Will my helix piercing will ever improve?

[Tusktusk]

It has been 9 months since I had the piercing and it is still bloody uncomfortable 😣

It isn’t infected.

I had the jewellery changed about a month ago for a surgical steel Labret 8mm in the hopes it would improve.

I still can’t sleep on that side.

If I leave my hair down it wraps itself around the earring and causes painful tugs. So I’m wearing my hair up every day.

If DD gives me a sudden hard hug with her head on that side it really hurts.

I’m tempted to take it out and let it heal.

Any experiences?

It took mine a good 12-15 months to stop being gunky, red and just generally horrid. I never notice it now.

I want the other side doing but I genuinely cant be bothered going through that again with the following 12 months of irritation.

I got mine in 1995 and it's finally healed. Can you try a 6mm bar? I find less hair wrap and it's not too snug in the ear.

I've had mine done twice. Neither time has it lasted as it has never healed properly, and after a couple of years gets so infected and sore (despite continually looking after it), I have to take it out.
Have my ear lobes and tragus pierced and never had the same issues with them, only the helix.

Mine has taken ages to heal and it only stopped hurting when I changed it to a hoop

Mine took bloody years to stop being uncomfortable. I eventually put a hoop in it and that was good for about a decade. I rarely wear anything in it now.

They're so slow so heal and even a bit of a knock sets them back. Took mine many months to heal and I now use a pillow with a hole to let me sleep comfortably on that side.

Did you have it pierced with a needle or a gun? Had mine done twice with a gun and they never healed. Had it done with a needle by a body piercer and had a long bar and ball put in - absolutely perfect - no pain and healed well

It was a gun. My mistake, I actually thought the piercer used needles until
i got there.

You shouldn’t sleep on it for at least a year. Use a travel pillow on that side if you aren’t already

I thought using guns for cartilage piercings was illegal! That definitely won’t help it causes blunt trauma and can actually shatter the entire ear cartilage.

Mine took a good 18 months to two years. I had it pierced with a hoop but swapped to a stud as it kept getting caught. You’ve done well to get this far so try and persevere. No other advice other than keep it clean and I found a warm/hot flannel used to help on those days when I caught it.

Slightly off topic, but l had a navel piercing that my body rejected twice and l gave up with. It’s a pity that you didn’t walk out when you saw the gun. But we are where we are. Maybe seek advice in a “proper” tattoo and piercing studio.

By co-incidence l just mentioned on another thread that there is a tattoo section on MN that also covers piercing. You might find some knowledgeable people there.

Mine never healed, I think I got to 2 years and eventually my body rejected the piercing. It was a relief to be honest. Was so sick of being aware of my piercing all of the time.

Never had any problems with mine, but it was done 35 years ago, and I can't recall whether they used a gun, needle, what. But it would seem that most have serious problems with it, so one has to question why it's still allowed to be done.

Mine never healed. I just took it out and let it heal itself.

I'm at 9 months with mine and its still sore ( i do sleep on it though as thats my only sleeping position - i wish i'd been warned before hand that you shouldn't sleep on it) - i had it done with a needle in a tattoo parlour as well

I think it took mine a year but it's settled down now

6 months in here... Still a bit sore sometimes but I think it gets irritated by chlorine (I swim a lot). Haven't swapped original piercing yet.

Why do we do it?!

Mine took ages to stop being sore. It's still sensitive now a few years down the line.

What helped was changing it to a hoop.I also have long hair and found with a stud, my hair was always getting wrapped around it. Having a hoop helped massively. Plus it was slightly thinner and a lot more comfortable to sleep on.

Good Lord mine took about 3 years. In fact it only settled when I changed it for really flat labret design. In my case I went with a leaf similar but not the same as the one I've linked.

I found any sort of stubby stud shape just got pushed side to side when I slept. If you can imagine a little in shape stud would be pressed sideways by the pillow as I moved in bed. It healed incredibly fast when I changed it for a flat design.

Honestly I was almost ready to pull it out altogether until I came up with this idea.

https://helixandconch.com/products/vigne-9k-solid-yellow-vine-leaf-internally-threaded-single-labret-stud?variant=48262581944637&currency=GBP&utmmedium=producttsync&utmsource=google&utmmcontent=sagorganic&utmmcampaign=sagorganic&gaddsource=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw26KxBhBDEiwAu6KXt-hNzvlSGIiKzCtxm0bMlKPcKLXJOEUZube4B9cXw7eZ1h--1vKRBoCQ0kQAvDD_BwE

I've got 2 helix piercings, 1 forward helix and a scaffold and they all took forever to heal. Like at least a year each but I persevered and got there eventually

I've swapped all except the scaffold to small gold hoops as I find that doesn't get caught in my hair

Surgical steel isn't brilliant for healing piercings, though getting in changed for a labret was a good idea. Go to a piercer, and ask them to change it to a titanium labret for you.
If your hair's getting wrapped round the back, your bar's probably too long. Again, a piercer can size it properly for you. If your jewellery is too big it's also going to move too much, which can cause bumps, swelling or irritation. Putting a hoop in it can also cause the same, and or introduce bacteria to the healing piercing if it spins. Only really daiths should be healed with a hoop.
9 months is nothing for cartilage really - most of mine took over a year.
Don't put anything on it apart from a sterile saline spray (like NeilMed), and clear water after you've washed your hair. Make sure you dry it well afterwards.
Try a neck travel pillow if you really can't help sleeping on that side.
And honestly, take it out if it's bothering you that much. It was always going to be a pain healing once yours was done with a gun. If you want a bit of extra sparkle, conches or daiths are much easier to heal, ime.

Surgical steel isn’t the right jewellery and it sounds far too long for a helix.

ideally you should be wearing implant grade titanium only (a brand like qualiti) and I’d expect you downsized to a 6mm by now for a snug fit to allow it to heal. Too much movement will be causing an issue.

what aftercare are you using? At this stage I’d still expect 1x per day of something like neilmed sterile wound wash and ensuring it’s thoroughly dried afterwards.

Mine took at least 12 months to heal. I swapped it for a 6mm labret which is much more comfortable and snug on my ear so my hair doesn’t get caught in it and it doesn’t bend my ear when I sleep on that side

I have a forward helix (about 14 months now) and though it has healed it can still be a little 'mare . I got a tragus on the same ear as I'm used to not sleeping on that side .
Daith on the other ( over 2 years ) not had any changed yet .
All titanium.