The ear styling begins… Stephanie recommends, at the minimum, waiting 8 weeks before changing up your jewellery but in general, be careful about changing your earrings round for the first 6 months as it can slow down the healing process.
Piercers recommend leaving the initial jewelry in until the piercing is fully healed. You may be ready to switch up your jewelry, but patience is a virtue! Studies have shown that changing your tragus earrings within the first six months can slow down the healing process.
You will know when your tragus is fully healed. You'll experience a lack of pain, warmth, redness or discoloration, swelling, drainage, tenderness.
For ear piercings, it is recommended to wait 6-8 weeks before attempting to change your earring. This is recommended as 6-8 weeks is the length of time that it takes for a piercing to heal.
If you have a question about when you can change your earrings after getting yours, you'll need to wait until the healing before changing your earrings. Most recommend waiting at least six weeks, but it can take up to several months for them to completely heal.
Has My Piercing Healed? You can tell if a wound is healing if there is no swelling and redness around the site. The healing process can take some time but redness usually subsides within a few weeks. A lack of redness, however, doesn't always necessarily mean that your ear is fully healed.
Typically, ear lobe piercings take around 4-6 months, while upper or inner ear piercings take between 6-12+ months to fully heal. You'll know your ear is healed once any discharge, swelling, redness, flaking, or soreness stops.
What's the healing time? There are different types of tissue in different parts of your ear, so how long it takes to heal depends on your body and the place you've pierced. Earlobes usually take 6-8 weeks. If you pierce the cartilage on the side of your ear, it can take 4 months to a year.
“For an earlobe piercing, most of the healing takes place within six weeks, at which time the starter earring can be changed out to another nickel-free piece of jewelry,” Sarah Lacy, RN, senior manager of piercing research and innovation at the piercing studio Rowan, tells SELF.
After all the excitement of having your ears pierced, you'll want to make sure that the piercing heals nicely yet doesn't heal and close over. This means you should keep your earrings in. In the first six months, we recommend you don't go without your earrings for longer than 24 hours.
How long does a tragus piercing take to heal? The short answer: Tragus piercings, and most cartilage piercings, take about three to six months on average to heal, while tragus piercings tend to take at least four months. "There's healed, and then there's fully healed," says Kelly.
A warm compress can be very soothing on a new piercing and can help reduce redness and swelling and encourage the wound to heal faster. A clean towel soaked in warm water can be helpful.
Tragus piercing is quite prone to the problem because of its location. Hair tends to fall over this area, getting caught, bringing bacteria and causing problems. Here are some common symptoms of infection: The infected piercing will have swelling and pain for 30 hours after a tragus piercing.
The ear styling begins… Stephanie recommends, at the minimum, waiting 8 weeks before changing up your jewellery but in general, be careful about changing your earrings round for the first 6 months as it can slow down the healing process.
During the entire healing period you want to avoid rotating the jewelry.
Keep your earrings in for at least 6 weeks, or until your piercings have healed. Remove your earrings for cleaning and sleeping. Wash your hands before touching your piercings or an ear. Clean your piercings with a saline solution 2-3 times a day.
Removing Your Starter Piercing Studs Too Early
If you take your earrings out early, it can be difficult and painful to put them back in. Plus doing so increases your risk of developing an infection or having your new piercing hole close.
Before you get too freaked out, though, you should know: "While it's not typical to have a medical problem when you leave your earrings in all the time, it is important to clean them," says Dr. K. Roxanne Grawe, a board-certified plastic surgeon who is based in Ohio and performs piercings in her office.
A tragus piercing falls relatively low on the pain scale and is generally rated around a 4/10 – similar to a helix placement. During the healing process, keeping the tragus clean can be a bit tricky.
Needle Piercing is Less Painful
Gun piercings on ear cartilage can even shatter the cartilage with the force of a blunt stud. When you get pierced with a sterile piercing needle, the needle is sharp and hollow, allowing it to easily go through your tissue.
Lobe piercings heal the quickest, taking only 6 to 8 weeks. Cartilage piercings, including midi, helix, conch, and tragus, may take around 3 to 9 months, and you should wait at least 6 months before changing the earrings.
It Takes 12 Months for a Piercing to Completely Heal
In fact, it is safest to wear nickel free jewellery during this time, and ensure that the wound is kept as clean, dry and airy at all times possible to maximise healing.
Signs of an infection
It is important to note that your piercing may be tender or painful for up to 3-5 days after the procedure was performed. This is normal.
The first question you're likely to ask when a new piercing becomes unusually painful or swollen is “is my piercing infected?” But more often than not, any discomfort is down to irritation or an allergic reaction rather than an infection. And it's important you know the difference so you can get the treatment you need.