Poking holes is what most people do. 2mm wide hole I think. Enough to allow the water in. I have never done this to my suits and so far no problem. Most of the time this is done to release the small amounts of air that are trapped by the hood sealing to your ear. This is not much air at all, so what you are experiencing sounds like areas of your hood that do not fit well, or just the fact that you have not released this air at the beginning of your diving.
To deal with excessive air trapped in the suit, just submerge a little and open your hood on both sides, the water pressure should squeeze most the air out. Of course you may get a little water in, but once done at the beginning, you will warm up. Do the same for air stuck around the torso, opening the neck so the air can escape up. Just float, exhale, kick up, and let yourself drop under the water as you open the way for the air to escape (just until head submerged). I often do this as Elios suits seal extremely well around the neck.
Cheers,
Tyler