Earlobe piercings not healing after nearly 2 years?
BACK STORY:
Okay, so I am 14 at the moment, nearly 15. I got my ear lobes pierced on my 13th birthday at a pharmacy, with a gun (not that recommended, I know, but I only found out recently).
It was fine at first, I cleaned them twice a day with an antiseptic from the pharmacy without taking them out. They told me I had to wait 6 weeks, and exactly 6 weeks later, I got so excited that I could change my earrings that I took my original studs out and replaced them with a pair of $5 earrings.
That was a mistake.
I kept them in for 2 whole days and when I tried to put my studs back in it wouldn't and started bleeding (the cheap ones are thinner than the proper studs). I finally got them back in, but since then my ears have just not been right.
I got some gold sleepers (small hoops, about 16mm in diameter) and put them in instead, so that I could put on some medication and spin it easier. My dad told me to pull at the earrings slightly, to stretch the hole a bit, but it hurts.
There was some pus for a while (ugh that was gross and quite painful) but finally, earlier this year it seemed to clear up, so I tried putting in some cheap earrings again. The first time was fine, but the second time, I went to a party at my parents' friends house, and stayed there quite late. When I got home I was really tired so I took the earrings out but didn't put my sleepers back in. I slept in the next day, and when I tried to put my sleepers in sometime in the afternoon, it wouldn't. My right earlobe has been swollen slightly after this, or maybe it was earlier… I can't remember.
I decided to leave them alone for a while, and didn't spray with antiseptic or turn it for a few months, although did flick at the sleepers occasionally so that I was spinning it but not getting any germs or bacteria in it.
I tired turning my earrings in the shower a couple of days ago, and my left ear was okay, but my right ear … There was no puss, no discharge, no bleeding, no red skin, but it wouldn't turn nicely, and when I turned it 180º, the earring felt a bit sticky. It's been this way for a while now.
My mum got her ears pierced at the same time as me, but kept her studs in for almost or more than a year, I think. Now she can changer her earrings, no problem, although she doesn't wear really cheap jewellery.
I have always been pretty fast at healing, so for a while we were joking that maybe my holes were still trying to heal after a year, but since there was puss and bleeding…
ALSO:
My right ear has always been worse than the left ear, ever since I got them pierced. I have always been careful not to leave the catch or the joint of the sleepers in my piercing hole, in case of irritation. My ears itched for a while, and I thought it was a good sign but then I realisedthat itching is a symptom of wounds healing, so then I thought, why is it trying to heal? But it doesn't itch anymore. My right earlobe hurts when I press on it. The antiseptic from the pharmacy hasn't caused any irritation with my skin, although I used a 'Dettol antiseptic wound wash spray' for a while because it had very similar ingredients and was cheaper, but it made my skin dry so I stopped using it. And I haven't been to a doctor yet.
QUESTIONS:
What should I do? Should I leave them alone for a while, or try putting some weights on it so that the hole will stretch a bit? I read somewhere that I should clean them with a solution of sea salt and warm water, or witch hazel? Should I try going to the doctor? I can feel that the right ear is more swollen that the left around my piercing, although it doesn't look bad at all. I might have some allergic reaction to some metals, but not to the sleepers I'm wearing now, because my left ear isn't swollen at all (I got them at the same pharmacy).
Help! I want to change my earrings again, although this time I will refrain from the cheap jewellery.
