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Piercing Aftercare

Aftercare

Congratulations on your new Piercing, and thank you sincerely for choosing to place your trust in us!
We are with you for the entire healing journey, with free checkups and advice along the way.
Here are some hints and tips to optimise healing:

 

Stay healthy

Get enough sleep and eat a nutritious diet. Exercise during healing is fine; listen to your body.
Get enough sleep, and avoid emotional stress.
Make sure your bedding is washed and changed regularly.

Jewellery Care

We always check the jewellery upon receiving stock and also twice before fitting. You should also check your piercing jewellery please.
The jewellery is delicate by its very nature and is designed to be removable by the user, so they can come loose whilst handling or cleaning. Our quality control involves checking all the jewellery parts multiple times (3+) before fitting. To the best of our knowledge they are free from defects and are fitted securely.

You must regularly check and tighten the attachments on your jewellery.
Unfortunately, losses are not covered. Your purchased item is your property and is under your care and liability from the time you leave the studio.

Need inspiration for your next piercings? Browse Our Work page for stunning combinations with tagged jewellery prices too!

 

Things to Avoid

  • Do not sleep on your Cartilage Piercing. Read below for tips.
  • Avoid using any aftercare or cleaning product not recommended by us.
  • Avoid Sleeping with wet hair.
  • Avoid over-cleaning. This will delay your healing and irritate your piercing.
  • Avoid touching or rotating your piercing.
  • Avoid all oral contact, rough play, and contact with others’ bodily fluids on or near your piercing during healing.
  • Avoid stress and recreational drug use, including excessive caffeine, alcohol and smoking.
  • Avoid submerging the piercing in unhygienic bodies of water such as lakes, pools, hot tubs, etc.
  • Avoid all beauty and personal care products on or around the piercing like fake tan, make-up, cosmetics, lotions, sprays etc.
  • Avoid moving the jewellery in an unhealed piercing, or picking away dried discharge with your fingers
  • No contact with linen, clothes, hairsprays, cosmetics, make-up or chemicals of any kind.
  • No bending or pulling your ear to show off the piercing.
  • Avoid undue trauma such as friction from clothing, excessive motion of the area, playing with the jewellery, and vigorous cleaning. These activities can cause the formation of unsightly and uncomfortable scar tissue, migration, prolonged healing, and other complications. 

General Piercings Care

Your body will do all the hard work and heal the piercing wound.
There are only a few things you must commit to in order to reduce the risks of infection and irritation and ensure a smooth healing process.

Initially, you can expect some bleeding (especially if knocked!), localised swelling, tenderness, or bruising.

Only Sterile Saline Solution 0.9%, with no additives (read the label), in a pressurised container with a spray nozzle, should be used on your piercing.
A new box of quality cotton buds is recommended, some disposable dental floss products and also sterile gauze, quality kitchen roll or cotton pads.
Sterile Saline Wipes can be used as well.

Please, DO NOT mix your own saline. Mixing your own sea salt solution will commonly result in the product being far too salty and strong, this can over dry the piercing, interfere with healing and could lead to an infection. It takes time to make, it is impossible to store and remain sterile and will likely introduce bacteria and debris into your piercing.

The new Piercing is a deep open wound with a foreign object in it.
Please treat it as such, because touching it with dirty hands will cause swelling and possibly an infection.

The piercing will naturally drain healthy fluids in the first days and maybe for longer.
If left to dry, these will form crusts, which will be rough, sometimes pointy and can harbour bacteria.
It is important to soak those crusts with the saline spray, soften them, gently remove them and afterwards DRY the area.

Failure to keep the piercing exit wounds clear, will cause smelly crusts to accumulate which will harbour bacteria and grow over time.
The healthy fluids will not have where to drain to and will form fluid bumps on the exit wounds, which if left untreated for a long time could persist even after a piercing is retired.

There is no need to twist or rotate the piercing during healing, in fact it will tear down the fragile new tissue that’s forming inside the wound and prolong healing.
However, as explained under the Jewellery Care section, THREADED attachments need to be checked for tightness during each cleaning and at minimum daily.
Push-in attachments are easier to check, as all you have to check is that the top sits flat against the bar.

Make sure all cleaning motions with a cotton bud are clockwise, and before you finish cleaning get a good grip of the disc back and rotate the front clockwise.
If the disc back rotates along with the front, it means the front is tight.

We recommend that you do not attempt to remove or replace the jewellery yourself for at least 6 months.
A piercing may seem healed before the healing process is complete.
This is because tissue heals from the outside in, and although it feels fine, the interior remains fragile.
Be patient, and keep cleaning throughout the entire healing period.

Even healed piercings can shrink or close in minutes after having been there for years! This varies from person to person; if you like your piercing, keep a quality jewellery in—do not leave it empty.

Even after the piercing is healed, it will need to be cleaned, at minimum following the shower advice below.

