I got a message from a woman who was having some problems with her VCH piercing (which I did not perform for her--though this particular healing problem can crop up even when everything is done properly).

Hi Elayne, I'm having issues with my VCH piercing. It began after being agitated after sex (it seemed to be healing fine at the time). I noticed it stung sometimes when I sat down, sometimes when I walked. Upon closer examination, I noticed something that looks like an extra bit of skin under the top ball. I paid extra attention to it during cleaning, and noticed there was a bit of (off-white) discharge. I started doing soaks, the discharge went away, it stopped stinging, but the extra skin didn't go away. I did that for about 1.5 weeks.

This morning, I woke up and the discharge came back and it slightly stings again. I just did a soak... But I'm not sure what else to do.

 

 

In reading your book, I think it may be a keloid, but I'm not sure. Maybe an abscess (but I don't feel any hard localized mass). If it is a keloid, should it just be taken out? How can I be sure there's no infection still inside the piercing?

Any additional info you can give me would be great! I really love the piercing and don't want to abandon it. I've attached a few pictures here - one is from the front, and the other a view from the top. Will the "bubble" ever go away???

Thanks in advance!

My reply: That doesn't have the classic appearance of a keloid or an infection. From what I can see, that looks as though  it might be excess granulation tissue. Information on different things you can try is located here.

Another option is something I couldn't put into my book but I'l share with you. It is called the "ligature technique" and it involves tying off scar tissue at the base with a clean, tight thread, and sometimes that starves the blood supply to the excess tissue and it dries up and falls off. I can't "suggest" that you try it but for what it is worth, there it is. Because of gravity, a longer bar isn't necessarily going to be helpful because the top ball is apt to sit down into its usual space unless you manually pull it up and it seems you're already doing that…. If the ball underneath isn't bothering you, then I don't think you need to change jewelry.

Keep me posted.

UPDATE:She wrote:

Thanks for the advice - the tea tree oil seems to be working it's magic. The bump of skin is getting smaller every day... And no more pain or discomfort.

Thanks so much (again)!