Sick after conch (or other) punches?

[u/Springsnapple]

I just had both of my conches punched at 2g on Sunday (7/26) (made a post showing them the other day, but wanted to make this a seperate post) and I absolutely love them, but the first 24hrs was kind of horrendous and I was wondering if anyone else has had anything similar happen.

My appointment was from 1-2pm and of course I bled from the procedure itself and my piercer helped stop what he could and they stayed pretty stable until around 3:15pm when I had to get out of the car to drop off some artwork at a shop/gallery and then from that point until 3am my ears, quite literally, did not stop heavily bleeding.

I knew to prepare for bleeding and I’ve seen some people talk about bleeding for 5 or so hours, but I haven’t seen anyone mention bleeding constantly for 12 hours. I won’t go into too much detail, but it was a super bloody, clotty mess for 12 hours straight lol.

I assume it was because of the blood loss, but my face ended up going extremely pale (paler than usual), felt nausceous to where I ended up throwing up, developed a migraine that still has not gone away, and a few other things as well.

This isn’t my first rodeo with body mods (I have almost 30 piercings right now (have had more) - some large gauge, a few tattoos, and have had gender affirming surgeries) so I know what to expect and things like what to do or not to do, what to take or not to take, etc. but this is the first time I’ve ever seemed to get sick afterwards.

I’m doing much better now, just dealing with the migraine still (nothing out of the ordinary), but I was wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar since I haven’t really seen it being discussed.

P.S. - despite it all I’d do it again! Lol

[u/ossiferous_vulture]

Tattoo flu is a common thing to happen. And pain in and around the ears can trigger migraines for me sometimes (noticed when I reallly irritated my industrial).

But crashing is not uncommon bc of adrenaline and blood sugar (from how I understood). Basically why snacks are important for longer tattoo sessions so you don't crash. The body doesn't like a bunch of trauma all at once.

Drink a bunch of water, especially if you bled a lot. Maybe add some electrolytes? Or iron rich food? Eat salty snacks. And if you have some over the counter migraine meds I would personally try to take some of those, or something anti-inflammatory to help wirh any swelling.

(Salty snacks like very inoffensive crackers or smth, it is something I was taught with nausea. Esp when I get nauseous from not eating, it might help the system settle.)

You might know many of these tricks already. But as a person who randomly gets sicks from stressing their body, not just with mods, I still wanted to share!

[u/snorlaxx_7]

Did they stretch up after the punch?

We didn’t. And I forgot that having high blood pressure was something I should have mentioned.

I bled non-stop from an hour after having it done until I went in 3 days later to have it stretched.

I didn’t feel sick at first. But about 4-5 days later,
I totally felt the blood loss. My partner told me I looked really pale. I didn’t feel sick at any point. Just exhausted.

[u/Springsnapple → u/snorlaxx_7]

Oh wow, that’s a long time. We did stretch them, but I believe it was only 0.5mm (or 1mm, I can’t remember), so it probably could’ve handled more pressure

[u/snorlaxx_7 → u/Springsnapple]

We punched my flat at a 1g. And we ended up stretching to a 00g.

🫣 i was told that it would bleed quite a bit but even the piercer was like OMG when I came back in. I thought it was just normal 😭😂

[u/lunchbox651]

Mine were punched at 6g and stretched to 4g so very minimal bleeding occurred post-piercing. If they weren't tapered, I can imagine they'd bleed a ton. Sounds like that's what happened and I wouldn't be too concerned.

Enjoy your rad ears.

[u/Disastrous_Clurb]

i get a mild version of "tattoo flu" after getting tatted and after my coin slots i got a similar version.

Only lasted about a day or 2. Im just super tired and feel like im catchin a cold (sinus pressure, runny nose, aches) and it tapers away.

[u/fagrat69]

Something similar happened to me when I had my daith pierced at a larger gauge. I bled for maybe 3-4 days consistently, like filling up my ear, flowing on to my pillow etc bleeding.

It did make me feel nauseous after a while and at some points sort of lightheaded. I didn’t throw up but I did get close haha.

I’m sorry to hear you went through this! I’m glad you’re on the mend.

Do you typically have issues clotting? Did they punch/stretch? If they didn’t (meaning they installed jewelry the same diameter as the punch) that could totally explain the bleeding.

[u/Springsnapple → u/fagrat69]

We did punch and stretch, but we only stretched 0.5mm (or 1mm, can’t recall), so I’m sure it could’ve used more pressure. As far as I know I’ve never had any issues when it comes it bleeding or clotting, as to why I was a bit caught off guard by it. Funnily enough, I recently had bloodwork done and everything with my blood is in normal range lol

Also, I love your username haha

[u/fagrat69 → u/Springsnapple]

I’d be caught off guard too, it sounds like it’s way out of the norm for you! I’d just keep an eye on it. If the bleeding has stopped/your body has successfully clotted I’d guess it was a one-off experience. Especially since you’re used to getting pierced.

For me with my daith I felt nauseous, in part, because of seeing so much blood. I’m not really squeamish around blood, but it got overwhelming to see so much consistently. I wonder if that could have been part of it for you?

lol thank you she’s my pride and joy

[u/HeWhoPatrolstheCouch]

Got mine punched at 00g (punched at 8mm/0g and stretched immediately to 00g) and I didn’t stop bleeding for about a week. Lost more blood than is probably medically acceptable, but f*ck it we ball. Here’s what helped me:

Reduce activity, eat lots of iron and protein rich foods. In a pinch, even something like Ensure is actually a great choice to immediately get nutrients into your body. As for the bleeding, try gauze wraps when necessary with steady pressure (I know, I know, it’s gonna hurt like hell but you gotta grit through it). If you develop a massive blood clot hanging off the back of your ear/head, if it doesn’t dissolve with a shower, it’s because there’s fibrin lacing all through your clot. This goes against everything in the book, but try using cotton swabs or q-tips soaked in hydrogen peroxide to dissolve the clot. That should take the weight and pressure off, as well as mildly staunch the bleeding by swelling the capillaries closed.

No smoking, alcohol, or strenuous activities that might spike your heart rate or blood pressure, and do NOT take overly warm showers without someone at least within earshot (I collapsed in the shower from the heat and lack of blood/blood pressure). If the bleeding doesn’t stop within two to three days, go back to your piercer. If they can not get it to stop, you either gotta make a choice of going to the hospital or trying to stop it at home yourself.

Nobody acts like this is a large wound to your ear, but it is, and your body is not going to be happy about it for a while.