I got my 1st, 2nd, and 3rd holes done with a gun.
I also got my cartilage done with a gone, because I was younger, and had no information about this 'gun theory' once-so-ever. My piercings are doing good except the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd ones still have crusties, and blood coming out of them. It's been about 6 weeks (for the 2nd and 3rd) and about 12 weeks (for the First).....

What can I do about it? And is this normal?

I think I might be alergic to whatever I'm putting in my ears. But I have no clue what the type of Jewerly it is. I think I have really sensitive ears, so does this mean that I'll have to be careful when piercing anything? I'm thinking about getting my Labret pierced, so would I have to consider this?

It's not necessarily 'normal' because most people heal gunned piercings fine, but it's definitely somewhat common. It probably just means you have to be careful to use good quality jewelry. Surgical Stainless Steel should be fine, but if you're one of the few people who's so sensitive they can't even take that, then titanium would do the trick. Beware of the titanium studs sold at Claire's- they are only coated, and the coating could wear off in your ears and make it worse.

Clean the lobes regularly, do sea salt soaks and/or hot compresses, whichever floats your boat. Be sure to keep the stud backs not completely tight, but a bit away from the back of your lobe so that there's breathing room there. Don't twist them or change them.

If you're already doing those things and they're still pissy like this, go to a real piercer and see if you can switch the studs out for some small guage rings.

Thanks
=D

your ears may "crust" for a while. Take Socal's advice and do the sea salt soaks, and adjust the backs. Some people have longer healing times, not to mention issues with gunned piercings.
Also, don't change them just yet w/o seeing a piercer like she said.
Some people change their earrings out way too quick and thats only setting back the healing time! Not much to add that she really didn't cover except...
give your body some time. eat well, sleep enough. Healing multiple piercings at once is rough on it. And it takes a while longer than most people think for a piercing to really be "fully" healed. And if you end up sensitive to a certain metal this is somethign you DO need to take in consideration with any future piercing plans.

Thanks =D


So if I was to get my Labret pierced, what type of Jewerly would be best for that? Seeing as I *might* have really sensitive ears?

Interseting info. Any idea of the thickness of the coating?

I'd expect anyone buying claire's stuff to not wear it until the coating wears off!

TJ- I only know this from lobe piercings gone bad, done at Claires. BEing allergic to gold (wierd, yah, I know), I chose the starter studs that they claimed were titanium. Well, my ears kept crusting, kept bleeding, and one developed blister-like pockets of gunk, which came and went. I eventually decided to take them out, waited for one of the better days, and did so, only to discover that the coating on the posts had worn away inside my ears. The middles were a darker color, and the bits that still had the light 'titanium' color were flaky.

edit: oh yeah, the thickness question. It seemed quite thin, like maybe translucent-Bible-paper-thin or less, but I wasn't about to get out a micrometer and measure or anything. Sorry, I'm in architecture, and we consider 1/8" as 'within tolerance', so anything thinner than that is pittance to us!

Well you'd be going to a professional piercing studio, so they would be using better quality jewellery than that generally used at Claires. Ask for titanium (the titanium jewellery there would be better quality than at fashion stores). I don't know how bioplast/ quartz/ PTFE labrets would react in someone sensitive to metal, I'm sure TJ can shead some light on that for me:)

If you mention that you might be sensitive to some metals when you get pierced, the piercer will take care of you.

Wait till your ears are well healed too, adding another piercing to that lot might cause problems.
Let us know how you get on!

So Cal I had mine gunned a while back (not at Claires, it was some chain store in london), and something similar happened there!

The post appeared to be fine, whereas the evil buttefly back had lost it's coating entirely revealing copper! I had noticed a vivid green substance built up on it too (not lymph, it was powdery).

Needless to say I emailed the store to complain and was offered 9ct cold studs in replacement, along with a huge sorry reply (which I declined as I live too far away).