So. I'm currently at an 8g, still a stretcher. I want to put in an organic, and I have a stone one I really like. It's also 8g. But I'm having trouble getting it in. Any tips?
I'm at 00, myself, and done stretching. I would try putting it in one side at a time, first putting in the bottom edge and rotating it in. You might soak yourself in a hot bath beforehand, to make the skin supple. You might even try a nice water-based sex lube, something non-greasy. Most body mod shops will insert for you, for a small fee. My local one charges about 5 bucks per side. If I had trouble, I had a nice S&M fiance who was more than happy to help me get them in, pain or no pain.
Yeah def. have a nice hot shower and loosen up the skin. I use coconut oil for my organics, but I've also used jojoba oil, both work equaly as good. Coconut just smells better (and is usually cheaper) . You should be able to get both at health food stores. http://www.bodyartforms.com/productdetails.asp?jewelry=cleansers&ProductID=8588&index=1
Sometimes if you don't give your ears enough healing time in between gauges, the fistula simply isn't ready to budge any further, this includes accommodating jewelry flares. If it's been less than a month since your last stretch, I'd give it a few more weeks. You'll know it's ready when you can gently tug down on your jewelry and see space between the jewelry and hole. If it's been over a month and you are still having trouble, do a warm sea salt soak to soften up the skin and like mentioned above, use plenty of oil to lubricate - vitamin E or jojoba are the closest to your skin's natural secretions but I suppose coconut would work fine too. Also like stated above, you do have to maneuver the flare in, you can't just shove it straight through. Start with the bottom on a slight angle and push gently down and back - it might take a few times to get the hang of it but you should be able to feel it through.
I've stretched both my lobes myself from 5mm to 15-16mm in the past 8 years or so. Went from 5mm to 8mm, then to 10mm then up to 15-16mm. It really does depend on your own skin and how pliable it is. Personally my lobes are pretty resilient and can take a bit of grief, last time I somehow managed to get from 10mm to the 15-16mm I am now in the space of just short of 3 weeks or so when normally most would take that amount of time to go up 1 or 2 gauges. But that's just me. As for lubricant I use bog standard KY jelly because I'm not a fan of oil at all. I'm also not a fan of tapers either in any kind of material and I normally use crescents when I can and leave them in for as long as possible, with an O-ring on either side to stop it from sliding out. If you already have some kind of tunnel/plug in already then jut try playing/twisting about with it in your lobe and if you can get something through it; like a hoop that is a bit weighty that'll help just stretch it ever-so-slightly, and after a hot shower like the others have said and with a decent amount of lubricant you should be able to get it though with less aggro.
You should just give your ears a while more to heal, something I found that helps making your ears more stretchable, while making it easier to slide tapers/plugs in, is rubbing bio oil on your ear lobes!
