New magnet implant [with pics] & Qs about healing process

ArghressivePirateArghressivePirate
edited October 2016 in Magnets
I've been really interested in biohacking for the past few months. I'm not sure how deep into it I want to get, personally, but it seems like a really great subculture, in my opinion, and I wanted to test the waters by getting a magnet implant because I read that they were a good first hack, and also because people's descriptions of picking up an additional sense were intriguing to me.

I went out and got one over my birthday weekend (I had a body mod artist at a reputable tattoo shop in my area put it in, and aside from him taking a call from his boss while he was stitching me up, everything went fine), and I'm already excited for it to heal, so I can start playing with it (I want to test out all sorts of magnet toys to see what it can do), but I do have one concern. Is swelling and itching around the implant site normal? I read somewhere to ice any swelling and the swelling did go down after being iced. But the skin is still really itchy, and I'm not sure if that's a normal part of the healing process, or if maybe I'm having some sort of allergic reaction?

Pictures of my finger throughout the healing process are below, though there's an obvious trigger warning for stitches and blood, as everything is still healing.

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My finger looked like this, the day after it was done. (I'm aware the day after implantation is too soon to play with the magnet, but I wanted to snap a quick pic, so I could brag to my friends. I promise I haven't been overdoing it!)

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When swelling started, it looked like this. 

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Post swelling, it now looks like this. I think the ice dried out my skin, which is why it looks weird.

Thoughts? Does everything seem to be doing okay?
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Comments

  • BoboTheEpicBoboTheEpic
    edited October 2016
    Are the stitches still in? I've heard that it's not a good idea to keep them in for longer than three or four days as they trap wick in moisture and encourage infection.
  • ArghressivePirateArghressivePirate
    @BoboTheEpic Yeah, they are! The artist told me to keep them in for, like, a week? I got my implant done Friday night and he told me to send him pics every 2 days starting today, so he can tell me when to have them taken out. I take it you think I should take them out sooner rather than later?
  • BoboTheEpicBoboTheEpic
    Well hey, if he's monitoring your condition you're probably much better off doing what he says. I'm just some guy, I don't have any formal training in this area. It might've been some very specific situation that the sooner rather than later removal applies.

    TL;DR: Your artist is trained in this and I am not, do what he says.


    Otherwise, looking good as far as I can tell!
  • MeanderpaulMeanderpaul
    Looks good and swelling will go down. What magnet did you get?
  • ArghressivePirateArghressivePirate
    @Meanderpaul Good to know! The last time I had inflammation in a finger it was an infection (I'm a nail biter, so it happens sometimes), and it had me worried.

    Annnnd the artist didn't tell me by name the specifics of the magnet and I didn't think to ask, either... (I suppose I could always call and inquire, but I'm cursing myself for it now) but it's one of the small cylinder ones? And he said it's coated in the same stuff they use for pacemakers.  
  • ArghressivePirateArghressivePirate
    edited October 2016
    Update! Just from normal bumps and wear and tear with the finger, my stitches are starting to come out. The skin is mostly closed up now (there's small little punctures, but nothing that's in danger of opening up), so my question is how much do I really have to worry about this? Should I be concerned?

    image
    image

  • Chase561Chase561
    This might sound a little odd, but I'd just take the stitches out. When I put my magnet in, I didn't even use any stitches in the first place, I bandaged it tightly with gauze and left it like that for a few days. Now I wear gauze when going to work and doing physical stuff, but other than that im letting it air. It's been long enough that your skin has sealed up and the magnet isn't going to just pop right out, so you can chance removing the stitches, and it might heal better without them there.

    I don't know how you could stand having them there lol
  • ZerbulaZerbula
    No longer than a week. I think 3-5 days is the timeframe, iirc.

    Leaving then in too long is going to cause more problems than help, it can give infection a way to get in.
  • ArghressivePirateArghressivePirate
    edited October 2016
    @Chase561 I don't LIKE having them there. The skin where the sutures popped out hurts a lot less than the skin where the stitches are still in. Anytime they bump against something, it pulls them, which rlly hurts. I'm only keeping them in b/c the artist who put my implant in hasn't told me to take them out yet and he said he'd tell me when if I kept him updated on the healing process (which I have been). I have stubborn streak, and I'm trying to resist it. lol 
  • ArghressivePirateArghressivePirate
    edited October 2016
    Zerbula So, I should have them taken out Wednesday, then, at the latest? I had the implant put in the evening of the 21st, so it's only 3 full (well, almost, today isn't over, yet) days, since I've had it.

  • eggiteggit
    The skin looks intact to me, I'd go ahead and pull them out. Its easy enough to do on your own as well. Get some steri strips and pt one of those over it just in case.
  • ArghressivePirateArghressivePirate
    @eggit the last one came out on its own, so it's not a problem, anymore! 
    Goodbye stitches, lol!
  • ArghressivePirateArghressivePirate
    edited October 2016
    So, my stitches are out, but my finger is getting sore again after the soreness had gone away, and I'm wondering if that's normal? B/c I'm worried it's a bad sign, healing wise -- it seems like a regression, instead of a progression, anyway.

    Also, the skin is a discolored red at the implant site and the people I've met with magnet implants said that theirs faded to a barely visible scar, once they had healed up... so I'm wondering, how long should it take for any discoloration to go away? I was drawn to the subtly of this implant, and so I'm really not a fan of the discoloration. I want people to be like "Woah, why is your finger magnetic?" instead of "Umm, what's wrong with your finger?" 

    image
    image


  • CassoxCassox
    My advise would be ibuprofen q6 hours. Ice twice a day. Also keep it covered. Preferably steristrips. You want a little compression on it. Also it prevents trauma. It's easy to tear back open right now.
  • ArghressivePirateArghressivePirate
    @Cassox, Will do! Thanks! 
  • JupiterJupiter
    Little off-topic, but what happened to the picture in the original post?

    I ask because one thing I've been trying to figure out with our goal of website renovations is what to do to keep all the pictures from disappearing.

    Did you remove them? Were they hosted on a separate site and the link is now broken? Were they embedded in the post in some way that has now ceased functioning?
  • ArghressivePirateArghressivePirate
    @Jupiter, I'm not sure. They WERE on another site. Perhaps the link has expired? IDK. It shouldn't have. 
  • ArghressivePirateArghressivePirate
    So, I dunno how to close or resolve topics, but  I wanted to thank everyone who commented with advice in this thread. Eventually, my stitches wound up coming out on their own/with little help with me, so removing them did not pose an issue. 

    If you'd like to see magnet tricks/post healing pics, please refer to this topic: http://forum.biohack.me/discussion/1838/my-magnet-implant-in-action-cool-magnet-tricks-with-pics-and-vids

    Thanks! 
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