How To Care For A Piercing
PIERCING AFTERCARE
These are standard aftercare rules applicable to all piercings. The factors crucial to healing are simple: Patience & Hygiene. You don't need a lot of products to care for your piercing, just good attention to detail.
Healing time varies depending on the region pierced and other factors like your diet, general health, alcohol intake, smoking habits and lifestyle. As always, a balanced diet with a minimum of processed/packaged food and plenty of water & rest are your best allies. Do not deviate from your professional piercer's instructions and do not use any products on the piercing without consulting the piercer.
To start with, we want to briefly outline the three major steps in healing of a piercing. This will give you an idea of what to expect at different stages of the process. If you experience any symptoms other than those mentioned here, play it safe and contact your professional piercer for advice.
Stage 1 - Immediately after the piercing : Expect some redness, swelling and tenderness. A little bleeding is also normal. The piercing area may possibly look discoloured for a while.
Stage 2 - During Healing : Expect Itching and secretion of whitish or yellow fluid which is NOT Pus. If you observe Pus formation, it may be a sign of infection - contact your piercer immediately. Slight discolouration is normal and no cause for worry. Do not discontinue the cleaning and care instructions before the specified healing time is up. Sometimes a piercing can look healed without being fully healed.
Stage 3 - Fully Healed : Your piercing is now a permanent part of you; Congratulations!
This does not that mean you stop caring for it. Like all good things in life, you need to show it some care and not take it for granted. Make daily cleaning of the piercing a part of your bathing regime. Neglecting this can cause a buildup of harmless but smelly body fluids in the piercing, and possibly attract bacteria.
Body jewelry may not always move freely even in a piercing that's fully healed. This is normal for certain piercings especially the Septum and Nipples. Do NOT use force on the jewelry. Once its fully healed, you may apply a little olive oil on the jewelry to ease the movement slightly.
Use caution when when you remove jewelry from any piercing, as they all have the potential to shrink rapidly and may even close if the jewelry is removed for too long. Even a piercing that's years old can close up without jewelry.
Be careful not to tug or pull at body jewelry when changing your clothes or during any physical jewekry. A forceful pull on jewelry can potentially tear the skin.
Healing time varies depending on the region pierced and other factors like your diet, general health, alcohol intake, smoking habits and lifestyle. As always, a balanced diet with a minimum of processed/packaged food and plenty of water & rest are your best allies. Do not deviate from your professional piercer's instructions and do not use any products on the piercing without consulting the piercer.
To start with, we want to briefly outline the three major steps in healing of a piercing. This will give you an idea of what to expect at different stages of the process. If you experience any symptoms other than those mentioned here, play it safe and contact your professional piercer for advice.
Stage 1 - Immediately after the piercing : Expect some redness, swelling and tenderness. A little bleeding is also normal. The piercing area may possibly look discoloured for a while.
Stage 2 - During Healing : Expect Itching and secretion of whitish or yellow fluid which is NOT Pus. If you observe Pus formation, it may be a sign of infection - contact your piercer immediately. Slight discolouration is normal and no cause for worry. Do not discontinue the cleaning and care instructions before the specified healing time is up. Sometimes a piercing can look healed without being fully healed.
Stage 3 - Fully Healed : Your piercing is now a permanent part of you; Congratulations!
This does not that mean you stop caring for it. Like all good things in life, you need to show it some care and not take it for granted. Make daily cleaning of the piercing a part of your bathing regime. Neglecting this can cause a buildup of harmless but smelly body fluids in the piercing, and possibly attract bacteria.
Body jewelry may not always move freely even in a piercing that's fully healed. This is normal for certain piercings especially the Septum and Nipples. Do NOT use force on the jewelry. Once its fully healed, you may apply a little olive oil on the jewelry to ease the movement slightly.
Use caution when when you remove jewelry from any piercing, as they all have the potential to shrink rapidly and may even close if the jewelry is removed for too long. Even a piercing that's years old can close up without jewelry.
