How do you know if your piercing is healed? What to do after ear piercing is healed? Do you still have to clean it? When should you change it? Or do you have to change it? And if you could sleep on a healed piercing, then keep on reading.
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How Long Do Pierced Ears Take To Heal?
When you first get ear pierced, a piercer is gonna give you some type of general timeframe as far as when your ear piercing is going to heal.
For example, they may tell you your piercing will heal in 8 to 12 weeks. Well, that is like a four-week window. And this is because everybody is different. Some people are gonna heal sooner, some people are gonna take a little bit longer to heal. So, with that being said, I wouldn’t assume that you’re gonna heal super fast and it’s gonna be eight weeks.
How To Tell If Ear Piercing Is Healed?
In the beginning of that time frame, there are a few ways to tell if your piercing is healed.
For one, it shouldn’t feel like a new piercing anymore. It shouldn’t be tender, it shouldn’t hurt. You should have pretty much forgotten that you even had a new piercing.
Also, it shouldn’t be red. Your piercing should blend in with the rest of your skin. Again, it shouldn’t be red at all. And there shouldn’t be any crusting or any type of secretion coming from your piercing.
Learn more here: Is your piercing healing right?
Changing Ear Piercing For The First Time
What to do after ear piercing is healed? As far as changing your ear piercing jewelry, there are a few misconceptions here.
Firstly, there’s a misconception held by certain individuals who believe that once they have piercing jewelry in place, they never have to switch it out and can simply discard it when done. We’ll delve into this topic. Secondly, we’ll address those who think that once their piercing has fully healed, they can go without any jewelry. Let’s explore this aspect as well.
Healed Ear Piercing Without Jewelry
First, as far as your piercing being healed and being without jewelry, even though it’s healed, you still need to wear something in there for at least a full year. Even for an hour, your piercing can shrink and it can close up pretty quickly. Again, everybody is going to be different.
Original Piece Of Jewelry
Going back to change your jewelry, if your piercing, the original piece of jewelry that you were pierced with, is fine, it’s not too long, it fits you perfectly, it’s good quality jewelry, you can wear it as long as you want.
You do not have to change it and you do not have to throw it away. I’ve seen people throw out gold jewelry just because it’s piercing jewelry.
Suppose your piercing jewelry is too long because sometimes piercers do pierce with a longer piece of jewelry to accommodate for swelling. If it is too long and you would like to change it, sometimes it is better, because if it’s longer, it can get hit easier and then cause irritation.
So, if that’s the case, you would change it.
You can either go to a piercer or you can change it yourself. If you decide to change it yourself, you would stick with something that’s good quality.
Now, as far as what you’re sensitive to, everyone is going to be different. And if you change your jewelry and you experience any redness, itchiness, or swelling, then you can immediately change it back to your original piercing tool, or you can try titanium earrings.
Can Piercing Shops Change Jewelry?
If you’re a little bit afraid of changing your piercing for the first time, or maybe you’re not sure if it’s a hundred percent healed, you can go to a piercer and have them change it for the first time. More than likely, they are gonna charge you some type of small fee for changing it.
Do You Have To Clean Piercings After They Heal?
What to do after ear piercing is healed? Do you still have to clean your piercing after the healing period? If your piercing is healed, you no longer have to clean it with saline wound wash or whatever type of aftercare you were using. You can now just clean your piercing in the shower, just like you would the rest of your body, with soap and water.
Can You Sleep On A Healed Piercing?
Yes, you can just sleep as normal. If, for any reason, you notice that your piercing is becoming irritated, maybe because you are sleeping on it, then you can try the airplane pillow trick. Either sleep on the airplane pillow so that your ear is in the hole, or sleep in an inclined position with an airplane pillow. But you should be able to sleep as normal.