 

Clean your piercing 2-3 times a day:

  • Always properly Clean and Disinfect your hands before touching your piercing for any reason
  • Soak:
    You can either spray the saline spray directly on the piercing, or spray a gauze, cotton pad or a piece of high quality kitchen paper. A couple of minutes of soaking is enough to soften the crusts but that depends on how crusty the piercing is.
  • Gently remove the crusts:
    Pick up a couple of cotton buds, wet them with the saline spray and press them with your fingers to make the cotton pointy.Tip: You can spray the cotton buds and your ear or the gauze in one go, and save some saline.    Now you can clean both exit wounds and remove all debris and crusts from them. It’s important to clean thoroughly underneath the attachments and the disc backing.
    Persistent crusts might need a longer soak, running shower water (see below) or the use of a disposable dental floss product for difficult to reach spaces.
  • Dry:
    Properly dry the piercing with new cotton buds or clean quality kitchen roll.
    A hair dryer can be used, on the Cool setting, to thoroughly dry.

Shower often:

It is important to let a lot of water run through the piercing to remove all shampoo (especially conditioner),  soap, crusts and debris.
Persistent crusts will be soaked and soft, and can then be gently removed as per the above instructions.

Compresses:

Cold compresses will help in the first days of the piercing.
You can keep your Sterile Saline Wipes or Sterile Saline Solution spray can in the fridge, spray a gauze or cotton pad, and place against your piercing for a few minutes.
Continue through all through all the cleaning steps afterwards.

 

Ear and Cartilage Piercings

Please remember, you are not allowed to sleep on that ear or force any pressure on it.

A bulky ”Butterfly / Crocodile” type of hair-clipper can be fitted on the hair, on top of the ear before sleeping, and it will help avoid rolling over that side while sleeping.

Keeping our customer’s safety and comfort in mind, we pierce cartilage on one side only at a time. Multiple cartilage piercings (limits apply) can be done on a single ear, in one or more sessions, and can heal simultaneously.
However, we will not pierce cartilage on the other ear until all the cartilage piercings of the opposite ear are well healed, checkups are done and the bars have been downsized, where necessary.

Ear lobe piercings can be slept on, but it’s better if you can use a travel pillow or move the pillow higher to avoid pressure.
Never sleep with wet hair.

Remember that your piercing is highly likely to swell, so we have given you a piece of jewellery with a longer bar or a wider diameter to allow room for swelling.

Try to keep the attachment close to the skin, but not too tight as the piercing still needs air to breathe, and the excess bar space on the back of the piercing.
If the jewellery is hanging out far in front of the piercing, and it is a heavy piece, leverage will cause it to migrate downwards, making your new piercing crooked.

If at any point your jewellery is feeling tight, is looking like it’s too short or doesn’t have any extra room for swelling, contact and visit us immediately to prevent the jewellery from embedding!

 

Downsizing

After about 8 weeks or 2-4 weeks (Oral Piercings) you should notice the swelling to be considerably less, it is very important to return to us for a check-up.
At that point, if your piercing is ready, we will replace the bar with a shorter, snugger fitting one.
We will then advise when the piercing should be ready to sleep on. Generally, when the shorter bar is fitted on, the piercing is ready to be gently slept on.
If the piercing feels sore though, avoid sleeping on it for longer.
Labret Bar downsize service and the check ups are included in your original piercing fee.
Neglecting the downsizing of your piercing can result in the piercing healing at a crooked angle, affecting the direction your jewellery is facing.

Maintain cleanliness of telephones, headphones, eyeglasses, helmets, hats, and anything that contacts the pierced area.

Use caution when styling your hair and advise your stylist of a new or healing piercing.

 

Oral Piercings

Please maintain good oral hygiene habits, and wash your hands thoroughly prior to cleaning or touching your piercing.
To care for your Tongue Piercing and the inside of your Lip Piercings, use an Alcohol-free and hydrogen peroxide-free mouth rinse of your choice after meals, or at minimum rinse with chilled distilled water.
You will need to floss, brush and use mouth rinse twice daily, but do not overuse mouth rinse.
Gently brush the jewelry with a clean toothbrush regularly to avoid plaque build up.
Rinse with water (bottled or filtered) thoroughly after every time you eat, drink or smoke.

For the outside of your Lip Piercings, only Sterile Saline Solution 0.9%, with no additives (read the label), in a pressurised container with a spray nozzle, should be used on your piercing.
Clean as per the Ear Piercing cleaning instructions below.

Do not play or rotate the jewellery during healing time, leave it alone as much as possible.
Allow small pieces of ice to dissolve in the mouth.
Take an over-the-counter, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory such as Ibuprofen or naproxen sodium according to Doctor’s advice and package instructions.
Don’t speak or move your jewelry more than necessary.
Sleep with your head elevated above your heart during the first few nights.
Take your time with eating until you are used to the piercing and the jewelry is downsized to prevent irritation or prolonged healing.
Avoid eating dairy, spicy, salty, acidic, or hot temperature foods or beverages, or alcohol for the first two weeks.

