Stretching Piercings

I know I already have a post talking about piercings, but I don't go into changing the sizing of those piercings there.  I've been stretching my nipple piercings (you read that right) for a few years now and wanted to talk about the process.

Stretching a piercing is the act of enlarging the fistula (piercing path) to be able to wear larger gauge jewelry.  It's a long and involved process that can involve a lot of back-tracking.  There should be little to no actual pain or blood associated with stretching. If you're in serious pain, or bleeding, here's a hint; You're Doing It WRONG. A little bit of stinging is normal.

Get your jewelry.  Make sure it's measured and clean.  I clean using dial and warm water. I don't necessarily get my stretching jewelry autoclaved (new piercing jewelry is always autoclaved).  When it comes to stretching, you want a lot of lube.  I recommend oils, since they don't evaporate and generally don't cause allergic reactions.  I use jojoba oil.  It is a vegan friendly alternative to emu oil (made from real emus!).  Jojoba oil won't turn rancid against the skin like olive oil can, although in a pinch you can use olive oil.  Jojoba oil is good for oiling woods as well, I use it to oil any wooden plugs I've got. It's also very affordable and even a 5oz bottle will last you a long time. Reapply lube  as often as necessary to the jewelry and the taper.

I usually use a taper for stretching smaller sizes (20g, normal ear piercing size to about 8g. The jump from 10g to 8g is big, and it only gets bigger from there). I would recommend longer tapers made from steel.  You don't want to wear tapers around as jewelry or to bed. They are a stretching instrument, NOT jewelry. You can harm yourself or your piercing by wearing a taper as every day jewelry.  The green taper on the left is a poor choice; it's made out of acrylic (which is porous) and the jump in sizes is visible. This is bad, this isn't a taper at all, its just a piece of plastic.  The image on the right (from bodyartforms.com, a FANTASTIC website for buying body mod supplies) shows my favorite kind of tapers. They are steel (so non-porous) and the size increase is gradual.  This makes your stretching process easier and less painful because you aren't traumatizing your flesh.

Start the stretching process after a long, hot shower.  The heat and humidity from the water hydrate your skin and make it more flexible.  Remove your old jewelry and lube up your taper. Insert your taper into your piercing. Slowly start to move the taper through the piercing until you start to feel resistance.  With my nipples, it took over an hour to do each one, with ear lobes it's generally quicker.  If you feel sharp pain, or see blood, stop immediately, put your old jewelry back in, and let your piercing heal for a few months. Stretching is a very slow and gradual process.

Here are general guidelines for healing times between stretches.  Please, these are GENERAL guidelines, I'd suggest even more time between stretches if you feel your body needs it. I waited a lot longer than this in some cases.
20g/18g - initial pierce (for ears only)

16g - 3 months after healing period (6-8 weeks minimum, 6-8 months would be better).
14g - 4 months
12g- 4 months
10g- 6 months
8g- 12 months
6g- 12 months
4g- 16 months
2g- 18 months
0g- 24 months
00g- 24 months
etc etc etc

As you can see, this process should take years.  The only exception is a scalpel procedure, that cuts flesh out of the area that you want to size. This is a serious modification to undertake and will take a very long time to heal, especially if done in a cartilage area.


NEVER skip sizes, ever. It's the dumbest idea ever. Blowouts, or where you actually tear the fistula out of its happy little place inside the piercing and push it outside of the piercing, can and will happen. Sounds gross doesn't it? That's because it is gross. Be nice to your piercings.  And there you have it, stretching basics.