General Piercing Aftercare

 

The first and most important thing is to start treating your freshly pierced piercing as soon as possible!

• What does this mean?
• Within a few hours after the piercing procedure, as soon as possible, or at the latest that same evening, begin the specific aftercare routine recommended for your piercing. (You can find these separately for each piercing category on our website.)

How should you care for your piercing?

• In general, piercings should be treated with an alcohol-free disinfectant and an anti-inflammatory product.
• Apply an anti-inflammatory product in the morning and evening, and before doing so, spray the skin surface with an alcohol-free disinfectant spray.
• Feel free to use the disinfectant spray several times throughout the day, as the goal is to keep the jewelry and the surrounding area clean.
• It is very important to apply a compress for 10–15 minutes at least 2–3 times per week, as this helps promote healing and softens dried blood, secretions, and any remaining cream or gel residue.
• After applying a compress, it is recommended to thoroughly clean the jewelry, because any dried debris left on it can continuously irritate or infect the piercing.
• A properly cared-for piercing generally takes between 1 and 4 months to heal completely.

This depends on the location of the piercing, the jewelry used, and the quality and consistency of the aftercare. (For example: earlobe piercing approx. 1 month, navel piercing approx. 2 months, ear cartilage piercings approx. 2–4 months.) Therefore, it is important to start the aftercare immediately because a fresh piercing is a foreign object in the body and is prone to inflammation. However, the extent of this depends largely on you and the quality of your aftercare. Most often, problems arise because aftercare is not started immediately, or even more commonly, because it is stopped after a few weeks before complete healing has occurred. In summary: Start treatment on time, continue until the piercing is fully healed, and always keep your jewelry clean! What should I avoid doing with a fresh piercing?

• Do not go swimming, use a sauna, or visit a tanning salon for 2 weeks after getting a fresh piercing.
• Do not touch it with dirty hands or objects.
• During the healing period, do not remove, replace, rotate, or move the jewelry.

Why shouldn’t I rotate or move my piercing?

• Because doing so repeatedly tears the healing wound. In addition, if dried blood or secretions are attached to the jewelry, moving it can prolong the healing process. It is similar to having a wound on your skin and scraping off the healing scab every day.

How do I know when my piercing is fully healed?

• A piercing is considered fully healed when it is no longer painful, sensitive, swollen, producing discharge, or surrounded by redness. For ear piercings, one of the easiest ways to check is to compare it with the opposite side.

When can I change my piercing jewelry? After complete healing (see the previous question).

• Many people say that the expected healing time has passed and come in to have their jewelry changed. However, jewelry can only be changed once the piercing has fully healed. Healing is not determined solely by the amount of time that has passed. If the piercing is not cared for properly or is subjected to significant mechanical stress (for example, getting caught on a pillow), the healing time can unfortunately be extended by several months.

Allergy or inflammation?

• Many people confuse allergies with inflammation. The most common symptoms of an allergy—or, in our case, a metal allergy—include redness, swelling, itching, and sometimes small fluid-filled blisters around the affected area.

An allergy almost always appears immediately after the jewelry is inserted, not weeks or months later. Based on this, we can confidently say that in most cases the issue is not an allergy, but rather a localized inflammation. What should I do if something happens to my already healed piercing?

• If a healed piercing experiences mechanical trauma (for example, it is pulled, bumped, or gets caught on something), it may become inflamed again. In such cases, it is advisable to restart the aftercare routine as soon as possible and continue it until the piercing has healed completely again.

How should we keep our jewelry clean?

• Through proper disinfection, compresses, and regular cleaning.