Once the initial swelling retreats, it is vital to downsize the jewellery, as explained at the Downsize section below.

 

Navel Piercings

A hard, vented eye patch (sold at pharmacies) can be applied under tight clothing (such as nylon stockings) or secured using a length of Ace® bandage around the body (to avoid irritation from adhesive).
This can protect the area from restrictive clothing, excess irritation, and impact during physical activities such as contact sports.

 

Nipple Piercings

The support of a tight cotton shirt or sports bra may provide protection and feel comfortable, especially for sleeping.

 

Dermal / Surface Piercings

For the first 6 weeks, clean 2 times a day with the saline spray and cotton buds, as per the general piercing cleaning instructions above.
After that time period, once a day soak a non woven gauze with the saline spray and clean underneath and around the attachment.

 

Genital Piercings

Genital Piercings—especially Prince Alberts, Ampallangs, and Apadravyas—can bleed freely for the first few days. Be prepared.
Urinate after using soap to clean any piercing that is near the urethra.
Wash your hands before touching on (or near) a healing piercing.
In most cases you can engage in sexual activity as soon as you feel ready, but maintaining hygiene and avoiding trauma are vital; all sexual activities should be gentle during the healing period.
Use barriers such as condoms, dental dams, and waterproof bandages, etc. to avoid contact with your partners’ body fluids, even in monogamous relationships.
Use clean, disposable barriers on sex toys.
Use a new container of water-based lubricant; do not use saliva.
After sex, an additional saline soak or clean water rinse is suggested.

 

Troubleshooting

Swelling
Swelling is a normal process during the initial healing of a new piercing. Our piercers and jewellery specialist will assess each client’s anatomy during the consultation part of your booking and help you find the right style and size of jewellery needed for you. The recommendations of style and assessment of the initial length of your jewellery are chosen based on experience and knowledge we gathered over the decades working in the industry.

However, If the piercing gets irritated, banged or infected, a temporary larger jewellery will need to be fitted, to allow for the over-swelling. If at any point your jewellery is feeling tight, is looking like it’s too short or doesn’t have any extra room for swelling, contact and visit us immediately to prevent the jewellery from embedding!

Keloids
The main cause of keloids would be genetics, family history, ethnic descent and diagnosing them would be beyond our scope as Body Piercers. However, that fluid bump that has you worried is probably just an irritation bump, and while it likely does not need medical intervention, it needs to be addressed. Ignoring it over the long term can cause it to persist even beyond retiring the piercing.

Irritation bumps
Fluid bumps, often referred to as piercing bumps or irritation bumps, can occur, usually in cartilage piercings. They are common, however they are not “normal” and must be addressed. The bumps can drain fluids, and if they are clear or light coloured they will likely be healthy and are not a sign of infection. They are not to be picked or squeezed, they must drain naturally.

The symptoms can be treated but we also need to find and treat the source of the irritation.
It would typically be knocking or snagging the piercing or sleeping on it.
The cause can also be jewellery that is irritating due to size, style or material, excess moisture (specially behind earlobes) or improper aftercare.

Carefully read all the aftercare instructions to ensure you are not missing anything. It is very important to find and address the source of the irritation, otherwise the bumps will not go away; they could become permanent.
Please note, there is no topical solution that will help you get rid of them. Things like aspirin paste, tea tree oil, peroxide etc will likely make things worse.

You can try some warm compresses to increase the blood flow in the area, which will promote healing and assist in draining the bump faster.

Spay some saline from the can on a gauze or cotton pad, heat it on the microwave to a comfortable temperature, apply on your ear for a few minutes, clean and dry afterwards. If you have Sterile Saline wipes, you can heat and use those instead.

Unless you have a ragweed allergy, chamomile tea can also be used for compresses.

 Infections
Quite often, people who suspect an infection actually have an irritation and adjusting the aftercare can fix the problem.
Signs of an infection are sudden inflammation and discharge of pus and/or blood.
If you suspect that you have an infection, contact your body piercer or your doctor at once.

Do not wait for it to get worse, and do not attempt some home or Google remedy.

If you suspect an infection, an appropriately sized quality jewellery should be left in place to allow for drainage.
If the jewellery is removed, the wound can close up, which can seal the infection inside the piercing channel and result in an abscess.

Until an infection is cleared up, please leave in a quality jewellery.

All that being said, we are Piercers, and not medical professionals.
If you suspect your piercing is infected and are worried about your health, please visit your GP without delay, keeping in mind that your doctor might be unfamiliar with treating body piercings or handling body jewellery.

 

Need help?

Please, DO NOT ask your friends, family or Google for advice.
There are many myths and plenty of dangerous misinformation out there.

Feel free to contact us for any questions or concerns.