Can anyone tell me why after 5 years the wholes in my ears (from earrings) won't close up?
605356
When you pierce through tissue that is more cartilage than fat the damage is more permanent. The bottom of the earlobe, the traditional western place for earrings, is more fat than cartilage, and closes up easily. Piercings higher up on the ear are less likely to close up because there is more cartilage.
897351
LOL!  Slow down. =)  I've been wearing them since I was 13.  I'm 36.  They won't fall out, ever!  They won't melt in your eyes, ever!  You should remove them before going into a tanning bed, but regular laying out is no problem at all.  They won't cut your eyes either, BUT you have to follow your schedule precisely to work into them.  Your Dr. will tell you how to do this.  The reason is that if you wear them too long before your eyes have gotten used to them, it can cause a corneal abrasion...a scratch on the eye.  If that happens, it doesn't cause any long-term damage, and it heals in a few days, but it is incredibly painful.  The good news is that if you follow your schedule this won't happen.  It is more likely to happen in hard lenses than soft.  Most people can wear soft lenses.  As for things flying into your eyes:  It happens, whether you wear lenses or not.  It's not any more common for lens wearers than for non-lens wearers.  You can usually just work it out, but on ocassion you might have to remove your lens, rinse it off with saline, and put it back in.  No biggie.\n\nYou're not supposed to swim in them, but I always have and have never lost one.  It isn't advisable though.\n\nThe only real risk with contacts is if you just don't clean them, or if you wear a pair that isn't prescribed for you.  In either of those instances, you can end up getting an infection, and that can be serious.  In the eye, you can get such a serious infection that your sight is risked before you even feel it.  Now that I've scared you with the truth, let me say that I am not aware of a single case of this happening.  So rare that it's hardly worth discussing, but it wouldn't be honest to not mention it.  Just clean them as your Dr. prescribes, and they will become as much a part of your life as your earrings or mascara.  There's nothing to be afraid of, especially if you get the more comfortable soft lenses.
670267
EEK! I did  that at a concert when I was young. I think the worst of it was over in 2 days, but my ears had a slight ring for quite a long time after that.  Chances are you've done some permanent damage. You might want to go get a hearing test at a Ear/Nose/Throat doctor.
566389
That can be a hard thing to do.\n  Try putting cotton balls in your ears.  \n  You will have to get them down to the size you need to fit comfortably in your ears.\n  You may try some drops that you can find at Wal-Mart or your local pharmacy that is called something like Swimmers Ears.\n  You may just have to wait for it to just absorb on it's own and if this is going to be a problem in the future you might consider ear plugs.\n\n  All in all,you may have to visit a Dr as there may be some underlaying problems.
860681
LOL I had the same problem! \n\nHere's the deal, it'll go away on it's own with good jewelry and cleaning. The tea tree oil may or may not help.
1154917
Earrings, from my experience
967565
YOU MIGHT WANT TO SPEAK TO YOUR DOCTOR AND SEE IF THEY CAN FIX THEM WITH AN OPERATION, HAD MINE DONE ABOUT 4 YEARS AGO AND ITS REALLY GREAT....TED
271568
They might be hurting because you haven't been using them enough. Talk to your doctor about the lumps--that could be something serious!
178867
I was recently ill and had an infection and fluid buildup in both ears that caused intense pressure.  I tried chewing gum and making myself yawn to get them to pop. I even went for a drive to a ski resort hoping the change in altitude would make them pop but nothing would work.  My doctor told me that I would just have to let nature take it's course and to wait for the fluid subside.  I couldn't stand not being able to hear or the feeling the pressure caused so I asked my pharmacist if he could recommend anything.  He suggested I take Claritin or the generic equivalent to help dry up the fluid.  I will say that it didn't take care of it over night but I believe that it did speed up the process.  Within a couple of days one of my ears began popping and a few days later the other ear did the same.  It took about a full week for them to go back to normal once I took the pills.  \n\nKeep in mind that I don't work in the medical field.  I am simply relaying what worked for me in a similar situation.  I also had a friend with the same ear problem and she put drops of rubbing alcohol in her ears.  She claimed that that method worked for her.  I hope this helps and I'll keep my fingers crossed that your ears will be popping soon!
339703
No. I'm a body piercer, and I've yet to see this happen.\n\nMaybie you heard this somewhere and you misunderstood. The only way it could 'close' with a ring still in your body' is if your proper jewlery fell out (and you lost it)and you stuck a regular earring through, or some kind of hoop that is the wrong size for your navel. \nProper navel jewlery is 14 gauge ( the thickness of the wire) and earrings are about 16 to 18 gauge. It works backwards for 14 is much bigger than 16. Over time if you leave your imporper 16 gauge earring in your navel, it will close to the size of a 16 gauge.It will be difficult to get a 14 gauge in, but it is posible.\n\nThis is the only way that a navel fistula(skin tube)can close with the jewlery still attached. And it isnt really closing, its just getting smaller.
843569
I would have a second and third opinion also.  I had a total hip 5 years ago (I'm not much older than you) and before I had it, I had titanium screws that came loose.  Who knows why?  But I do know that there are newer prothesises that don't require that long lateral cut now; almost like mini-replacements.  So I would see a doc that is up to date on new and better hardware.  It also sounds like you might have had some necrosis in the bone with the so called "plug".  Discuss that with your new orthopedic.  Hey, if the doc gets upset, that's his problem.  These things are suppose to last 25-35 years!  I don't think you did anything to cause the problem.  Just get all of the information you can beforehand.  That's what I would do.  Godloveya.
505109
that happened to my ears too you maight not be using the ointment for long enough ask ur doc how long to use it if you don't have a doc then i guess just use it for a really long time until you feel comfortable and then stop and see what happens. good luck.
173078
Same thing happened to my guy, but he's a music fanatic with the headphones...ended up going to the ER for it cuz I couldn't get it all. I got a lot too. Dr. pulled out 2x as much as what you said. He told him that some people poduce wax faster than others. But it took like a month or so to get that bad. Maybe 2 months max. It's just that those people have stickier wax than most people. Dr said not to use q-tips cuz it'd shove it in further. But to wash out canal with a bulb syringe with warm water often to reduce build up. It was rock hard too when it came out, and really dark. Ew. He was having a hell of a time hearing. I could hear his music through his headphones when he was across the room! When he was almost deaf is when I said lemme see.
1064211
They get stretched out over time from all the big, heavy earrings they wore when they were younger.
614524
Clean both the earrings AND the areas where you have the peircings with hydrogen peroxide twice a day and be patient.  I did that several years ago and I remember it hurting for quite a while.  I'd even say a month or two.  Just because it hurts doesn't mean it's infected, but the redder it is the more likely it is infected.  Cartilage peircings tend to get infected pretty easily, so just keep it clean!!
320595
Your ear is primarily made of cartlidge, wihch is semi-deformable. Your ear was forced to adjust its shape slightly when you slept with the plug in, reulting in pain when you took it out. Once the cartlidge resumes its normal shape again, you should be fine.
451291
Most of the time it won't close if the piercing was that large.  Scar tissue will form on the edges and a small hole will remain.