Piercing Aftercare

What to Clean With:

External Piercings: Neil Med Piercing Aftercare Spray

Oral Piercings: Alcohol free mouth wash

 

DO NOT USE: rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, creams, salves, fragrant soaps, etc. These can cause the piercing to dry out, reduce air circulation, and damage the piercing. 

 

How to Clean:

- Clean your piercing 3 times a day, no more no less

- Wash your hands with soap and water

- Use saline to clean off ‘crusties’ or blood, soaking a cotton pad in saline and putting it on the piercing can loosen up the body fluids from the jewelry and wound

- Dry off the piercing with gauze

 

What is Normal:

- First 2 weeks: Light bleeding, bruising, swelling, redness, soreness, mild pain

- Up to 18 months: Discolouration, itching, oozing of white/ yellow fluid, skin may tighten around jewelry as you heal

- After healing: jewelry may not move easily in the piercing, do not force it, this will create a new healing process to begin 

- Clean your piercing even after you think it is completely healed, as secretions may build up and cause an unpleasant odour 

- The piercing may seem healed but may not be on the inside yet, be gentle with it and clean it the entire healing period

- If you have had a piercing for many years it can still close in after taking out the jewelry, but it may leave a scar

 

What to Do:

- Wash your hands before touching the piercing

- Leave it alone except for cleaning, do not rotate or move the jewelry 

- Use clean towels, sheets, and cotton 

- Clean well following a sweaty workout

- Clean jewelry especially after using beauty products such as shampoo, conditioner, hair oil, makeup, hair spray, etc.

- Clean especially well following the use of hot tubs, pools, lakes, oceans, bath tubs, etc

- Leave your jewelry in as much as possible even after it is completely healed, piercings can heal up very quickly and close within hours

- If you get an irritation bump, leave the jewelry in and continue cleaning the piercing, be extra careful you are following all instructions, as this may be the cause

- If you suspect an infection, leave the jewelry in, & contact a medical professional

 

 

What to Avoid:

- Avoid irritation from clothing, rough cleaning, over cleaning

- Avoid rough play, touching with unwashed hands, contact with body fluids

- Do not change your jewelry until your initial healing period has completed 

- Avoid impure metals like nickel alloys

- Avoid sleeping on the side of your body with the new piercing


 

Jewelry:

- If there is an emergency and the jewelry must be taken out, often I can open the hole with a taper, within 24-72 hours of removal of jewelry

- Jewelry inserted during initial piercing may be too long once the piercing is healing after the swelling has gone down, contact me to put something shorter in

- Avoid hitting, snagging, or pulling your jewelry

- If the swelling is too much for the piercing, come in to get a longer bar put in

- Don’t remove your jewelry to clean the piercing

- Tighten your jewelry after each cleaning to avoid the balls loosening and falling off

 

Tips & Tricks:

- Avoid high waisted pants with navel piercing

- Sports bras are your new BFF for nipple piercings

- Keep helmets, headphones, glasses, phones, masks and hats clean so they don’t transfer bacteria to your piercing

- Do not sleep on your piercing, or use a travel pillow

- Tell your hair dresser your ear is sore from your piercing and to be careful when styling/ colouring/ cutting your hair

 

This is not a substitute for medical advice.
 

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