Belly Piercing Help Please!

Aug 7, 2015

Hannah P.

On Monday, I got my belly pierced! now, its not sore to touch, and there is a slight yellow bruise formed. the hole inside my belly is fine (not red/bleeding), but the hole at the top part of the navel is slightly red and a bit raised. is this normal? I've been cleaning it twice a day with a sea salt and water mix that the piercer told me to use.

Aug 7, 2015

Savannah C.

I defiantly wouldn't be using what your piercer told you to use to clean it... I used a bottle of some sort that they told me to use & it shouldn't be that red.. Within 4 days there should usually be white puss coming from it that you can just wipe off.. If you kept putting on this stuff it should help. I changed mine within 2 week & I know you're supposed to wait like 6 but I felt like I could do it so I did. & I will try to find out what the cleaning thing was that I used I'll try & find it.

Aug 7, 2015

Alyx T.

^ you used a preservative version of sea salt mix. Almost every piercer sells their own packaged spray bottle version of it. It's not worth getting, a jug of distilled water and a thing of sea salt is less than 5$ and lasts much longer.

Do not use anything but sea salt water mix to clean it. Everyone reacts to piercings differently. Remember, this is a wound that needs to be taken care of. Clean it at least twice daily but no more than 3 times. It's easiest if you fill a shot glass with it and lean over to put your belly button in it. If you feel it's getting dry, lower the amount of sea salt.
If it stays for me than 4 weeks, then go to your piercer. But you had a literal hole punched into your skin, its a wound so the body is not really sure how to handle the foreign object at first, so it swells and it can bruise. Everything is fine as long as you clean it twice daily for 6 months, then once a day for 3 more at least, and aren't touching it unless absolutely have to and no removing it for at least 6 months, then if you feel you need to change it, go see your piercer before changing it. Everyone heals different and the healing can take anywhere from 6-12+ months, but if you change the jewelry too early you're basically starting over. It's normal for some to bruise, but again if it doesn't go away in a month then go get it checked out.

Aug 7, 2015

Qwaserght T.

^
100% agree

Aug 7, 2015

Savannah C.

I defiantly didn't use a preservative version of sea salt mix.

Aug 7, 2015

Carmen V.

I used sea salt and water to clean mine or the h2o from hot topic. Saline spray works too

Aug 7, 2015

Alyx T.

Saline solution is basically sea salt water.. Same with h2o.

Aug 7, 2015

Alyx T.

Savannah - if you used anything else then the shop shouldn't be selling it. Nothing else but sea salt should be used on piercings.

Aug 7, 2015

Savannah C.

Alyx T. - your implying everything is like sea salt water... & I didn't get it from my local piercer. He suggested it & he's rated one of the top piercers in the state so I trusted him. If it didn't work so well I wouldn't of taken it out at 2 weeks but it literally looked fully healed & even my mom who has 2 children & still has her belly button pierced said I could go ahead & change it. I got it done at age 14.

Aug 7, 2015

Alyx T.

Savannah - I've studied this, I want to become a piercer. Here in Canada we have tons of rules for piercing shops, and I've taken one course on it and I'm really good friends with several piercers, and have spent 3 summers observing in my friends piercing shop. Anything but sea salt water (saline is sea salt and some minerals depending on the water used, h2o is saline but with some stuff to preserve it to make it last longer) shouldn't be used on a wound. A piercing is a wound. You shouldn't have changed it, it can take anywhere from 6-12+ months to be FULLY healed, and changing the piercing before it's fully healed can be incredibly dangerous and lead to infection, migration, rejection any time in the future. Just because your mom had kids and has her belly button pierced doesn't mean she can tell if yours is healed on the inside.

Aug 8, 2015

Alicia C.

Alyx T basically said it all, I got mine done for my 18th bday. At first it looked fine it wasn't until after a week I saw a little bruise at the opening on each side of my piercing, I continued to clean it properly gradually went away. It's very tempting to change it early but please don't, I did and I realized I honestly like my original one the best. I have sensitive skin so the others irritated the unhealed piercing and made healing process longer. The sprays in the bottle aren't much different from sea salt and water mixtures only difference I found is one is quicker cause it's already mixed and just spray it but if I would've realized that I would saved about 25 dollars and gotten lunch lol.

Aug 10, 2015

NiK I.

Super hot water and sea salt it works