Infected helix piercing?

[Musicalmistress]

I had my helix pierced in mid August & it can still be tender at times as it's healing. I've noticed over the last few days that it was particularly sore. I had a look tonight & there was a bulbous blood blister at the back which burst when I pulled my ear forward to look at it.
I've given it a good clean but think the earring I have in is, if not causing the issues, then certainly contributing. It's not the original from when it was pierced as I lost part of it.
I've contacted my piercer but wondered if anyone had advice in the time being?

Bathe it in salt water.
Take a photo of it and phone GP tomorrow and send a photo in for assessment to see if you need antibiotics.
Take the earring out -appreciate you may not want to do this but may have to be done.

@Isgooglebroken

Bathe it in salt water. Take a photo of it and phone GP tomorrow and send a photo in for assessment to see if you need antibiotics. Take the earring out -appreciate you may not want to do this but may have to be done.

Thank you. I thought I might have to.

I had mine done over two years ago and it still gets infected every now and then.

There was an issue with the original jewellery I had so I cleaned it up and went back to the piercer for them to out a different piece in so worth going back. It’s a lot better since then but I still get the odd infection - not bad enough to see a gp but see if yours improves overnight if not then worth getting advice just in case.

Salt water didn’t do enough for me so I now use surgical spirit which is what I was advised when I was 13 so probably not advised nowadays but it does clear things up much quicker.

It’s a sensitive area so I would say cleaning every day, for weeks/months if needed, until you can confidently remove and change the jewellery. My piercer said it can take 18 months to 2 years to completely heal.

Oh and don’t rush to take it out if you can bare it - it will heal over incredibly quickly and you will likely end up having to have it done again.

Definitely takes a long time to heal- about 12-18 months was what my piercer said. I was cleaning it a few times a week for around 10 months, it still sometimes gets a bit sticky and I’ve had mine for 5ish years.

What type of eating have you got? That may be making a difference.

Don't take it out! Cartilage piercings take ages to heal. Prontolind spray is amazing stuff,read the reviews on Amazon.

Thanks everyone it's not as sore this morning just a little tender and I've cleaned it again using the saline spray my piercer recommended when it was originally done.
I definitely think the earring is not helping & is irritating the ear where it's still healing (have attached pic) so I'm going to pop in & ask my piercer to change it for me this afternoon.

My helix took absolutely ages to heal, I think around 3 years. If I knock it now, it's still a bit tender! It's put me off getting anymore.

Can you change the jewellery to a stud?

I got my outer conch, so v near the helix, pierced over the summer and it was an absolute bollocks to hell. I had a feeling the post of the piercing was too long, and the constant movement meant it was just irritating the wound instead of allowing it to heal. The piercer had used a plastic post cut to size and he’d just left it too long.

Swapped to a stud with a shorter metal post- it was much more comfortable immediately and started to actually heal from there.

I don’t envy you- my daith was zero trouble in comparison!