even want to know about.

secondly, tapers, as im sure you've noticed, have very long backs compared to the wearable area. when these are worn around, its easy to bump them on things, get them caught on hair and clothing, ect, ect. this can and will damage the fistula of your healing stretch, causing much trauma to it and greatly disrupt the healing. and yes, stretching requires healing time. this is because you make lots of tiny, tiny tears all inside the lobe when you stretch, and your body needs time to let those heal.

just keep lurking around here, friend, and you will learn much in the way of stretching.

 what do i do?

So you said you took out the tapers and downsized? That's step 1! Now get some good plugs to put in your ears. I'm not sure what size you're at now, but here's some cheap plugs that are great quality: http://www.bodyartforms.com/productdetails.asp?ProductID=1199 if you're strapped for cash.

Sea Salt Soaks (sss) are great, too. They sell Sea Salt on this site for a dollar 64oz. if you don't have any, and you should be able to find them at most stores. To do sss, take 8oz water and warm it up, then take 1/8 tsp of sea salt, and stir until dissolved. It should be about the saliency of your tears; be careful not to put too much salt in, because that can damage the skin. Some people put the mixture in a shot glass and put that up to  their ears, some put it in a bowl, lay on their sides, and soak, I soak cotton balls and put that on my ears. Do this for 10-15 min. Afterwards, it's very important to rinse your ears off so they don't dry out.

Emu oil is great for healing ears, if you're not opposed to using animal products. They sell that here, too.

Any more questions? We're here to help those willing to help themselves!