If you’re thinking about going under the needle, you need to know how to care for body piercings! Body piercing can be a creative way to display your personality, but there are risks involved, so you want to be careful that you take excellent care of your piercings. Keep on reading for 9 wonderful tips that will teach you how to care for body piercings!
While your piercing is healing, keep your hands off! Touching the area may introduce bacteria to the open wound that may result in an infection or pain and swelling. Knowing how to care for body piercings means you know to leave it alone and let it heal without touching and poking at it constantly!
Be faithful about using the astringent your doctor or piercer provided. Use it at least twice a day, plus after taking a shower, swimming, sweating excessively, or getting caught in the rain. If you run out of it, you can use tea tree oil diluted in water, witch hazel, or peroxide as a back up.
Remember, dilution is key when substituting with alternatives like tea tree oil, as it can be too harsh if applied undiluted. Mix just a few drops with water before applying. With witch hazel and peroxide, be careful not to overuse them as they can dry out the skin around your piercing. If your skin starts to feel dry or irritated, ease up on these and consider using a saline solution instead. Always apply any astringent gently with a clean cotton swab to avoid irritating the piercing.
Taking a daily supplement of zinc and vitamin C will help speed up the healing process! It can also help fight off infection, should you become exposed. As always, check with your doctor before taking any type of supplement of course. Until then, try eating foods that are rich in vitamin C and zinc.
Take care to make sure that you don’t catch your new piercing on towels or clothing! It’s quite painful snagging a brand new piercing on something, and in the worse cases could cause your piercing to rip a bit. You don’t want to do anything to aggravate or cause swelling to the already tender area, so exercise caution when dressing and toweling off.
When it comes to body piercings, you need to make sure you let them breathe! Tight fitting clothing can compress the area and make it sore, so wear looser fitting clothes until the area starts to heal. Also, choose cotton blends so the material offers more breathability. Sweat can cause infection, so keep the area well aired out!
Do you have a mouth piercing? It’s a good idea to rinse your mouth out with fresh water after eating or drinking anything, until your piercing heals completely. Also, use a mouthwash twice a day to prevent bacteria from setting in. I would also recommend that you change out your toothbrush every two months from here on out, just to keep the area fresh and clean!
If you have pierced ears, you know that you are supposed to rotate the posts twice daily until the first 6 weeks have passed. The same applies for other body piercings! Rotating your jewelry ensures that the piercing stays open enough for you to change out your jewelry later down the road. Use an antiseptic or astringent afterwards to ease any pain or tenderness you may have felt.
Sometimes, even if you follow all the rules and do things the right way, you may end up with swelling or a slight infection. If that happens, of course you should consult your physician, but removing your jewelry and applying a clean, hot compress to the area can bring some relief. Change out the compress often to keep the area clean and free of extra germs.
As you care for your new body piercing, check it closely everyday for anything unusual or suspicious. If you notice swelling, redness, excessive tenderness, pus or other odd signs, then you should check in with your doctor right away. If you’ve contracted an infection, you may need antibiotics to keep healthy and heal your body.
By correctly caring for your body piercing, you can avoid lots of problems and pain. Do your part to make sure you don’t get an infection! You especially don’t want to wind up having to take the piercing out and losing money and time put into it! Do you know of any excellent ways to care for body piercings?