Looking after piercings - aka piercing aftercare

Receiving the piercing is only the second step in the adventure (after, of course, a long and painful decision process). Once you have it the success of the piercing is out of the piercer's hands and into yours. If you do not look after it properly then getting the piercing in the first place would have been a waste of time and effort.

Over the years I have refined an aftercare technique I think is suitable for 99% of people (maybe you already have a technique that suits you - if so, why not just try this system and see if it suits you better?):

Aftercare solution:
10 drops ti tree essential oil
20 ml sweet almond oil

Please use only the essential oil and not a dilute ti tree oil preparation as this may have other unwanted ingredients. This solution has a shelf life of up to 6 months. After this time replace it. It helps to store it in a dark bottle in a cool, dark place. Although rare, some people find they are allergic to either the ti tree or the sweet almomnd oils. You will be able to tell by a prolonged stinging or itching and a perhaps developing rash after using it. If so, get in touch and you can be advised about other oils to use. You should never use pure ti-tree essential oil on a fresh piercing

Do not use surgical spirit, hydrogen peroxide, alcohol, swabs, iodine or anything else that smells 'chemically' - although they may have immediate antibacterial effect, prolonged use will inevitably damage the piercing and cause more problems than they solve.

Aftercare Procedure:
Wash your hands.
Wash your piercing in mild soapy warm water and dry it thoroughly. Usually a shower or bath will suffice.
Apply a tiny amount of the cleaning solution (not even a whole drop) to the piercing (where the metal meets the skin).
Gently move the jewellery through the piercing to ensure the distribution of the solution inside the piercing.
Wipe all excess oil from the skin with tissue (not cotton wool - it leaves fibres that can irritate the piercing) If you leave the solution on this can cause problems as the skin beneath cannot 'breathe'

This proceedure should be followed twice daily. Over cleaning can irritate. If you find washing it too much or moving the clean jewellery through the piercing is a little painful in the first few days then don't do it - you'll just make it worse. Allow the piercing to chill out a little few a few days first (perhaps washing it very carefully and applying the oil without turning the jewellery)

Do Not:
Pick scabs from the piercing.
'Turn' the jewellery to help it heal - it does not help!
Touch the piercing with unwashed hands.
Unnecessarily play with the piercing during healing.

Most importantly:
You must learn to be able to tell when the piercing is healed. Just because a piercing stops hurting does not mean to say it's healed! It will stop hurting after just a few days because nerves heal rather quickly compared to skin. You must continue with the aftercare
proceedure as long as the piercing is unhealed. If the piercing is gathering deposits of yellowish 'crust' (lymphatic fluid) in the tiniest quantity then it isn't healed! If lymphatic fluid can get out then bacteria can get in!

Remember, although the healing period may seem to take forever, once it's healed it's healed! You can think about changing the jewellery, playing with it and stopping looking after it quite so religiously.