Piercing Aftercare 101: The Do’s and Don’ts of Keeping Your New Piercing Healthy

You’ve just taken the plunge and gotten a fresh new piercing—congratulations! While the initial excitement of showing it off is understandable, remember that proper aftercare is crucial for ensuring a smooth, healthy healing process. Without the right approach, you risk irritation, infection, and prolonged discomfort. Fortunately, following some basic guidelines can help you enjoy your new addition with confidence. Here’s everything you need to know about caring for your new piercing.

Do: Clean Your Piercing Gently and Regularly

Use a Saline Solution: A simple, sterile saline solution is often the best way to keep your piercing clean. Many piercing studios will sell saline sprays made specifically for aftercare. Otherwise, you can make your own by mixing non-iodized sea salt and warm, distilled water (I can provide the exact ratio). Gently soak the area or use a clean gauze pad for about 5 minutes, twice a day.

Keep Your Hands Clean: Always wash your hands thoroughly before touching your piercing. Even a brief touch with dirty fingers can introduce bacteria that leads to infection. Think of your piercing as a healing wound—treat it with care and cleanliness.

Don’t: Use Harsh Products

Skip Strong Disinfectants: Harsh solutions like alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, or iodine-based products can dry out and irritate the delicate tissue around your piercing, potentially slowing the healing process. Stick to gentle saline or a reputable piercing aftercare solution.

Avoid Antibiotic Ointments Without Professional Advice: Unless specifically advised by a healthcare professional, skip ointments like Neosporin. These products can trap moisture and debris around the piercing, interfering with healing.

Do: Be Patient with the Healing Timeline

Every Piercing is Different: Earlobes typically heal relatively quickly—sometimes as soon as 6-8 weeks—while cartilage, nostril, and other areas can take several months or more. Healing isn’t always linear; you may experience slight ups and downs as your body adjusts. Trust the process and maintain consistent aftercare during the entire healing period.

Follow Your Piercer’s Instructions: My advice as your piercer is based on professional experience and your unique situation. If I recommend waiting 3-6 months before changing your jewelry, follow the timeline to avoid setbacks or complications.

Don’t: Remove or Twist Your Jewelry Prematurely

Hands Off: It might be tempting to fiddle with your new jewelry or twist it around, but resist the urge. Constantly touching or moving the jewelry introduces bacteria and irritates the healing tissues. Keep handling to a minimum—ideally only when cleaning.

Don’t Swap Jewelry Too Soon: Changing your jewelry before the piercing is fully healed can disrupt the new channel, potentially causing pain, infection, or closed-up tissue. Always check with me before making any changes, and consider having a professional perform the first jewelry swap.

Do: Keep Your Environment Clean

Clean Bedding and Towels: Your pillowcases, sheets, and towels come into frequent contact with your piercing. Wash them regularly, use fragrance-free detergents, and consider switching to a fresh pillowcase every few days during the early stages of healing.

Be Mindful of Hair and Products: Hair can trap oils, dirt, and styling products that may irritate a fresh ear or facial piercing. Keep hair clean and tied back away from the piercing when possible. Also, be careful with makeup, lotions, or sprays—they can introduce unwanted substances into the piercing site.

Don’t: Expose Your Piercing to Irritants

Limit Swimming and Saunas: Pools, hot tubs, and lakes can harbor bacteria that may increase the risk of infection. If you must swim, consider using a waterproof, breathable bandage to protect the area—but ideally, wait until your piercing is well on its way to healing before taking a dip.

Avoid Tight Clothing or Accessories: For body piercings like navel or nipple rings, tight clothing that rubs against the area can cause irritation and prolong healing. Opt for loose, breathable fabrics during the initial healing phase.

Do: Know the Signs of a Problem

Watch for Warning Signs: Some redness, slight swelling, and a bit of clear or pale-yellow discharge (lymph fluid) can be normal early in the healing process. However, if you notice signs like persistent swelling, intense redness, greenish discharge, increasing pain, or a foul odor, contact me or a healthcare professional promptly.

Act Early: It’s much easier to address a potential infection or irritation early rather than waiting until it becomes severe. Don’t hesitate to seek expert advice if something feels off.

Don’t: Panic Too Quickly

Give Your Body Time: A small amount of irritation can occur from sleeping on the piercing or accidentally bumping it. Don’t assume the worst if you experience a slight flare-up. Go back to your aftercare routine, be gentle, and see if the issue subsides in a day or two.

Trust Professional Insight: If you’re worried, don’t rely solely on internet forums. As a qualified piercer I’ve seen countless piercings and can provide informed guidance. Sometimes a quick follow-up appointment can ease your concerns and get you back on track.

Proper aftercare is an essential part of the piercing journey. By following these do’s and don’ts—keeping the area clean, being patient, treating the wound gently, and seeking help at the first sign of trouble—you’ll set your piercing up for successful, healthy healing. Your diligence now will pay off with a beautiful, well-set piercing you can enjoy for years to come.

DO: Know the risks

A piercing makes an opening in a part of the body where you can wear jewelry. All piercings carry a risk of health problems developing afterward. Those risks include:

• Allergic reactions. Some jewelry used with a piercing can cause allergic reactions. That's especially true for jewelry made of nickel.

• Skin infections. An infection can cause redness, pain and swelling after a piercing. A fluid that looks like pus also may come out of the pierced hole when there's an infection.

• Other skin problems. Piercing can lead to keloids. Keloids are raised areas on the skin caused by an overgrowth of scar tissue.

• Mouth concerns. Jewelry worn in tongue piercings can chip and crack teeth. Jewelry also may damage the gums. Tongue swelling and inflammation after a piercing may affect chewing, swallowing and sometimes breathing.

• Diseases spread through blood. If piercing equipment has infected blood on it, you can get diseases that are spread through blood. Examples include hepatitis B, hepatitis C and tetanus. All piercing equipment used in Crissy Vee Tattoo & Piercing has been sterilized.

• Tearing or trauma. Jewelry in piercings can get caught and torn out accidentally. Those injuries may need stitches or another type of repair.

You might need medicine or other treatment if you develop an allergic reaction, infection or other skin problems near the piercing.

DO: Take care of your piercing

The skin around a new piercing might be swollen, red and tender for a few days. It might bleed slightly. If the swelling, redness and bleeding last longer than a few days, contact your healthcare professional. Getting treatment right away can help prevent medical problems related to piercings that could become serious.

To prevent infection and encourage healing:

• Clean oral piercings with mouthwash. If you've had your tongue, lip or cheek pierced, rinse your mouth with an alcohol-free, antiseptic mouthwash after each meal and before you go to bed. Use a soft-bristled toothbrush to clean around the jewelry and the pierced area every day. That will help remove bacteria and plaque.

• Clean skin piercings. If you've had your skin pierced, clean the area around the piercing twice a day. You can use a saline solution made for wound cleaning or soap and water. Don't use hydrogen peroxide, iodine or other harsh products to clean the piercing. They could injure the pierced skin. Wash your hands before cleaning the piercing.

• Don't go swimming. Stay out of pools, hot tubs, rivers, lakes and other bodies of water while the piercing heals.

• Leave the piercing alone during healing. Don't touch a new piercing or twist the jewelry unless you're cleaning it. Keep clothing away from the piercing. Too much rubbing or friction can irritate your skin and delay healing.

• Keep the jewelry in place. Most piercings heal within about six weeks. But some might take several months or longer to heal. To keep the pierced hole open, always leave the jewelry in place during this time, even at night.