Ear piercing has come a long way since the days of little girls getting their earlobes pierced at the mall. If you’re looking for something stylish and edgy, the industrial, daith and/or rook piercings are unique and hip. Be forewarned, these are not your grandma’s ear piercings.
Industrial Piercings
An industrial piercing is a single bar that connects two cartilage piercings. The more common style is the horizontal piercing that goes through the top of the ear. The more unusual vertical-style goes up-and-down. The vertical style is cool, but it does hurt more than a horizontal piercing. Learn more about the vertical industrial piercing.
Rook Piercings
The trendy rook piercing is a cartilage piercing in the upper ear that pierces the antihelix. Because this is an uncommon piercing, it’s important to bring photos to show your piercer. Any cartilage piercing will hurt more than a piercing to the fleshy earlobe, but most people put the rook piercing halfway on the pain scale. The cartilage of the ear receives very little blood flow, so the rook piercing can take anywhere from two months to a year to heal completely. If you have any medical conditions that make healing difficult, this may not be the right piercing for you.
Daith Piercings
A daith piercing is a piercing through the smallest fold of cartilage in your ear, just outside the ear canal. While some people’s ears are not anatomically suitable for rook or industrial piercings, most people can get a daith. Piercers encourage hoop-style jewelry for this piercing. If you’re a big baby when it comes to pain, the daith may be right for you because it’s one of the less painful piercings. Some people believe that the daith piercing can help with migraines, although there is no scientific evidence to support this.
Buyer Beware
All piercings should only be done by licensed, reputable professionals in a sterile environment. If you let your friend pierce your cartilage in an unsanitary environment, you’re taking a serious risk of infection. Be sure to ask your piercer if they are experienced in doing the daith, rook, or industrial piercings. You don’t want to wind up with the wrong part of your ear pierced. Choose high-quality metals like platinum or 14K gold for your jewelry, especially if you are prone to allergies or skin irritations.
Follow Directions
Your piercer should give you instructions on how to properly care for your piercing and it’s important that you follow them exactly. Don’t handle your piercing with dirty hands. Don’t twist your piercing. Clean the pierced area with saline solution at least twice a day. Piercings are typically red and swollen at first, but if your pain and swelling gets worse or doesn’t go away within a week, it may be infected. It’s crucial to seek medical care if you think you have an infection.
Whenever you consider getting a new piercing, it’s important to do your research and think it over. If you’re ready to think outside the earlobe, industrial, rook, and daith piercings might be right for you.