Excessive 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 maintain the piercing, leave the jewelry in place during this time, even at night, to keep the hole from closing.
The general advice is to use saltwater or saline solution for about 5 minutes, at least twice a day. We recommend the Dr. Piercing Aftercare Solution, which comes in swab-form and consists of an isotonic saline solution alongside anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, and B-Vitamin ingredients.
Keep up the Routine
If you don't see improvement within a few days and you have signs of infection that are worsening (red streaks around your piercing, thick, yellowish pus being discharged, and/or fever), you need to see your family doctor ASAP and get an antibiotic.
It can take anything form a few weeks to a year to fully heal from general piercings. Large gauge piercings (i.e. those where piercings have been stretched) require surgical closure.
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.
If your ear piercing is tender or painful to the touch it may be a sign of infection. Belly button piercings have a higher risk because they are difficult to. Even if it does get severely infected and your doctor treats it, you still have to keep cleaning it until after its fully healed.
Infections or other complications from microbes will surely slow down your healing process; if you want your piercing healed as quickly as possible, make sure you keep it clean.
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.
As a general rule, we recommend waiting: At least 8 weeks to repierce soft tissue like a lobe or navel piercing. At least 12 weeks before repiercing 'soft cartilage' like a nose or septum piercing. At least 6 months before repiercing hard cartilage, such as daith, helix or conch piercings.
Changes in skin
If the skin is looking thinner or tighter around the piercing, or above the jewellery, it's a possible sign of rejection. As well, the colour of your skin changing around the hole is another potential sign. Transparent/near-transparent skin is a very likely sign of rejection.
Some people find that getting their piercings re-done is more painful than when they had the initial piercing, though others report a virtually painless experience.
The daith is located in the inner ear, so this piercing is not only painful to sit through but also tricky to heal. The cartilage is quite dense to go through and there's a distinct pressure that comes along with this piercing.
Helix (and Most Outer Cartilage): 6-12 Months
As a result, these piercings tend to take longer to heal, and Gottschalk estimated about 12 months of healing time for most outer-cartilage piercings to fully heal, helix included.
Navel. Navel piercings take the longest to heal, usually taking anywhere between 6 to 12 months. It is important to keep the area clean and dry, and avoid changing jewelry too often. Avoiding tight clothing and swimming pools is important, as these can cause infections and irritation.
Because many factors influence how quickly a piercing will heal, some people will heal faster while others will take longer.
Clean Your Piercing Regularly
“The key to fast and proper healing is to keep the area clean,” Kim says. For an easy-to-follow cleaning regimen, Doig suggests light irrigation with sterile saline a few times a day—there's no need to follow things up with a cleanser or disinfectant.
Surface piercings are the most likely type of piercing to reject because they are placed just underneath the skin so can easily be pushed out by the body.
Some fear that if their body rejected one piercing, it might reject all of them, which is not a crazy theory but also not necessarily the case. "You can attempt to re-pierce in the same area, but make sure your artist either goes deeper, uses a larger gauge, or chooses a less reactive metal," advises Cheung.
In some cases, the body may consider a new piercing to be a foreign object that needs to be dispelled rather than healed. This is when rejection takes place. If your piercing is being rejected, you'll notice a shift in the location of the jewellery, possible skin flaking or discolouration, as well as irritation.
Things like illness, hormones and even stress can affect your piercings! Piercings are a part of us, and as such will react to things that are affecting us, so don't worry if every now and then you find your piercings become a little agitated!
Most side effects will subside within 3-5 days. If the pain lasts for over a week, it might be a sign that your new ear piercings are infected. Contact your piercer or a medical professional immediately if you suspect an ear piercing infection.