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osarabaI got my tapers in the mail today! So happy! I was really looking forward to them. I got them around 3 in the afternoon, but wasn't able to put them in until around midnight. My mom is going on a 3-day business trip (Wednesday morning til Friday afternoon), so we spent the day getting stuff together for her trip, visiting my father in the hospital (yes, he's still there), then coming home to help her pack and stuff. She stresses a lot.
Anyway, around midnight I got out my tools, which include: (1) my ring-opening pliers to open my 12ga CBRs so that the captive bead would fall out, (2) bacitracin as lube, (3) 10ga tapers, (4) latex gloves. Starting with my left ear, I spread lube on the tapers and on my lobe, used the pliers to open the 12ga CBR, and removed the CBR, replacing it with the 10ga taper, pushed the taper almost to the end (where the first O-ring sits)... and winced, then slid the second O-ring onto the back of the taper to keep it in place (leaving a little bit of room so that I can move the taper a little to clean it while I'm in the shower). It had hurt more than I expected, but not enough to say "ow" or anything. More like when a bruise aches or throbs for a few minutes; not even really that bad. But it surprised me a bit 'cause it was a bit more pain than the 14-to-12ga stretch.
Actually, what worried me the most (and what I hadn't realized when I made the decision to go with the tapers) is that they pretty much stick straight back ("duh," you say), but I hadn't realized they'd touch my neck. I think I was imagining a bit more of a slant, one that wouldn't have the taper in constant contact with my neck. But I'd already started, so I continued with the right ear. The taper in the left ear slid in relatively easily, so maybe it was the fact that I knew it was going to hurt a bit this time that made me slow my push of the taper through the hole, but the taper in the right ear didn't slide in as smoothly, and definitely aches a bit more than the left.
But they're both on, and it's been about an hour and a half since I stretched and they're starting to feel a bit better. But I still have this vague worry about them becoming irritated by the constant movement whenever the tapered point comes into contact with my neck.
I guess we'll have to see what happens. I will keep my reading public informed. ^^;
...and the moment you've all been waiting for: pics!
Left lobe, from front:
Left lobe, from side:
Right lobe, from front:
Right lobe, from side:
Update on my father: He's still in the hospital, as I said. He had quadruple bypass surgery, taking arteries from his left arm and his stomach for the bypass. His chest pains him when moving around of course, but it's not a constant pain, I think. Now, he's still waiting to have a permanent pacemaker with defibrillator put in. They're waiting to do the surgery because his white blood cell count is up, which is a sign of infection. They have him on an antibiotic treatment; once the count goes down they'll put in the pacemaker and defib. Realistically, I think he wouldn't be home til Saturday at the earliest (meaning his white blood count comes down and they do the surgery on Thursday). But he might end up staying until the beginning of next week. I feel really sorry for him; it's horrible enough to have to be in the hospital, but once you're pretty lucid everything is just miserably uncomfortable and not to mention you get bored out of your mind because you have nothing to do all day and nowhere to go.
But on a (morbidly) lighter note: this means I'll be able to go to the concert on Thursday night. I still haven't told my mom 'cause I really think she'd freak out, but I'm going to go anyway. I just hope that I'm not so tired by the time I get home Thursday night/Friday morning that I oversleep 'cause I have to be at work to open the store at 8am!
Anyway, around midnight I got out my tools, which include: (1) my ring-opening pliers to open my 12ga CBRs so that the captive bead would fall out, (2) bacitracin as lube, (3) 10ga tapers, (4) latex gloves. Starting with my left ear, I spread lube on the tapers and on my lobe, used the pliers to open the 12ga CBR, and removed the CBR, replacing it with the 10ga taper, pushed the taper almost to the end (where the first O-ring sits)... and winced, then slid the second O-ring onto the back of the taper to keep it in place (leaving a little bit of room so that I can move the taper a little to clean it while I'm in the shower). It had hurt more than I expected, but not enough to say "ow" or anything. More like when a bruise aches or throbs for a few minutes; not even really that bad. But it surprised me a bit 'cause it was a bit more pain than the 14-to-12ga stretch.
Actually, what worried me the most (and what I hadn't realized when I made the decision to go with the tapers) is that they pretty much stick straight back ("duh," you say), but I hadn't realized they'd touch my neck. I think I was imagining a bit more of a slant, one that wouldn't have the taper in constant contact with my neck. But I'd already started, so I continued with the right ear. The taper in the left ear slid in relatively easily, so maybe it was the fact that I knew it was going to hurt a bit this time that made me slow my push of the taper through the hole, but the taper in the right ear didn't slide in as smoothly, and definitely aches a bit more than the left.
But they're both on, and it's been about an hour and a half since I stretched and they're starting to feel a bit better. But I still have this vague worry about them becoming irritated by the constant movement whenever the tapered point comes into contact with my neck.
I guess we'll have to see what happens. I will keep my reading public informed. ^^;
...and the moment you've all been waiting for: pics!
Left lobe, from front:
Left lobe, from side:
Right lobe, from front:
Right lobe, from side:
Update on my father: He's still in the hospital, as I said. He had quadruple bypass surgery, taking arteries from his left arm and his stomach for the bypass. His chest pains him when moving around of course, but it's not a constant pain, I think. Now, he's still waiting to have a permanent pacemaker with defibrillator put in. They're waiting to do the surgery because his white blood cell count is up, which is a sign of infection. They have him on an antibiotic treatment; once the count goes down they'll put in the pacemaker and defib. Realistically, I think he wouldn't be home til Saturday at the earliest (meaning his white blood count comes down and they do the surgery on Thursday). But he might end up staying until the beginning of next week. I feel really sorry for him; it's horrible enough to have to be in the hospital, but once you're pretty lucid everything is just miserably uncomfortable and not to mention you get bored out of your mind because you have nothing to do all day and nowhere to go.
But on a (morbidly) lighter note: this means I'll be able to go to the concert on Thursday night. I still haven't told my mom 'cause I really think she'd freak out, but I'm going to go anyway. I just hope that I'm not so tired by the time I get home Thursday night/Friday morning that I oversleep 'cause I have to be at work to open the store at 8am!
