How to Pierce Your Own Cartilage

Co-authored by Roger Rodriguez

Last Updated: May 24, 2024 Approved

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Piercing the cartilage in your ear can be a painful if you do it incorrectly, even then it can still be painful process, and requires preparation and care in execution. While professionals can do it for a fee, it is still cheaper to do at home and if you have a high pain tolerance fairly simple and stress-free. Professionals often lack credentials or proper medical training for what is essentially a medical procedure. ^{[1]
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PubMed Central
Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health

Go to source} ^{[2]
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Research source} While your experience may be no better, it is not necessarily advantageous to seek a professional. Maintaining the piercing after requires basic hygiene at the wound site, and avoiding any irritants or corrosive substances at the ear.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Preparing for Piercing

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There are significant health risks involved in cartilaginous piercings and minor complications are frequently reported. There are often no minimum qualifications for one to practice body piercing, which represents a serious health concern. ^{[3]
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Science Direct
Online archive of peer-reviewed research on scientific, technical and medical topics

Go to source} The health risks associated with cartilaginous piercing are not significantly higher than with a lower piercing of the fatty lobe tissue.
Purchasing sterilized, sealed piercing needles is key. Your jewelry should not be made of nickel or any metal you may have an allergic reaction to and should be a gauge smaller than the hollow piercing needle.

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You can use a pressure cooker on objects to achieve a similar effect, by setting a high pressure and temperature with water in the cooker so as to steam disinfect the items to be used. Soaking in a disinfectant like alcohol or dilute bleach will sterilize the materials, though not as effectively.
Have gloves, topical disinfectant to prep the site (iodine is preferred), a marker to designate the piercing site, a stopper to help prevent the needle from poking your scalp. Set up a sterile workbench for the materials to rest on, as well as a separate site for handled materials to be placed on. Do not handle non-sterile items and sterile ones interchangeably.
The location is difficult to clean, so consider just taking a shower. Hot steamy water also helps to loosen your skin, making the piercing a bit less painful. Clean the area thoroughly, and make sure that the site is marked with an indelible marker or pen.

Part 2

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Piercing the Site

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Avoid topical anaesthetics or numbing agents. These will not reduce the overall pain significantly as these topical solutions do not affect the avascular cartilage. Ice is not recommended. It causes the skin to contract. Contact with the ice pack or ice itself can cause dermal tissue damage and make it more difficult to target the site or maintain sterility.
- This will hurt. If you wish to avoid pain, do not put a large hollow needle through any part of your body, and do not pay anyone to do this for you or to you if you truly wish to avoid a wound in your ear.
Apply liberally and cover the back of the ear as well. Avoiding infection is key as intervention for infections resulting from piercing often requires draining, surgery, and the removal of the piercing, and symptoms include severe pain and fever.
Avoiding discomfort or contact of the needle with any unsterilized or unintended surfaces is critical to avoiding infection. A friend can be extremely useful with this part, as placing and holding the stopper and performing the piercing can require some dexterity.
After breaking the first layer of skin, make sure the needle is angled correctly to push through as you like it. There will be resistance, and a total of 3 distinct pops as you pierce the skin, cartilage, and then skin again.
Make sure your needle is one size bigger than the jewelry, so you can easily do so. Again, avoid the use of any metal you have an allergy or sensitivity to, as simple contact dermatitis from metal exposure can morph into an infection with repeated contact of the wound site.
This should leave the jewelry in your ear. Screw the ball or holder into place to hold the jewelry there and maintain the piercing. Do this quickly, as the process is painful and will require repeating at a different site if you make a mistake and wish to avoid mangling your cartilage or inviting infection with a larger wound on your ear.

Part 3

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Maintaining the Piercing

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Don't pick at any crust or scabs that will form. It can take up to a year for the wound to heal completely. Poor blood flow in the area of the upper cartilage of the ear keeps the risk of infection high and the rate of healing low during the entire process.
While keloids, deposits of skin, and some malformation from the pierced cartilage are expected, redness, swelling, heat, or oozing from the wound that persists for days is not. See a doctor if symptoms last as long as a week, as courses of antibiotics and surgical intervention may be required, and average hospital stays are over two days.^{[4]
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Research source}
Avoid using sterilizing or antimicrobial solutions like rubbing alcohol or hydrogen peroxide to continue cleaning the wound site. These solutions kill living cells and can damage the capillaries and healing tissue in the ear. Keeping the site clear of foreign debris and clean will help significantly reduce the risk of infection.
$Step 4 Anticipate cartilage fracture, whether a piercing gun is used or a piercing needle is administered by hand.$

However, for a number of piercings of specific structures of the ear a piercing gun cannot find adequate purchase, as they are designed around use on the earlobe. ^{[5]
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Research source} Seek immediate medical attention if ear deformities begin appearing.

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Question

Does using a hollow needle put you at less of a risk for infection?

Jeff Gabriel

Community Answer

Yes, it does because it is sterilized and designed for the piercing.

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Is it normal to feel popping when the needle is going through the cartilage?

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Yes, that is the cartilage popping.

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Can using a regular sewing needle shatter the cartilage if the earring that will be used is larger than the needle?

Community Answer

It's not likely to, but it all depends. You might not want to use a sewing needle as its not the right size and a hollow one has a place to put the piercing to get it safely in your ear unlike a normal needle. You can purchase a hollow needle online or at your local piercing shop depending where you live.

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Tips

Wash your hands before you handle anything that is going to be in or near your ear. Sterilize anything you are going to use.

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Needles designed specifically for body piercing are significantly sharper than household needles. This means the piercing itself will hurt less. They also come packaged individually in sterile packaging and the correct gauge (thickness), reducing the risk of infection and unnecessary irritation.

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Chlorine in swimming pools can dry out the piercing and it can tear out easily so be sure to keep it moisturized.

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Warnings

Do not soak your piercing needle in bleach of any kind. Bleach is harmful to human skin.

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You may get infected if you do not use a sterile, sharp needle, have interruptions in your sterile technique, or are simply unlucky. Be prepared to see a doctor early if there are any signs of infection.

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Make sure you are not allergic to any jewelry grade metals or have a risk of contact dermatitis.

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