Check out Zoe Kravitz’s ears, and then check out Rhianna’s, perhaps have a look at Charlize Theron and Scarlett Johansson. Can you see anything in common?
These ultra-hot stars are sporting one of the biggest trends of the season – a tragus piercing.
Yes, fashion comes with a little pain these days!
If you’re thinking of following in Ri-Ri’s footsteps and having your tragus pierced, it’s important to do your research, head to a reputable specialist, and look after your piercing in the right way. There are plenty of myths about how you should look after piercings, and when the cartilage is involved, it’s even more important than ever before to speed up the healing process and make sure you do everything right.
What is a Tragus Piercing?
Your tragus is the bit that sticks out the middle of your ear, effectively connected to the side of your face. Check out a mirror and you’ll see it clearly for yourself.
Now, have a feel at it. It feels thick, right? That’s because it’s pure cartilage. The good news? Whilst piercing cartilage can be painful and may have a higher risk of complications and infection, it’s actually less painful than you might think.
The tragus is thick, but thankfully there aren’t as many nerve endings there as in your ear lobes, which means less pain in general. It depends on your general pain threshold in terms of how badly it might sting, but generally, you’re looking a very quick stab which might make your eyes water a little.
Basically, it stings a bit, it’s going to feel hot afterwards, and yes, it might throb, but you’re not going to be sobbing your eyes out either. Well, hopefully not, at least!
The hard work comes after the piercing has been done, as you need to make sure you follow aftercare advice to the letter, to avoid infection or rejection of your shiny new piece of ear jewellery.
How to Look After a Tragus Piercing
The most important thing to remember is not to touch it. Remember, this is an open wound at the very start of the healing process, whether you have a piece of shiny jewellery stuck in there or not. You might think your hands are clean, but they’re likely to be harbouring a few germs at the very least, and if they get into your new piercing, you’re going to have problems.
Put simply, leave it well alone! You don’t need to turn your new earring, that’s actually a myth! The best thing you can do is make sure that anything which comes into contact with your ear is totally clean, e.g. your pillow, any scarves or hats you might wear, etc. You should also bathe your piercing in saline solution twice a day at first, but avoid cotton wool pads as they have a habit of leaving bits of ‘fluff’ behind, which could end up causing you problems.
Avoid holding your phone to that particular ear, and when you wash your hair, make sure you rinse all residue of suds away from the healing piercing. After a week or so you should be able to reduce the amount of bathing with saline you’re doing, but see how you go and if you notice any pain, redness or soreness, head back to where you had the piercing done, just to have it checked out for any signs of infection.
The good news is that most tragus piercings heal without any issue. In terms of how long it takes for total healing, that varies from person to person, but the earliest point of complete healing is likely to be around the three months’ mark. You can speed things up by avoiding sleeping on that side whilst it’s healing too.
Tragus Piercings – A Do or a Don’t?
What do you think? Is a tragus piercing something you’d like to try out for yourself? If you check out the glossy magazines of the moment you’ll see that ear piercings in abundance are certainly very ‘in’ right now, but always remember that putting a hole in your ear is something you should consider very carefully beforehand – fashion or not!
