Piercing Care Basics
- Keep your hands off!
- Be gentile and keep the piercing area dry
- Rinse with wound wash 2-3 times daily
- Downsize, if and when needed
- Do not rotate jewelry
Do not use chemicals or oils on your piercing. These won’t help your piercing heal faster or fix any “bumps.” They will likely make things worse. Your piercing needs oxygen to heal and oils/ointments essentially suffocate your piercing. Chemicals will also disrupt the process of creating new cells around your healing piercing.
Examples of things to avoid:
- Rubbing alcohol
- Hydrogen Peroxide
- Bactine
- Ear Care and Contact Solution
- Anything marked “External Use Only”
- Tea Tree Oil
- Petroleum-based ointments (Neosporin)
- Betadine
- Hibiclens
- "Crusties"on your jewelry or surrounding skin are normal. To soften and remove, apply saline to a cotton swab, making sure all the fibers are saturated. Gently wipe with the moistened swab. Remove what comes off easily and leave the rest for next time.
- Wound Washcan be found at any pharmacy or first aid location. It is also available in the shop! Before you buy this product, be sure that there are only two ingredients: USP Grade Water and USP Sodium Chloride (9mg/ml).
- Nevermove jewelry back and forth through the piercing. It drags rough debris into the piercing and can cause irritation or infection.
- Downsizingis the next phase of your healing journey. Usually two months after getting pierced. It's a perfect way to make your piercing more comfortable. It is very important with rim/helix piercings to keep the angles level. It can decrease the amount of sagging and movement of the jewelry. If you're unhappy with the fit of your jewelry, or think you are ready to downsize, please call the shop and schedule a jewelry maintenance appointment.
- Cleaning & Cosmetics:Do not get soap, body wash, facial cleansers, makeup, hair products, etc. into your healing piercing. If it happens, rinse with your saline wash immediately.
Refrain from using makeup on/around the piercing while healing. It can cause a lot of irritation if worked into the piercing. Once healed, cosmetics are fine to use around the piercing. - Clothing:Make sure clothing or facial coverings contacting your piercing are clean, breathable fabrics like cotton.
- Swimming & Bathing:Tubs, pools, lakes, and natural water sources aren't kind to healing piercings. They can cause a lot of complications; from simple irritation to full-blown infections. It's best to avoid submerging your piercing until fully healed. If needed, you can cover the piercing with a waterproof bandage, being careful to avoid adhesive getting in or around your piercing. This should only be necessary and for short periods. Your piercing needs oxygen to heal. if submerging can't be avoided, flushing the piercing with saline immediately after will help avoid complications, but doesn't eliminate the risk.
- Removing the Piercing:Every person heals differently. Removing your piercing will cause it to shrink and eventually close up. The time frame this happens is just as individual as you are. Your piercing could close in a matter of hours or still be open 10 years later. Even if you can't get jewelry in your piercing it may still be open, just shrunk down very small. if you have jewelry that has fallen out or if you aren't sure if your piercing is open, give us a call!
- Healing Time:We don't know how long it will take for your piercing to heal. Every person and piercing are different, so it is normal for healing times to be different.
- Infections:More often than not, your piercing is just irritated, not infected. Infections are incredibly painful, have an odor, a yellow or green discharge, and can only be treated by a medical professional. Irritation is usually fixed by adjusting aftercare of your jewelry. If you are concerned that your piercing isn't healing properly, please give us a call. Do not wait for it to get worse!
- Oral Piercings:For lips/tongues, leave the inside of the piercing alone. Only clean the outside as instructed. Be careful to chew slowly while getting used to your new piercing. Watch out for spicy food and stay hydrated. Refrain from kissing or sexual contact of any kind while healing.
- Genital Piercings:All piercings are an open channel to the bloodstream, especially in the case of genital piercings. Sexual contact during the healing phase could be dangerous to you and your partner. user various forms of barrier protection and only do what's comfortable. If you experience pain or bleeding, you may need to give the piercing longer to hear before any more sexual contact.
- Nipples:Wearing tight clothing or sports bras after piercing can help reduce movement and friction for the first few weeks.
- Navels:Physical irritation, usually caused by clothing, is the most common problem with navel piercings. Keep waistlines lower and wear loose clothing while first healing.
- "Expert Advice"should only come from actual experts. If you have any questions or concerns about your aftercare, jewelry, or piercings in general, please give us a call. Do not listen to the internet, friends, family, or piercing enthusiasts. We are trained professionals and we are more than happy to help!
Disclaimer
These guidelines are based on a combination of vast professional experience, common sense, research, and extensive clinical practice.
This is not to be considered a substitute for medical advice from a doctor. Be aware, however, that many doctors have no specific training or experience regarding piercings and tattoos and may not be educated on how to best assist you.