Piercing Cleaning – Instructions

Here are some detailed piercing aftercare cleaning instructions:

Wash your hands thoroughly with antibacterial soap before touching your piercing.

Use a saline solution (sea salt and warm water) to clean the piercing twice a day. Soak a cotton ball in the solution and gently clean around the piercing.

Avoid using alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, or harsh chemicals on the piercing as they can irritate the skin.

Pat the piercing dry with a clean paper towel or let it air dry. Avoid using towels or cotton swabs that may leave fibers on the piercing.

Avoid twisting or turning the jewelry during healing to prevent irritation.

Avoid swimming in pools, hot tubs, or natural bodies of water until the piercing is fully healed.

Avoid touching the piercing with dirty hands or allowing others to touch it.

Be mindful of clothing and accessories that may catch on the piercing and cause irritation.

Remember, it’s important to follow these aftercare instructions to promote proper healing and minimize the risk of infection.

Avoid:

It’s important to avoid putting pressure or friction on the piercing, as this can lead to irritation. Additionally, refrain from using alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, antibacterial soaps, iodine, or any harsh products to clean the piercing, as they can harm both good and bad bacteria, which are essential for proper healing. Over-cleaning the piercing can also cause irritation and delay the healing process. It’s best to avoid exposing the piercing to bodies of water such as lakes, pools, oceans, and hot tubs, but if necessary, protect it with a waterproof bandage. Waterproof bandages can be found at most pharmacies and are particularly useful for navel, nipple, and surface piercings. Lastly, minimizing drug use, caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol can help expedite the healing process.

What to Expect:

THE HEALING PROCESS OF A PIERCING TYPICALLY OCCURS IN SEVERAL STAGES:

Initial Healing (0-2 weeks): This stage involves the formation of a protective layer of skin around the piercing site. During this time, it’s important to keep the area clean and follow proper aftercare instructions to prevent infection.
Early Healing (2 weeks – 2 months): In this stage, the skin continues to form around the piercing, and any initial redness or swelling should start to subside. It’s essential to continue cleaning the piercing regularly and avoid any activities that may irritate the area.
Healing (2 months – 1 year): The piercing continues to mature during this stage, and the skin becomes more resilient. While the piercing may appear healed on the surface, it’s crucial to continue with aftercare to ensure the inside of the piercing fully heals.
Healed (1 year+): At this stage, the piercing should be fully healed, and the skin around the area should be strong and less prone to irritation. However, it’s still important to maintain good hygiene and occasionally clean the piercing to prevent any potential issues. It’s important to note that the healing process may vary depending on the individual and the type of piercing, so it’s crucial to follow the aftercare instructions provided for your specific piercing.

THE HEALING PROCESS FOR DIFFERENT TYPES OF PIERCINGS CAN VARY, BUT HERE IS A GENERAL OVERVIEW:

Earlobe Piercings: Earlobe piercings typically take about 6-8 weeks to heal. It’s important to clean the piercing regularly with saline solution and avoid changing the earrings too soon to prevent irritation.
Cartilage Piercings: Cartilage piercings can take anywhere from 4 months to a year to fully heal. They require diligent aftercare, including cleaning with saline solution and avoiding sleeping on the pierced ear.
Navel Piercings: Navel piercings may take 6 months to a year to fully heal. It’s crucial to keep the area clean and dry, and avoid tight clothing that can irritate the piercing.
Nose Piercings: Nose piercings can take about 2-4 months to heal. It’s important to clean the piercing daily and be gentle when blowing your nose to avoid irritation.
Oral Piercings (e.g., tongue, lip): Oral piercings may take 4-6 weeks to heal. Rinse your mouth with a saline solution after eating or drinking anything other than water, and avoid playing with the jewelry to prevent irritation.

Remember, everyone’s body is different, so healing times can vary. It’s essential to follow the aftercare instructions provided by the piercer.

PIERCING TRAUMA AND IRRITATION BUMPS

Piercing trauma is a very common complication of body piercings and can arise from various circumstances.
When it comes to ear piercings most issues stem from sleeping on the piercing, hair getting caught in the piercing, catching it on clothing or hair styling tools, hair products (dyes, styling creams, gel, shampoo, etc.) getting into the piercing, or changing the piercing prematurely.

Some indicators of piercing irritation/trauma are swelling at the affected area, redness at the affected area, slight pain or sensitivity at the affected area, secretion of clear, light yellow, or light white fluid, and piercing bumps.

To treat irritation & irritation bumps, the best recommendation would be to:

Stop whatever is causing the trauma (if it’s any hitting, pulling, or sleeping just try to avoid doing those things as much as possible); if it’s hair dye or products try to avoid getting them in the piercing as much as possible.
Try warm/cold compresses; the client should do three compresses (2 warm and 1 cold) daily for a week.
- For the warm, they can wet a clean microfiber cloth or flat cotton round with as hot of saline water as they can handle and apply it to the affected area twice a day daily for a week, 10 minutes at a time.
- For the cold, they can either put ice in a ziplock bag, wrap it with a cloth & put it on the affected area 3 times a day for 10 minutes at a time or apply the saline at normal temperature on the area with a clean microfiber cloth or flat cotton round.
For the bumps, you may apply tea tree oil on them twice a day daily for 8-10 days straight or until they disappear. However, the oil needs to be organic, 100% pure, & made for the skin (please avoid tea tree for diffusers or hair), this will help dry the bump out. Before doing this please make sure to do a patch test with the oil on any part of their skin and wait 24 hours to see if any irritations or allergic reactions occur.

Unfortunately, if these treatments don’t work, please come into the store for a consultation with one of our piercers. (A possible jewelry & material change may be necessary.)

LOCALIZED PIERCING INFECTION

Infection is a lot less common than irritation and often presents with similar symptoms.

Infection is usually caused by the introduction of bacteria either through touching the piercing with unclean hands, getting pierced with contaminated jewelry, or putting in contaminated jewelry.

Symptoms include swelling at and beyond the affected area, redness at and beyond the affected area, moderate to prevalent pain or sensitivity at the affected area, secretion of a dark green or mustard-yellow fluid, and piercing bumps.

If a client suspects their piercing to be infected, they are recommended to see a piercer for a consultation & best course of treatment.

NEVER remove the piercing jewelry while infected as this can trap the infection.
DO NOT use alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, or antibiotic ointments. These can further irritate the skin and slow the healing process.
Changing aftercare and/or jewelry size, style, or material often resolves problems.

AFTER-CARE SOLUTIONS

H2O – H2Ocean is the brand of sterile saline solution that we carry in-store and offer for customers to buy to keep their piercings clean and free from infection. This specific brand of saline contains an enzyme in it named lysozyme which aids in the killing of bacteria within the piercing.
Tea Tree Oil – Tea tree oil is another item we sell here in the store that we normally promote for the use of treating irritation bumps. THIS IS NOT RECOMMENDED FOR CLEANING OR DISINFECTING PIERCINGS.
EMU OIL – Emu Oil we offer as an alternative for those who have an allergy to tea tree oil or are sensitive to it; this can be used to treat piercing bumps or piercing dryness.