Be careful not to tug or pull at body jewelry when changing your clothes or during any physical jewekry. A forceful pull on jewelry can potentially tear the skin.
CLEANING PROCEDURE
- Wash Hands thoroughly with soap.
- Piercings require cleaning twice daily. Morning and evening is usually recommended. Products to be used are : Saline solution or mild pH balanced soap. Saline solution is recommended over soap, especially Sea Salt solution. If you can get pure non-iodized Sea Salt its best to make your own saline solution by dissolving a pinch of sea salt in a small cup of warm water. Make sure it is pure Sea Salt, not Table salt or iodized salt. If you cant find sea salt, use a packaged saline solution.
- Do not remove jewelry for cleaning. Clean thoroughly around the incision without removing the jewelry.
- You may observe a whitish or yellow fluid discharged by the piercing. This is not pus, and usually dries up to form crumbly particles like a crust. These crusties may accumulate around the openings of the piercing. Gently remove the crusts with a cotton bud that's dipped in saline solution.
- Begin gently cleaning all around the piercing with a cotton ball/swab dipped in saline solution or soap. It is not essential to rotate or move the jewelry in the piercing while cleaning. Do so only if it feels comfortable. If you use force to move the jewelry it may cause minute tears inside the 'tube' of the incision where the new cells aren't fully healed. This will only prolong healing time.
- Rinse thoroughly with water, several times. If you're using soap, make sure there isn't any left behind in the piercing. Pat dry with a clean paper towel.
SALT SOAKS
Sea Salt soaks are recommended for piercings that feel irritated or sore. These are also a great way to kill bacteria, fight infection, and promote healthy healing. If you take the time to do these soaks every day then your piercing will heal quickly and cleanly. And your body will thank you for shortening its healing time.
To Prepare : Dissolve a pinch of pure non iodized sea salt in a small cup of hot water. Hot enough to drink, no hotter.
Wash hands thoroughly.
If possible, invert the entire cup over the pierced area to cover the piercing and completely submerge it. Hold the cup there for a minimum of five minutes, or until the water goes cold.
Alternatively you can hold a cotton ball dipped in the solution over the piercing until it goes cold. Replace the cotton with a fresh ball and repeat this process for five minutes.
Rinse well with warm water and dry with a paper towel.
For a normal piercing, do the soak once everyday. For an irritated piercing do the soak 2-3 times a day.
If your piercing gets irritated as a result of the sea soaks, then you are either using the wrong kind of salt or the solution is too strong.
PRECAUTIONS
Good Hygiene = Great Piercing
Alternatively you can hold a cotton ball dipped in the solution over the piercing until it goes cold. Replace the cotton with a fresh ball and repeat this process for five minutes.
Rinse well with warm water and dry with a paper towel.
For a normal piercing, do the soak once everyday. For an irritated piercing do the soak 2-3 times a day.
If your piercing gets irritated as a result of the sea soaks, then you are either using the wrong kind of salt or the solution is too strong.
PRECAUTIONS
- Do Not let anyone else touch or handle your piercing. Do not allow pets to lick it.
- No swimming in lakes, ponds or pools. No soaking in tubs until the piercing is fully healed.
- No Antibiotics, Hydrogen Peroxide, alcohol rubs, Neosporin or Petroleum based products.
- The piercing does not need to be bandaged like a wound. Keep it clean and dry, let it breathe.
- Don't overdo it. Thorough cleaning twice a day is sufficient. Aggressive cleaning may be counter productive and increase your healing time.
- Wear clothing to protect the piercing from dust and pollutants.
CAUSES FOR CONCERN
If you experience prolonged pain,swelling,bleeding, a shift in piercing, or other cases, contact your Eternal Expression piercer for advice.
Remember : The most common cause of infection is touching the piercing with unclean hands.
Good Hygiene = Great Piercing
Comments
Post a Comment