What to do
- Watch your hands prior to contact on or near the area of your healing piercing.
- Leave the piercing alone except for when you are cleaning it. It is not necessary or advisable to rotate the ring while healing except during cleanings.
- Leave the starter jewelry in during the entire minimum initial healing time. (Assuming your initial jewelry is appropriate in terms of metal content, style, and size.) Inappropriate jewelry should be changed out by a professional. Those with captive style rings or barbells can change the bead/ball portion of the jewelry at any time.
- Check twice daily with clean hands to make sure the balls are screwed on tight on threaded jewelry such as barbells. Both balls tighten to the right.
- If you like your piercing, leave jewelry in at all times. Even old, well-healed piercings can shrink or close in minutes after having been there for years. This varies from person to person, and even if your earlobe piercings stay open without jewelry, your body piercings may not. Contact your piercer if your jewelry must be temporarily removed. (Such as for medical procedure.) Monofilament nylon or another inert non-metallic substance may be able to be inserted to maintain the piercing until jewelry can be reinserted.
- Make sure your bedding is clean and changed frequently while you are healing, especially if pets get into your bed.
- Wear clean, comfortable, breathable fabric clothing in the area of the piercing.
- A multi-vitamin mineral supplement containing zinc and vitamin C may help boost your body’s healing abilities. Take it with your morning meal according to package instructions.
- Get enough sleep, eat a nutritious diet, avoid undue stress, recreational drugs, and alcohol consumption. The healthier your lifestyle, the easier it will be for your piercing to heal.
- Showering is safer than taking a bath, as bathtubs tend to harbor bacteria. To bathe safely, clean your tub with a bleach product before each bath, and rinse the tub before you fill it. Also, be sure to do a running water rinse on your piercing when you are done in the tub.
In the event that the piercing drains a thick puss discharge instead of a normal liquid secretion, you may wish to see a physician for an evaluation and possible antibiotic treatment. If you do have an infection, the jewelry should be left in the piercing to allow for drainage of puss. If the jewelry is removed, the holes can close up, resulting in an abscess.
LEAVE YOUR JEWELRY IN!
