Why are ear piercings different than any other piercing?

It's still a hole in your skin. There's still the chance of infection *yes, deadly infections can come from piercings done at the mall* There's still a chance that if the tools are not sterilized *alcohol wipes are not sterilization* something can be contracted. Can we say HIV? Hepititis? Very good children!

Someone give me one good reason why piercing ears is any different from piercing most other things. A valid response would not be anything concerning the popularity of ear piercing, because there have been many unhealthy yet common things people have done. Cigarette, anyone?

The point was a piercing is a piercing, no matter through your tongue or through your ear. Piercing guns may be more sanitary now, but the studs haven't gotten any sharper, I know because we got my friend a pair of piercing studs so she could pierce her own ears with them. They are easier, but still a bad idea. Anyone piercing cartilage with a piercing gun should have it taken away. I remember how bad it hurt when I had my lobes gunned and I know how it felt when I did my second holes half into cartilage with a piercing needle, and the latter wasn't near as bad. Go on to explain my CONCH *that's the "earbowl" if that makes sense* pierced at a 12ga didn't hurt near as bad as a blunt bit of "gold" going through my lobe.

Everyone's different. Not everyone considers that the chick pushing a little post through your ear was not trained for more than an hour, if that. Not everyone considers what that means.

You've answered your own question. It really is only based on what's "typical" and societally acceptable. They're not different, they're "different." The difference is the convenience of saturation within broad scale acceptance.

It's a long shot assuming that HIV will not survive from one piercing to another...are YOU ready to take the risk of using a piercing gun that was just used on someong HIV+? I'm not.

Second, there are documented cases of Hepatitis spread via piercing guns. Until you actually take a course on bloodborne pathogens, you will never have any idea how virtually indestructable hepatitis spores are (there is a REASON for the extreme conditions in an autoclave).

Finally, NO BODILY FLUIDS IN EARLOBES??? Excuse me??? You'll have to clarify to the thousands of people having their ears pierced that the red stuff oozing from the fresh hole is not really there because there isn't any fluid in earlobes.

Ignorance is spread in this fashion because it suits the comfort level of the ignorant. To learn otherwise would entail changing how one not only views these things, but how to deal with them and act. Those changes require effort. Change and effort are two things that people seem hellbent on avoiding.

idk but i want the industrial piercing really bad

it's just society. ear piercings have been around longer in the us I believe and some people are just fuddy duddies

Hmm. You know, you should really make sure you're right when you're using a condescending tone or you run the risk of sounding mean AND stupid. You can't get HIV from getting your ears pierced, that's ridiculous. The HIV virus dies almost immediately upon hitting the air, so if you REALLY wanted HIV from a piercing gun, whoever was doing it would have to pierce one person's ears and then as fast as they could, turn around and use the gun on another person. Like right then and there. So yeah, "can we say WRONG? Very good children!"

Anyway, to answer your silly question, ear piercing is different because you're not piercing cartilage or anything and there aren't any holes there naturally (like the nipple, penis, belly button) so it's very easy to maintain and unlike a tongue or clitoris piercing, it's always out in the open and nice and dry. Anything else you'd like to know?

You are absolutely correct. You should never get your ears pierced at Wal-Mart or the mall. At least in a piercing studio, you can see the piercers open the sterile needles and know that they haven't been used on anyone else. Also, using a sterile hollow needle is much less traumatic on the skin then those piercing guns are ...

Are you high?

Anyway, ear piercing is done in a place where it is less likely to get infected, because your ears are . . . well, kind of out of the way. Plus, no body fluid, like lip, tongue, or genitals (I know, it's gross, but it's life.) And they are in an extremely un-sensitive place, as opposed to, say, nipples.

I agree with Natalie. You're sound like a jackass when you don't know what you're talking about and you think that you do.

Cause it's your ears, if god would have wanted holes there he'd have put them there, or anywhere else too. Same for tattoes

ear p[iercings arent any differnt tahn any toher piercing. yes it is also just another hole in your skin. ut maybe the tep of ear piercing that could be differnt? or it your ears are gauged(stretched) that may be differnt in other peoples eyes too.

yes infections can come fromt he piercing guns at the mall. they cannot be propperlty sterilized. professional pierce shops have an oven called "autoclave" which kills ALL bacteria and any other organisms that my be lingering.. and YES alcohol is only sanitizing/disenfecting./ NOT sterilizing. there is an difference. but yes hepatitis and other disease can be transmitted thorugh any piercing. (through a gun, or an unsterilized needle that was used on someone before) reputablte piercers shoudl always use pacakged sterilized needles on each customer..

but the reason ear piercigns can be labeled as "different: is the type of piercing.....on what part of the ear, ect....

It's because of how far back ear piercings go for Western culture.

And as some one who is both tatted and pierced, I can say that yes, it is possible to contract something from improper piercing equipment. However, if you visit Claire's to have your ears done, you will find that they now have new policies and equipment. You now have to be 16 with ID or parent for a cartilage (I forget for lobes) You have to sign a waiver stating that you know the piercer isn't a professional and will not be blamed for a screw up. All piercing studs are sterile packaged individually on in a piece of sealed plastic packaging that with a few nifty twists turns into an individual gun and is still sealed in a plastic bag that has to be ripped open. Once the platic baggy is ripped, you must pay for the earring, regardless of whether you get the piercing. For the usual two earring set, you have to use two seperate guns.

I still think that pro is the best way to go, but going to Claire's is pretty safe on a sterilization level and is cheaper.