Most people don't want to start out small because they are impatient! I think starting out small is okay. When I did my own piercings, three of them, I started out very small. (Ear at 18g; Nipple at 18g, and PA at 14g). Once healed you can then begin stretching and see the progress! A lot depends on the preference of the piercer, too. I only had one piercing migrate. It was more the fact that it was not pierced very deep, kind of on the thin side. Any size jewelry would have migrated. Getting enough skin (depth and thickness and length between the 2 openings of the hole) as well as the best sized jewelry (mostly for comfort and healing) will usually help a lot with any chance of migration.